Hey, I clicked on your profile to see if it says where you are, and I see zone 10B but it's not showing up next to your name when you post. The next time you post, if you type 10B in the zone box right above where you type, it should "stick" and then show up next to your name in subsequent posts. How much sun has your plant been getting? It needs more, but I don't know if this plant can burn if suddenly thrust into significantly more light, which I'm sure you have in abundance most days in 10B. Hopefully someone can advise you on the best way/time frame to get it back to some stronger light without doing more harm than good.

"Dinnerplate" is an old term still used by big commercial - usually catalog places that don't know any better- to denote the size of the bloom. It used to be the AA sized blooms-- 10" & above. The term referred to the fact that the plants put out blooms that were large across but really shallow. The AA sized blooms brought out in the last 20 or so years are NOT referred to as dinnerplates as they are almost as deep as they are wide- in fact, when we AA dahlia hybridizers hear that term used by a retailer of dahlias it really sets our teeth on edge as they are most likely selling flat, AA sized dahlias to the poor unsuspecting public who then try to show them & wonder why they don't win in any show! Bah! It also gripes me when catalogs come out saying a dahlia is "exclusive" to that catalog when it's been on the open market for upwards of 15 years! (Whew- glad I got that rant out of my system!)

Upstairs loft: People who are saying it will be loud do have a valid point. I used to love the look of an open loft . . . 'til we rented a lake cabin that had this type of floorplan. It only took me one day to realize I don't like it. Similar story: After staying in a hotel room with a jetted tub, I no longer want that either. Big point: Anytime you can "try before you buy", it's a good thing. Many things like this are OPINIONS. You may love it, while I hate it. However, I do really like the picture of the rustic beams and iron railings. As for children upstairs /master bedroom downstairs, I don't get the argument. You can keep a baby in a bassinette in your room for a while. Anyway, you don't plan your house for that short period of your life. There's no reason a one-year old can't be upstairs. Some people make it sound like the child'd be in a separate zip code. The one thing I'd change is the kitchen layout. Having cabinets on BOTH the left and the right wall is forcing you to have a piddly short island. I'd move the mudroom door to the left so you could have an L-shaped kitchen with a bigger island. Overall, I like the house . . . but don't love it. The rooms are a nice size, and it's nicely laid out, but it doesn't make me say, "I'd be willing to put myself through the effort of building and the uncertainty of the cost to have this house!"

Thank you for your very nice welcome :) Ashelton, LOL, you scared me for a minute there! There are so many choices out there, I did do some research before buying, and of course strong passions go with many brands of cameras. I must admit after reading so many, I was just torn! I deceided to go with the Nikon because it seemed to have gotten great reviews. I realize of course you can have a great camera, but I still have to be responsible to learning how to do things correctly for great photos. I will admit though, (the batttery just finished chargeing and I took a few snap (on auto...no brains required there (blush), but wow, just those quick photo have me very encouraged as compared to my point and shoot by a long shot LOL Juanital, I think I had scrolled down earlier to a post of yours and you said you had a D300, so your words are very encouraging, but I must admit...it is still mind boggling all the choices...methods.. Acckkkkkk! I would have to say that I have a beginner based knowledge of the "art" of manual picture taking, it has been soooo many years of not taking photos, with me taking photos on my point and shoot automatic my brain has gotten mushy on the proper techniques of photography, but I am more than willing to revisit and progress into learning how to do things properly. Thank you for your nice comments on my blog, it is definately a work in progress. Have you bought any other lenses yet to go with your camera?