Hi folks Thanks so much for all your encouragement and support! It's so nice to know that I'm not alone in this, and that there are friends out there who understand that roses are important to us when we've lavished love and attention on them - Bluegirl put that well. Part of the fun of growing roses for me is that they need me in a way that daylilies never would, but this year they've needed too much attention for too little return. And I am indeed a lazy rose gardener, at least as much as I can be with 700+ roses. I don't spray anything except very occasional Liquid Fence or insecticidal soap, and they've all built some resistance from "tough love" for years that will hopefully help them weather all this. RpR, that's one reason I am totally toast if I winter protect before the ground freezes - without the Serenade and more fussing than I'm willing to do, far more roses will die from winter canker in my climate than winter kill. For Nebraska, it's not the absolute low temperature but the constantly variable ups and downs of temperatures all winter that keep no reliable snow cover on the ground, and just enough warm spells to confuse the roses all winter (we've been alternating single digit weeks with 40's and 50's since Christmas). Thanks Hoovb for the sympathies that this is one of the toughest climates for roses! Statistically, Nebraska has wider temperature variations all year - hotter heat and colder cold - than any US state except South Dakota. A perennial breeder in Nebraska named Harlan Hamernik (who created Husker Red penstemon) says "if it'll grow in Nebraska, it'll grow anywhere". Not exactly true for roses, but we do make weather a challenge and a legitimate topic of conversation. Personally, I secretly think folks in zone 3-4 and below have it harder for roses, since I can get away with growing lots of hybrid teas if I winter protect a few inches at least, but the options are so much more limited further north. I totally agree with ehamel and intris and bluegirl that this was the year to hunker down and just concentrate on keeping everything alive. I always mulch well for long-term survival in a naturally dry climate anyway, and always plant new roses with the water crystals to help short-term survival. Yep, mori1 - I was watering even into December too, and my neighbors have long since stopped trying to figure me out in the garden. It's just that watering isn't fun, and a large part of why I don't spray is that it isn't fun either (though I like to believe health principles factor in as well as laziness). Harmonyp hit it right on the nose, in what I was getting across with all the wingeing. Gardening is one of my few "me" things, and the only one besides exercise I "have" to do enough to carve out time for it. I work more than full time and have kids and my husband and other responsibilities, so I rely on the garden for that extra boost of sanity and strength to balance me out with faith and family. This garden year was just plain depressing non-stop, and I didn't even want to sort pictures of better years to post since it so wasn't reality for now. It's reassuring though discouraging to hear the same from others like seil and bustopher and mori1 that have had the same kind of year in the midwest. Even though things sort of grew and stayed alive, nothing thrived - 25 tomato plants and maybe 25 tomatoes total for the summer, fewer potatoes out than I planted, well established blueberry bushes dying. Seil, I agree that roses are tougher than we fear they'll be and that if I can keep even the crowns alive they'll come back in the spring. We know that well in our zone 5-6 winters, and we're used to pruning the puppies down to little nubs in the spring. It's just that the poor things were so stressed already by the limited water, with the freeze added to it. Even with the mulch and crystals and weekly deep watering enough to keep them mostly green, their root systems were stressed. Still - it is what it is, and we'll see what happens in the spring. After all these years, I know that a rose dying is an opportunity to plant a different rose, and I certainly haven't stopped buying roses for spring. Lucille, Kitty, Melissa - I know you have your share of challenges in your year-round warm zone in different ways, so I appreciate your sympathies. And Jeri, don't you dare stop complaining about your drought or I'm going to feel like a real whiner. Tough conditions are tough, even if it could always be worse elsewhere. Thanks again Cynthia

Zone4 - I love a lot of things about that plan. I'll list the immediate things I see that wouldn't work. If anyone has any way to make those things work then I would gladly suggest it to my builder. I like the exterior a lot! -I would like the main level laundry (we hope to have an upstairs laundry with kids rooms) to be near or even in the master. -Not sure about kitchen. Would have to work on the layout. Are the dimensions wall to wall? Does anyone know? -We are hoping for at least 16 feet (would love 20 but don't think it will happen) for dining space to accommodate our large table. -Upstairs beds and baths seem to be on the small side but not terribly small. -Would like a laundry upstairs. Reno-I'm finding that to be very true. It has made me stay in check on size though. When I would make plans before I would bump a wall out here or there and end up with 8000 square feet. LOL Okay, well not 8000 but you know what I mean. I'm not sure I understand what you mean about "thinking about the spaces created between the room you are moving around". Do you mean the room I am moving to another location in the plan or the main focus room (ie., living room or kitchen or...) that we think is highest priority and making the plan work around that? I keep reminding myself that things that take a lot of work are usually worth it. I'll keep trudging along. I appreciate your help!

As an expert witness who sees the forensic results of woven WRBs, I can tell you most fail to prevent moisture from getting into the sheathing and they deteriorate over time. There are new " smart" WRBs Both liquid - Prosoco, and Sto) and membranes both self-adhering and fastened wraps ( Henry Blueskin, Intello) that are vapor permeable in both directions allowing drying inside and outside while being excellent Air barriers when properly taped and sealed. that means at seams and all terminations to windows and doors and all penetrations. FOr designers use your red pencil and draw a continuous line around your entire 3D envelope and have a detail for each transition of plane, system, or material. This is what the current code requires. Sadly too many architects and builders don't understand this. Envelope failures are epidemic in this country... the wetter and more humid your climate the worse the problem is. This means failures will accelerate in mixed-humid and hot-humid climates, not eliminated in dry climates. Tyvek is just a "C" grade player in this sandbox in my expert opinion. Don't just meet the code if you want to reduce your risk of a failure and lawsuit go the extra measure for your envelope. Sleep at night is good.

@MrBlubs, I have to concur with you. I've noticed most places seem to be content with treating these plants like crap. (I'm looking at you Wal-mart and Home Depot in particular). Surprisingly the Lowe's nearby has a great selection of houseplants/succulents&Cacti, and they are all in beautiful shape. They even have some bromeliads! Luckily I have a public garden in my area(Many people there available for questions), and a local greenhouse with a LOT of variety. And-people who actually know in detail what they're taking care of. I might end up there, too. ;) And-as for the "throwaway" mindset, I already see that in some relatives... they just buy whatever annuals they want, leave them outside, and refuse to care for them. "If they die they die" That kind of behavior is why I inevitably end up taking care of things that aren't mine, even if I should just let them be. Can't help it when a plant's looking awfully sad, though. I've been trying my best to educate some of them that seem to care, but what ends up happening is it sounds like too much work for them and they either give away the plant or give it back to me. Actually, I think that's what's happening with most people. "It's too hard, I want something that's easy and always pretty". Especially with perennials. @Gary, I think that's in part to not only slightly differing experiences between growers(and levels of experience), but the differences in the plants themselves. I know must succulents need to be left alone to callous before trying to root, but there's some I've seen people cut and stick right in dirt and mist and they grew fine. There's a lot of variables and I think that's why we get so many different answers here lol And, yeah, always those people that seem to have something in crappy conditions "but it does fine". Fine is a very subjective word. ;) I know a lot of people that just shut down if an answer to a problem is too hard. That's why you see people go with the easiest answer, even if it's not correct. They get into the mindset of "this is too hard, this is taking too much time, this is too much effort, this is too much money", and don't want to bother anymore. Or maybe they just don't take us seriously when it comes to plants. Ex: "Well I know you told me to do this, but my friend Shelly told me to try this trick instead", "I know you told me what to do to keep my trees healthy but I'm going to hire a tree doctor instead", etc, etc....