I've has my callas and asiatics getting about 4 inches high, and they were pale. I brought them in the house so at least they would have a window to help them photosynthesize so they wouldn't fail on me. I always worry that their growth will stunt if not given optimal conditions as soon as they break the soil. My glads are comming up, too. Here's hoping the weather turns around so they can start going outside. Good luck!

I've used Mother's day as the earliest planting day ever since my first year in my house, when I planted three gardens (the first two froze) and had to wait for the snow that fell on Mother's day to melt to plant the third one. The only thing that gets planted early is pumpkins that volunteer from the previous Halloween jack-o-lanterns. I generally just try to grow things with a fairly short growing season. My wife and I were laughing at some neighbors one year because they were planting in late March. We diligently waited until May and saw out neighbors' gardens flourish because there were no late frosts. I guess what I'm saying is that you may well luck out, but you may get to plant again. Since you've already planted, I'd watch the forecasts and cover with newspaper if it's going to be cold. Welcome to gardening in Utah. Summers are too hot and dry and winters are too long. And much of the gardening advice that is based on zone is inappropriate because the zones are based on the coldest it gets, not how long it stays cold, but the advice tends to assume that zone 6 means that your last snow is in February and your last frost is in March. Keep an eye on the weather and keep the newspaper handy!

I have an update on DF: it appears that he tried to escape the VA home yesterday and threw a wheelchair at someone, missing them of course, but he did injure his own ear somehow. The doctors believe that he has Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, going back to WWII. This does not surprise me, and I know that he suffered from it severely during the early years of his marriage. The bad thing is that he has PTSS, but the good thing is that because of the diagnosis, his care will be paid for by the VA. I definitely believe in veterans getting this kind of benefit, since they sacrifice so much for everyone when they have to go to war. DF does not like to accept help from anyone, which has made his life and his family's life more difficult than it needed to be. Here's a picture of the phalaenopsis that we got at the orchid store. Lars

If it's any consolation, I did something very similar -- heard about the horrid backorder and convinced the local guy to sell me his biscuit floor sample, then very carefully matched the cabinet color (soft cream by Showplace) to the sink, then ordered a faucet with white-white handles and realized I just couldn't have that biscuit sink right next to the white faucet handles. After days of agonizing, decided to swap the sink for a white one. Because the cream cabinets are on the island and the sink is on the perimeter, I'm not as crazed as I would be staring at a mis-matched sink and faucet. I'm pretty picky about mixing white and off-white, so my opinion is: (a) you can mix two adjacent items if they're not intended to match; (b) you can mix lots of white-ish shades together as long as you have lots (or at least 3) different shades; (c) mismatched shades are easier with country style decor and harder with sleek modern. Decodilly, love the kitchen! P.S. The Great Shaw's Sink Backorder of Spring 2008 has ended.