The Tawakoni Plant farm is owned by the Pinkus family. Ralph Pinkus, the patriarch of the clan, started Northhaven Gardens back in the 60's. He's responsible for bringing many varieties of plants to the area that were never grown here before. He was one of the guiding forces for the Dallas Arboretum. Mr. Pinkus is now in his 90's but is one of the greatest plantsmen of the area. That said, the Tawakoni plant farm only grows the most common varieties of hosta. They do have a website http://tawakoniplants.com/hosta.htm, but they are only a wholesale operation. In my humble opinion, they need to come into the present where it comes to hosta. I went to Northhaven a couple of months ago. They had little that interested me. I bought a Sugar and Cream as it was a nice plant and I had to buy something. If you go to buy hosta, you can't come home without getting something. It was probably the most exotic variety they had. Although Northhaven is probably the best overall nursery in the area, other nurseries are doing a much better job with hosta. There's a small chain called Calloway's that carries Monrovia grown hosta. They had some really nice plants this last year. Then of course, you have Lowe's and Home Depot. Other than that, no one carries hosta here. And, yes, Wills Point is about an hour east of Dallas. It's a nice little town that still has brick streets. My ggreat-grandfather lived there. Tawakoni plant farm is on Tawakoni lake, which is a water reservoir built for the water needs of Dallas. I think you pay like $50.00 a year and can pump all the water you want. So, it's a nice place to put a plant farm. Wills Point may be zone 7b. They could be a tad cooler than us, but not by much (it's only an hour east of us). They're pretty much the same as us. They have sandy soil though. That's about where it stops. West of that is clay. I thought Lynard Skynard was from Alabama or Florida. I don't think they're from Texas. bkay

To me, there's nothing wrong with mixing "high end" and lower cost, functional good-quality kitchen components. More important to me is to avoid the waste implied in buying things that will not last or that will certainly become unfashionable. I live in a working class neighborhood, mostly little 1950s houses with lots of retirees, including myself. Although our lot is on a lake, this property will NEVER command top dollar because of the settlement pattern of the community. The recession has really hurt home values here; I thought our house was $275,000 to $300,000 because of previous improvements, but I believe that it's now $220,000 and that was before we launched a major addition, geothermal, and new siding, etc. No matter what we sink into the house, it's for us, not for resale or peer pressure. We have decided to retain the 30 inch refrigerator we bought last year (an emergency purchase) but to put it in a position where a larger unit could some day fit. No wooden housing around it. We are keeping our old electric range, but are adding a portable induction burner that can be set out on the countertop to increase functionality. There is room for another oven on a wall outside our new G shaped kitchen, but I don't think I will be the one to buy it (unless my grown children move back to live nearby); a portable roaster oven will suffice to augment the baking and roasting for large gatherings. We use our outdoor gas grill in all seasons for grilling. My husband enjoys the ritual of being the griller and he shovels the access space before dinner parties. The broiler in the old range suffices if he doesn't want to venture outdoors. We are retaining our existing dishwasher. Our big innovation is to add a second sink to the kitchen. All sinks and appliances are white. My muse is the idea of a "workshop kitchen." I am not trying to reproduce any particular theme, unless it is a farm kitchen that processes a lot of food in season. I do hope to make the kitchen work as a functional, welcoming space for myself and husband now that we're empty nesters and for events when we have visitors, whether large or small groups. Laminate for countertops is sufficient and my ego does not require anything more dazzling on the countertops, although there will be slabs of butcherblock on either side of the stove. Hubby decided to go with hardwood floor and install it and finish it himself, although I was ready to order the vinyl. We have found a local cabinetmaker who said he would meet the price of a sample plan of readymade cabinets from the Big Box home stores. Now, we're adding custom touches to the cabinetry plans, not in decorative features but real utility features, such as tapping the space that was wasted in "spacers" between boxes. All materials are American made, or American harvested. Except for the old siding and walls and flooring, very little is going to the landfill. Furnace went to the scrap metal guy. My own eccentricities will add all the "pop" and pizzaz that this kitchen will need. Fabric, color, laminate choice, color of stain, art, displays of collections-- a creative outlet without a high end price tag. We have splurged on a bank of windows and a few light fixtures (No, we're not putting in "cans" because the ceiling feeds to an attic where we're fighting heat loss.) We are working very hard to live within our means, following the requirements of good sense and ignoring consumer manias. When I get myself too fired up about making a more upscale purchase, I remind myself that the photos, the ad copy, the home shows and the open houses, are all there to facilitate SELLING, not living. Here in Minnesota, where granite is quarried, I know that some of the rock countertops are fairly reasonable, but as I have declared elsewhere on this forum, I refuse to purchase anything that is sold with a "how to care for it" bottle of something and some warnings about how to protect the finish. In many ways, by definition, I am free from the pressures that other posters feel in order to keep up with the neighborhood, to make a kitchen that defines a house value, or to prepare for the brutal house market. I don't envy the young and broke. But I was there once and I not only survived but thrived on it. The original kitchen in this house was painted baby blue without concern for the cathair? gobs in the paint and the kitchen 'table' had a hinge so we could access the refrigerator. My hubby and my carpenter father and a different local cabinetmaker came up with a sufficient re-do that we have appreciated since right before the Bicentennial. I raised two sensible daughters in that modest kitchen. This doesn't mean I'm not agonizing over choices today, though. "Leave me alone, I'm thinking!" is a common mantra right now. Today's musing: Do I want to order fancier cupboard doors? It's always something. Enjoy your day. Florantha

"My point is if everyone keeps dropping their prices they will ultimately be working for free. Real contractors and trades people need to charge what they are worth, not just enough to survive. Dropping your pants (prices) just to get work goes against what the business models say." Price is based on what the market will bear and nothing more. In my region $1200-$1500 to change out a 200amp seervice is all the market will bear. Price it any higher than that and even the 'real' electrician won't be doing the job...no matter how much he thinks he is worth. "I hope you see how dumb your 800k remark was." No dumber than your remarks that "You can't be serious. If that is the case then the contractors in your area don't take their business seriously. That is pricing from 10-15 years ago." :)

FYI everyone - the top of the sink is just short of 34 1/4". My contractor said the countertop will be another couple of inches. So it all sounds standard. Too bad I'm not!! davidro1 - thanks for putting my mind at ease re. how difficult the work is! Cheri127 - not sure I want to pay $300-$400.00 more. Hmmm... Nutheroikie - thank you! :) I love the faucet, still (was so worried I wouldn't love it when I got it in person but it's grand). bayareafrancy - I'm 5'6 too and my bellybutton is 5" above the lip of the sink. Haha. Darn! ;) Thanks for the shims idea. Yes it will be painted. Kind of a pity though cause due to a door that can be swung open to hit the cabinet doors/faces, I feel forced to go with a higher-quality/harder wood for the faces and doors (inset). That means more money...but it seems a pity since the they'll be painted! But I don't think unpainted wood would look good with painted uppers. I don't want an upmounted sink either (no way - I want to be able to clean more efficiently for the first time in my life!). As for the faucet parts, they are interchangeable (within the same company of course) and the company that makes it is Jaclo: http://www.jaclo.com/products/sub_category?cid=123 They do have a gooseneck that isn't quite so high, but it doesn't come with the built-in sprayer as this one does - and I really like having a sprayer but no holes in the countertop. :) willis13 - interesting. I got my 8 year-old to measure the height from the floor to my elbow and while I'm not sure how well he measured, it ended up being 42" so after subtracting 6" it's at standard height! But the problem isn't the counter - the problem is how low the sink is. But the grid might help a little. I think I'd be very happy if everything were up an inch or two. I'm not a tall person (though my husband is something like 6'1 1/2) but again, both my husband and I have tall torsos. I'd look really normal if I walked on my hands I think. ;) I'm really stuck! I don't know what to do. Now's the time, and yet it will cost more and will postpone things more and maybe I'm being too picky. Or not. Shoot.