Sure, you can leave the pots outside as long as you are sure they will stay cool. Perhaps somewhere in the shade next to the north side of your house. As it cools down outside, you definitely do not want the pots to freeze solid as that will kill everything. But you do want to keep the pots around 35 degrees or so. Only water them enough to prevent them from drying out all the way. In a non porous pot that will take very little water. You may still get a warm spell yet - don't give up hope for outdoor planting! Tulips in the ground do so much better than those in pots. But tulips in pots will certainly do better than tulips that are not planted at all. :)

dgalow, I know that feeling. The worry, the angst, the stress, sleepless nights of tossing and turning, the second guessing yourself....The chic-ching of spending so much on various elements what if they don't go? What if I made a mistake???? You are not alone. This is normal and means you actually care about how it is coming together. I would bet you are on the right track. Of course pictures could help us support you. Do you like each element? Do you like the way the granite looks with the cabinets the floor and the backsplash? Jaguar is one of those beautiful rocks that can work with cherry, white, cream, brown, tan, even gray... Take some images of the slab with your cabinets door and I am sure it is all going to work out fantastically. Deep breaths and know you are not alone. This is the world of Renovations and kitchen love. ~boxer

I just wanted to say thank you for everyone's advice and imput. I still have not seen the black and white cat who I wrote the original post for. I can only hope that she had a great home and went back to it, or that someone else was lucky enough to take her in. She seemed like a very lovable pet. The gray tiger striped cat comes to see me everyday. He (at least I think its a he) is a little skittish, sometimes lets me pet him, rubs up against me, but never lets me pick him up. I would love to try to take him to the vet, and maybe in time he will trust me enough to let me do so. In the meantime, I think of him as my outdoor kitty, and I leave food and water out for him every day. Even on the days I don't see him, I know he was here because by the time I bring the food bowl back in every night it is empty, or close to it. I liked the idea of getting it a collar, and I think I am going to get him one, and if I am really lucky he will even wear it! My baby kitten, April, has learned not to go outside... at least for now anyways. One day in the cage while I was at work taught her to stay inside when I come home! Its funny- I bought the cage only to use on vacation and when I take her to my parents house, but she loves the thing. Its like a kid and their bedroom- they love being there until it becomes a punishment. April plays in her cage and sleeps in her cage all the time. I have it set up in the living room and leave the door open, but when she is bad she gets "sent to her room" (meaning she gets put in the cage and I close the door instead of free roam) and she knows she's in trouble. I started putting her in the cage for half an hour everytime she bolted outside, and when she didn't quite get the picture I put her in it with food and her extra litter box for a whole day while I was at work. She's been an angel since.

Keep in mind that no matter what the bar height you may need to try different stool heights. We have an island that is 37.5" high and had to find stools that were 26" high. The "standard" 24" were too low for us. I don't think the extra 1.5" of the island height is the issue. Even if we were at "standard" counter height of 36" the 24" stools would still be too low and DH and I are not tall people.