There is a lot of limestone here, wonderful vineyards not two miles from our house. But I think it is really the irrigation water. Everything that is affected starts out richly green in the spring when natural rainfall is watering the plants. Once irrigation starts they slowly decline. I'll keep a few (including my beloved Dart's Dash) but too many and the garden looks ragged. However, in anyone else's garden this would be a wonderful plant. I'd like it to have that chance. I'll be happy to dig it up for an interested area gardener. Rosefolly

I made at least a dozen scarves as Christmas gifts this past season, and had loads and loads of compliments on them. I used Red Heart pomp-a-doodle yarn, purchased at Michaels. I knit two stitches between each pompom. Very fast, very cute. I also made stuffed "aliens" for my kids and my nieces, which were a big hit. It looks as if Michaels may be discontinuing that yarn, and have replaced it with their own "Loops and Threads" pom-pom yarn. Their pompoms are much closer together; there is no way to get two stitches between the pompoms. Scarf: http://www.redheart.com/free-patterns/pomp-doodle-1-ball-scarf Alien: http://www.redheart.com/free-patterns/alien-pillows

my hubby has no problem going to the store for 'pom poms' (I have decided that this is one of my favorite miswordings from kids right now ;-)) or talking about anything female relating to me.... However, when it comes to his kids .. boy or girl there is a gigantic block followed by panic... We have talked over and over again about what is perfectly natural for kids but still... he has heart palpitations at the mere thought...I on the other hand have vowed to make sex as open as possible with the kids especially my girls... so when they do decide to have sex they can come to me and we can take the necessary steps to make sure they are protected... I refuse to be naive enough or stubborn enough to insist on no sex before marriage ... that being said I dont really care how bm feels or hubby feels ... if they come to me or I feel they need some advice I will talk to them... with or without approval.. simply because ignorance is not bliss it is dangerous and I personally feel the less it is a hidden mysterious thing the less likely it is that they will feel the need to sneak around and experiance it far before they are ready. And, ever since I was tutoring kids in elem school and I realized what second third and on up age children were talking about (and this was almost 6 years ago) I knew I would not hide one thing from my kids regarding sex...

My little collection of Dalmatian figurines.