So far we've applied a pre-emergent to the new (last year) zoysia and done some spot weeding in the beds. All the plantings we had put in as part of a complete front and side yard re-landscaping survived the Winter well and are or have been blooming (see my posting in Georgia Gardening forum for a pix of our "Weeping Cherry's First Spring"). The bonsai will need to wait to go back out to make sure the last frost has passed, and I'm still carrying the new composter around in the back of the truck, but will at least pick a spot for it soon. The backyard, heavily treed, shady, and with a good crop of English Ivy (at least it's down from most of the trees) will be the focus of this year's efforts. We plan on erecting a fence along the back and one side (our neighbor has fenced in the other side), removing much of the ivy, creating pathways, planting some shade tolerant trees and shrubs,and leveling the one area that does get pretty good sun. Also on the agenda is moving our garden work table from inside the storage area under the sunroom to a covered patio area that is next to the area that will be leveled. Finally, we'll be looking at what to plant in a sloped raised bed area on the side of the house that was formed when we had the grade leveled and a retaining wall built along the side lot line. Our neighbor subsequently partially landscaped this area and we are cooperating on completing it. All this would probably make more sense were I to post pictures. I'll do so as we focus on the various "projects" that I've enumerated. Best Wishes--Carl

There truly are a lot of seeds here, and this is only half. It's still two weeks until the Dec.15 mailing deadline. Now that Thanksgiving is over, I can spread out upstairs and start dropping seeds in everyone's bags. That is the fun part. Then comes the more challenging part: deciding what to put in the bags of those who did not receive as much as they sent. I hope everyone had an enjoyable holiday and is ready to tackle the Christmas season. I've tossed a couple of Christmas pillows on the sofa, and that may be all the decorating I do. With six in and out cats, including three young ones, not many decorations can survive their curiosity and rambunctiousness. One year I bought silk balls that would not break. They do ravel, however, and strings of white silk were all over the house. The cats had a great time, and the mess was not too difficult to clean up.

Good evening, everyone! What a treat to come back and find 4 new posts. You made my day! I really enjoyed reading about your treasures. Thanks so much for sharing with everyone. I've purged so often over the years that I'm amazed I have anything left, but those special things have a way of hiding out from me so that I don't do anything foolish with them. LOL I had a good workout, then came home to do piddling stuff around here. I finished the last book in a series by Gary Chapman and Catherine Palmer. I hated reading the last chapter because I knew that would be it since it was only 4 books, Spring through the following Winter. If you're ever in the mood for a just-because-it-feels-cozy kind of book, I highly recommend these. My next book is "The Memory Keeper's Daughter" that a friend loaned me. I'm sure I'm probably the last one to read it. Dinner is cooking, so I have a little play time here. I had leftover chicken breasts and leftover whole wheat spaghetti and creamed spinach, so I threw together a kind of chicken florentine or chicken spaghetti kind of casserole, all basically WW/Core and using up all our leftovers! Hubby gets the 1/2 cup of leftover mashed potatoes on the side, and we'll both have garden salads. Marci, happy first day of school tomorrow! I hope your assistant works out great. Jan, I drink green tea drinks all the time, especially before working out because I read in a Woman's World magazine recently that it maximizes your workout. Hey, I'll do anything to get double the workout! Raeanne, love your sense of humor! Suzanne, I've been keeping Sweet Pea's photo on my end table and keeping healing thoughts for him going everytime I look at it. Dee, I have my mom's last wedding band that my dad gave her for their 25th anniversary. I wear it whenever I go somewhere nice and think about how I'm taking Mom with me in spirit! She used to be a great Canasta player, so maybe she'll send me some good strategy if I wear it to the next game. :-) Well, hubby's home, so I'd better scoot. Wishing you all a peaceful evening and a happy Thursday!

@ livebetter If your laundry area is so specifically designed to accommodate a dryer vent for a specific brand/model, then you have bigger problems if that machine breaks down. You will never be able to replace it with anything but the same brand/model since your design is so specific to that model. I'm talking about the positioning of your rear ducting to allow both machines to be pushed all the way back so as to be flush with your counter. Most likely any other machine, even if vented to the rear with the proper door swing, will not fit due to the specific ducting location of the previous machine. I live in Arizona where most homes are tract homes. Out here, swapping locations is simply not a concern because the vast majority of laundry rooms don't have custom cabinetry or counters built above or around their machines. My last set was an Asko and I was tempted to install a counter above them in the laundry room. If I had done this, well the design would have to be ripped out and re-worked for the larger Miele machines. Whatever you design for your machines, remember that you won't always have those particular models. Keep some flexibility in the design.