Randy, it's just another way of saying I wimped out. Ingrid, Enchantress' first blooms balled pretty badly. Maybe it was thrips or temps or her being a baby in the pot. This flush is doing better, but I don't think I saw the finish of that flower. Souv de Francois Gaulain balled, too. It was not a good first flush really. JBS has not looked anything like she did last year. Her flowers were bigger and deeper pink in the centers last year. The second flush is about silver dollar size. Mrs B R Cant is starting her second flush, and they're normal buds and flowers but not as many so far. Ya know what Forrest Gump said about the box of chocolates? Well, that's been my garden so far. Even Louis Philippe is still balling. He never did that last year. Bermuda Spice looks terrible and has the tiniest flowers. Don't know what's going on but this year is different. Mme C Testout was about the only normal one. She just sailed through. And Souv de la Malmaison has been gorgeous. I just got 2 SdlM's in February and also the climber. I just put one bush in the ground today. Her flowers are wonderful. Oh, and Niles Cochet and Gen Gallieni were planted today as well. And I got soaker hoses down in two areas. It's been a very productive vacation. Didn't get the front feeding & mulching finished, but I got a lot of annuals/perennials in. Sherry

Al, actually, I made those a few weeks ago before I got sick. Like Dcarch mentioned, those lasts a loooong time! Back during the prehistoric time when refrigerators weren't around yet, many of our New Year food were made in a way that it wouldn't spoil and lasted as long as they could. The rice cakes, when done right, would lasted for weeks without refrigerating. Many New Year food were made a week or 2 in advance. This way, food were always ready for unexpected visits of family and friends during this busiest time of the year. My family has lots of memories making rice cakes. Because of its looong period of cooking (6-8 hrs.), when we were little, we would all begging my mom to let us stay up at night to keep on the watch for the fire. When we made rice cake back in Vietnam, we didn't just made a few. We would make at least 40-50 to give out as gifts. A gigantic pot was a must in order to boil that many rice cakes. That means, an outside camp fire was needed to accomodate this gigantic pot. Someone would have to stay up to keep the fire going. It was like sitting around a camp fire and chit chatting, telling ghost stories and having a good laugh. In case you were wondering why we didn't cook them during the day, that was because it took all day to prepare and wrap those rice cakes. By the time they were all done, evening approached. What I love about our New Year vs. Christmas is the gifts. Our New Year gifts are mostly consisted of food, fruits and flowers/plants. LOL.... It's hard to disappoint anyone with these gifts, don't you agree?

I...I want to see more of that kitchen!! Is there a reveal somewhere? Also, the food looks wonderful and those moms are lucky!

LOL, 2many, I think Sriracha tastes like vinegar and hot peppers, but can't taste any other flavors. I'm a wimp, I like just a little heat but I don't want the enamel on my teeth to bubble. I think if it's so hot I can't enjoy the flavors of the food, it's kind of pointless, but Elery loves heat, the hotter the better. That is one mean looking panty liner, BTW. (grin) Sleevendog, I found a similar potato in my storage: I left it propped up on the counter for Elery to find and he didn't even notice it, LOL. So much for that Valentine's Day thought! Thanks for the sriracha tip on hummus, Elery would love that. I suppose I could just mix it in at the end, so the entire batch isn't "contaminated"? (snicker) AnnT, the steak looks delicious, as always, and although I don't care for very many hot chilies I love peppercorns. It's a different kind of heat. Annie