Thanks everyone. Hi Ink. You reminded me of my early days with this huge family and my fear and flight urges and wondering if I was in way over my head. Praying always replaced those feelings with overwhelming peace so I know this is where I belong. In spite of all challenges I am blessed beyond my wildest dreams. While it's not the house I would choose, I think I will stay here with my calloused knees and my (yes) seven children and my wonderful husband who is king of our kingdom and I am his queen. My peace and joy come from things that will last much longer than my yard or my home and that's good to know. Do you have any specific suggestions for "connect(ing) the various parts of the scene we see in a coherent fashion"? Yes, foxesearth, I like the blocks removed from the front. I am having a tough time keeping an edge on the bed out there because the grass is kind of sparse and I'm thinking about other options: ground cover, extending the bed to the sidewalk, etc. I'm not sure how I'd keep the mulch contained if I ran it right out to the sidewalk. The blocks found a new home with a friend of mine. I've used limestone for pathways and stacked stone walls, so I'm going to stick with it to try to develop the cohesiveness I've learned about. Thanks for the links. Hi amazon. My children are tremendous help. I couldn't have done it without them. I agree about the paint job, but we will probably do new siding eventually because of problems replacing the existing siding. I like it better than vinyl, but can't find it anywhere. I can't bring myself to paint when I plan to do the siding within a year or so... I seem to do everything at least twice. I don't think it will be long before my mixed shrub border disguises the fence. I did plant a kiwi vine on a section along the side. Now I just have to wait for it to take off and cover. Karinl! Good to hear from you. I think it would cost a fortune to go around the yard with that type of fence so I'm still hoping my shrubs will make it disappear. I thought split rail would be nice, but I don't know if that would add yet another element that adds to the lack of cohesion. The boulevard is on the back burner until I complete some of the other projects I have going, but I do want to do something out there. Where's Ironbelly? I really wondered if he could expand on what he thought about the entry when he said "a broad, angled modification at the corner which would lead directly to your front door". Sounds great, but I need a little more direction. I'm wondering if he means taking out a column or adding some concrete to the porch or what. My plan was to do a wide flagstone path (as wide as the porch - 7') that kind of sweeps from the side to the front, maybe getting slightly wider at the sidewalk. The path would rise as it approached the porch making it just one step up onto it. Is this a good or bad idea? How would I do an angled modification. So many questions. Thanks again.

New homes (like ours 22 years ago and probably yours) are generally leveled and graded with the subsoil extracted from digging out the basement hole. The topsoil is stripped and if any soil has to be added for final grading (i.e., even after spreading the basement subsoil), it is not topsoil generally. This "grading" soil is usually very rich soil but devoid of organic matter. And, as you now know, organic matter is needed to get this soil "alive". You just have to add MASSIVE amounts of organic matter to make it friable. Every year, I mulch mow a HUGE amount of autumn leaves all around the yard and garden. It is something you have to do every year (i.e, adding organic matter). Raised beds are good for veggies and flowers but you can amend strips of the existing soil by adding massive amounts of organic matter and digging it in. (You'll have to make the raised beds out of purchased topsoil, Canadian peat and compost, etc., to get them "ready to use" immediately. I'd keep the compost in the new raised beds at about 10 percent IMHO.) Now is an absolutely perfect time to do this. Go around your area and see if you can find any curbside leaf bags and dig those into flower or veggie growing areas you want in the future and/or mulch mow them EVERYWHERE. Now is the time to do this and I recommend you do this on a MASSIVE scale. You'll have to run the mower over the thick layer of leaves 3 to 4 times to get it real small. Over time you will see dramatic results IMHO. All this organic material addition/amending is alot of work but it is great exercise and very rewarding IMHO. Good luck!! Tidbit: I talked to Dr. Elaine Ingram (she's an expert on soils) a few years back asking about the typical suburban soil around new homes and she basically said: "You probably can't add enough organic matter in your lifetime to make the soil 'too organic'." What she was really saying was "have at it" and don't worry about mulching massive amounts of organic matter onto the soil. Compost, shredded leaves, mulched grass clippings, wood chips, etc. Dr. Ingram isn't big on digging stuff into the soil but she said for new suburban soils this is fine to get things "started". She also said autumn leaves are great organic material.

Irish Rose Grower: Since you wish to know all about the world of Peonies, my first suggestion is to obtain a copy of "Peonies" by Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall. Obviously, you can find copies at your public library or through their inter-library loan system or you can purchase the book through various new or used book dealers. Two excellent sources of used/new books are http://www.abe.com or http://www.alibris.com These two sources, which are links to a very wide array of used and new booksellers, which often offer books in new, near new, fine, very good, etc. conditions. With regard to the book itself, "Peonies" provides an excellent history, overview, and an good discussion of an extremely wide variety of different types of peonies with various lists - including those suitable for cut flowers, fragrance, etc. Information from Amazon.com about this book: "Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall's Peonies is a ravishing book--the sort of book that you covet from the moment you see it--but it isn't just lovely to look at, it is also a wonderful read. It tells the long and fascinating history of this most beautiful of flowers, tracing its origins in the wild to its cultivation in the Imperial gardens of China and Japan and its journey to the West. The characters encountered along the way include an empress who arranged for the planting of many thousands of tree peonies, yet murdered her baby daughter and in her 70s took two brothers half her age as lovers, and a French missionary who spent most of his life in China collecting over 1,500 species of peony, most of which were sent back to France. As befits its subject, the book is lavishly illustrated with paintings and photographs that are both informative and appealing. But this is not just a wonderful story well told. It is also a serious work of reference giving comprehensive information on peony varieties, how to grow them, where to find them, and where to see them. It's written with the international reader in mind, so references include information relevant to the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand as well as Great Britain and Europe. --Stephanie Donaldson" An Amazon.com customer gives the following review of this book: "If you are a peony lover, you will treasure this book. Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall not only knows her peonies and traces their fascinating history through the imperial courts of China and Japan, but she interweaves this with a history of how peonies have been used in paintings and porcelain. The beautiful pictures included not only show the various peony cultivars, but show the peony as it is used in Asian porcelains, paintings and European paintings. This book and its photographs are so lovely, that I expected to pay much more for it. It's a bargain, if you are a peony lover. Al Rogers "Peonies" is a bit more explicit about growing and cultivation, but this book compliments his, because of the romance it brings to the peony. It is also practical, listing the cultivars, showing many pictures, and recommending the more successful cultivars. If you love peonies and want to know more about their place in history, I heartily recommend Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall's "Peonies." " Once in a while you may also find this book at either at overstock or http:www.bookcloseouts.com or http://www.daedalusbooks.com With regard to the selection of additional peonies, you might try the following source, which is the direct link to the Paeonia lactiflora 'Duchesse de Nemours' http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/Plant.asp?code=Q260 If you scroll down a bit, you'll find their listing of sources and then click on it for further information. The next listing will link you to further sources, most of which will be web sites which will lead you to additional sources and price comparisons. Obviously, if you book mark the link below, you'll be able to search all sources of plant material at the extraordinary Missouri Botanical Gardens in St. Louis, MO. http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/Alpha.asp Additionally, if you click on "Search", you'll be taken to their unique search engine - the best that I've seen to date. FYI - when I was living in central Illinois, I visited this absolutely delightful and extraordinary garden quite frequently. Now that I am living in northwestern Michigan, there is nothing that I have seen in this neck of the woods to compare, but then, I haven't yet explore all of the garden areas in this state. The Meijer gardens in Grand Rapids is young and doesn't compare to the extent and maturity of the Missouri Botanical Garden, but they are headed in a good direction. As for excellent, but not necessarily cheap, sources of Peonies, I placed my first order with A & D Nursery: http://www.adpeonies.com/ and was greatly impressed with the quality of their rootstock. One of the peonies that I ordered was "Chestine Gowdy", whose roots were nearly 8 inches long. By linking to the web site listed above and scrolling down a bit, you'll find some information on this peony as well as a link to "her" unique photograph. I was so impressed by "her" unique coloration, fragrance, etc. that I made her the center piece between two red peonies: "PHILIPPE RIVOIRE" that I obtained from them as well. Both of "his" roots were extensive as well. The fourth peony that I purchased from them was "FLORENCE NICHOLLS", which was going to be the "center piece" in my original garden design. Now that I've changed the planting plan of "Florence", I will have to place an order for a second one to give some "balance" to my patio garden area. For an added addition to my garden, I've decided to plant two Phlox paniculata 'Mount Fuji', which is planted slightly in back of and just between "Chestine Gowdy" and each of the "PHILIPPE RIVOIRE"'s. Here's the link to some information at the Missouri Botanical Garden with regard to this Phlox. http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/Plant.asp?code=E600 Another peony that I may eventually add to my garden is the known as the "Memorial Day" Peony. It's official name is Paeonia officinalis 'Rubra Plena' My mother had this peony in her garden for decades and it usually bloomed close or around Memorial Day (central Illinois). She treasured it and often used it as a cut flower. Now my daughter, Heather, has this plant in her garden and thus a tradition lives on. You will find more information on the "Memorial Day" Peony at this link: http://www.hirts.com/cgi-local/catalog.cgi?cat=1,41,&item=3079 So now you have additional sources of information with regard to peonies and other plants. In addition to the sources mentioned above, I would also recommend the reading of two - still - excellent books: "Green Thoughts: A Writer in the Garden" by Eleanor Perenyi and "The Fragrant Year" by Helen van Pelt Wilson and Leonie Bell. Both are out of print - I believe - but should be available at or through your public library and/or through the two sources of used books listed above. They are books to be treasured!!!! I do hope that you and others will find this discussion and sources of information more than useful in your gardening endeavors. Bill

Aprilneverends: there is no structural problem, but you are right that this new proposal is less work for him because as it stands right now, he has to extend the wall 25." He is a very nice guy and I trust him so I don't think he is suggesting it just to save time/money. And he is not being pushy about it at all. I think probably he just looks the look of it after knocking the other wall and right now having this HUGE walkway, but there are not cabinets anywhere now, so of course it does look good:) Weedmeister: the cabinets for the nook are actually 18" deep so on that front I am good. Cpartist: He came by today and I mentioned Fori idea to him (I hadn't look in this thread today until now so hadn't seen the other opinions when we talked) and since by then I didn't know we could hang a cabinet from the ceiling, I made the same suggestion you made. Since my wall cabinets are 2 24" ones, is it possible to turn one of them into a 12" and making a total of 36"? I think I will go with the general consensus of having the base cabinets and counter wrap around the corner. At this point I am just not sure what to do about the wall cabinets for the nook - let go of them completely and try to sell them on craigslist or find a place for them in the basement? Or, I can use them in the future as my base cabinets for a bookcase built in I am planing on around the fireplace! It was my plan originally anyway to get wall cabinets to use as base cabinets for the built in because they are shallower (sp?) and as I am writing this, I just remember. I definitely have the space to store them for future use! The fireplace built in thing is something I was planing for next year btw... So, should I nix the wall cabinets completely or have 36" of them? You guys are fantastic! Thanks so much:)