I think we are having the same weather as Flowerlady. It's almost 10:00am, and the current temperature is 49 degrees. The high today is supposed to reach 67. I would love to be home to do some work in the garden! "sigh". Those of you in CA, the midwest and the northeast, please stay safe and warm. I have family and friends scattered throughout the US and I do worry and care about each of you. Marilyn

In NW Oregon we have had less than 1/3 of our normal rainfall. We have no measurable snow pack-there have even been forest fires in January! I believe we're going to be in a drought this year. We're nearly to the point that if we get significant rain, it will cause short term flooding at lower elevations and wreak havoc. We are dependent on snow pack to recharge the groundwater and storage reservoirs-rain fall just tends to run off and flow directly to the Pacific Ocean. California is a similar situation. So the west is practically guaranteed to be a tinder box this year because the moisture index in the vegetation is at dangerous levels. We did have a deep freeze (nothing like the polar vortex!) just after Thanksgiving, but since then-virtually no rain and temps are typical. But to wear T-shirts in January-well-that's really unusual, as we've been in the 50's during the day.

Bill thanks, I am going to try to put pictures after he tiles. If you think there is another company that you like better please let me know, as I am going to Philadelphia Saturday to my sons, there are many tile places there. It's funny the samples I have home that they thought matched the best are straw from the one tile place and mushroom from the other. They both seem to blend or a little drker than the tile. Do you know of these 2 which comes out lighter when up. I want to stay lighter if I can.. Those paper samples are so deceiving. Thanks so much for your help.

I would call it fate instead. If it wasn't meant to be it doesn't work out. Sometimes a blessing in disguise. Sometimes I think about how I would like to live on a large plot of land like a few acres or more. Then some times I think about how I would be pretty lonely in that setting and everything that goes bump in the night would freak me out a little. Nobody to look after your place when you're away and no potential witnessess when a burglar is scoping out your home. Nobody to call the fire dept at the first wiff of smoke. Not to mention having that kind of land is wasteful and unless it's used for something productive it contributes a great deal to sprawl problems in the areas of many major cities.