Cnetter, I didn't know primrose bloomed so early. I was thinking about getting one of the yellow ones, but then I read somewhere that they are a rapid spreader. Which one do you have, and is it hard to control? Last fall I received some free tulip bulbs with an online order, but I've never planted bulbs before and wasn't sure if I did it right. Today I noticed some of them poking through the mulch, which was exciting, but for some reason a lot more of them are up on one side of the walkway than the other. I'm hoping they are just a few days behind, and not rotted underground. Sorry if I bore you guys with my garden pictures. My DH teases me for taking more pictures of the flowers than I do our children, LOL! In my defense, the flowers are much more cooperative for the camera.

That's a beautiful Corn Snake! Where do you live, Florida? It looks like one of the Florida Corns, a bit more lighter in the background orange than the ones we have here in SC. I caught a 2 1/2-foot Corn attempting to cross the road just two days before Christmas, right before one of the worst cold snaps we have had, with temps in the teens! A Native-American friend told me that finding snakes and other animals that are supposed to be in hibernation now at this time of year is a bad omen of a really rough winter to come later, and for once I hope she is wrong! It's still warm here, though, with temps near 80 during the day; I am having to run the AC in the afternoons-in JANUARY! Sharon McKenzie

Hey again you ALL! Sorry I've been missing in action from my own post. I've read and REREAD all the replies and each one makes sense to me. Guess I'm easily swayed. HA! I'm not going to call you all out by name, but I do want to thank each and every one of you for your thoughts. I very much appreciate the compliments on the exterior of the home because I can't tell you what all we've done to and spent on this place in the last 2+ years. As one example, about two feet from the little curved gate that you see in my wall pic was the biggest pine tree on the whole property...ole Granpappy! Yes, I'm saying it was between the front gate and the house...where you see those stepping stones.....the tree was maybe eight feet from the front door. I was terrified the day the tree guy took it down. I loaded up all my dogs and we went and hid out at Sonic till it was over. My stomach was in some big knots...mostly from my own nerves but the chili cheese dog didn't help either. And then the interior renovations started and I now drink too much. LOL! A few thoughts I have. I think the house looks blah in person. I think in these pics you guys are most likely seeing the color of the landscaping. I originally was going for kind of a "Cape Cod" look I suppose. And honestly, the house was already painted gray, so being that I have no imagination when it comes to paint, I picked a slightly darker gray color. My husband calls it "Gray Crap." Yikes. Now just some general questions about roof color. Okay, so if I don't do a version of red, should the roof be darker then the house paint? Or lighter? Should the roof be a solid color or more of a varigated blend? Shouldn't the roof have SOME gray in it? Interestingly enough I have had some roof experience lately...I'm not a total virgin. We have another home (that we haven't been able to sell) and we had to replace the failing roof. It is a totally different style to say the least...old Chicago brick, dark brown stain (SW Shag Bark) on the gables and trim. We chose Certainteed's Landmark shingles in the Heather Blend color. It was between that color and Burnt Sienna that Prairiemom referenced earlier. I really never thought about either of those colors for the lake home, but maybe......see the link below for Heather Blend. It is not as brown as Burnt Sienna and has some gray. Whatcha think? Thanks, pup Here is a link that might be useful: Heather Blend is the fifth one on the top row

Thanks everyone for you lovely comments. Steve-am starting to recover from a winter illness but the garden is a total mess-weeds and neglect-thankfully the roses will still do their thang.:) LOL Sally-I hope you,Scout and Blossomtime have recovered from your encounter. Sally-As much as I love Kathleen I wouldn't compare her to Blossomtime-Blossomtime steals my heart and feeds my soul-one of the most beautful roses ever I think.I have my first spring bloom of her out atm but she is high out of reach above an arch.She grows with Lamarque and New Dawn and competes with them quite well. Mr & Mrs Thrip-glad you found out that you can scan live flowers and hope you enjoyed the pic. Thanks again all. regards sandie