Kirk, Lost my Mom about the time your Dad was first making those chairs, so I know how apecial it is to bring them back. Same goes with those cushions. I see a problem, in the not too distant future though. Hard to believe, but the 80's were a couple of decades ago, so those cushions are already losing their new material quality. you might consider recovering them in plastic, to protect them for decades to come. I'd tell you how, except only Mom and Gram (her Mom) knew how, and, at the time, them working on the slipcovers meant nothing to me, until I had my own house, and wished I could cover the sofas through the years. My Mom made me a much-to-big sweater, just before she died. Fits now, but I just look at it occasionally, since the yarn is drying up from age. Those cushions are some of the last things your parents chose -- let them go on to your kids, in a few more decades.

Ok. In order for the arch to be higher, the tanks would need to be much closer together if you put them on the inside of the panel. They might be hard to get between, to weed, etc. So I would suggest you put them on the outside of the arch.(one on each side). I don't know if you considered that already as the option and pretty much have the tanks where you want them, but it looks like you wouldn't be able to weed the tank on the right, if it is right near the fencing. Have you put any drainage holes in the bottoms of these tanks? Don't put too many in. I was using about 9 food-grade stock tanks and put waaaay too many holes in them and the water would drain out much too soon, and I have to water them about every other day......which is a drag. I've tried to plug some of the holes and they're doing a big better. But mine are up on some cement blocks, and not right on the ground. I love trellis gardening. I grow (in the ground) cucumbers on both sides of the trellis and they love it. I also use my kids old swing set with fencing up one side and over it and grow winter squash, and it seems to love growing upwards.

Thank you for all your kind words. It means a lot to me. I do have to chuckle at myself, though. I got my dates off with everyone home for so many days over the holidays. *Yestereday* was Twelfth Night, not today! I do know that it's the 6th, but thought that today was the 6th! Oh well. Syble: Yes, my good friend is a great crafter. She's made me many decs over the years, including the two Christmas Bear candy jars that you can see next to the kitchen sink. Jaybird: too funny! I'd forgotten how late you were posting last year's Christmas pics. We can be The Late Team here ;^D Luckygal: thanks for your comps and for the link, too. As for the painting on the antique window in my powder room, it's a piece I bought from an artist here many years ago. It's a reverse painting of three santos (saints). I LOVE paintings on old windows, and paintings and photos of interesting windows, as well. I wonder what some psychiatrist would say about us because of that(LOL)? Milosmom: thank you, that's such a sweet thing to say! DG: Now you can see why your wonderful tablescape using your own Christmas village pieces excited and inspired me so much. I'm already planning on using some of my pieces next year on a holiday table. What a great idea, DG! Phonegirl: thanks, I'm loving those dishes, too. They look so cozy and honey to me. Karen, I'm glad my pics aren't too late, thanks! I do love our family tree. I should have included a pic of the F-P "ornaments". They really are cute. I'm glad you remembered that it was Luvs who alerted us about the cardinals. I'll thank her in a minute, as I love how great they work on my mantel. As for your Christmas Village, maybe we can both try using some of our pieces in a tablescape, a la DreamGoddess', next year. Gosh, that was a great table idea! Kathleen: thanks! Will you give us a little seminar someday soon on photographing tablescapes? Either here or on your blog? I do remember you telling me to use a tripod. I need to do that, as many of my pics were blurry again this year. Any more helpful hints would be MUCH appreciated! Jeanne: I'm glad you and others here can appreciate our Southwestern decorating. I can imagine how different it could look to people not from here. As for my newest Phil Sonier photo, we're really enjoying it. This is the one Coldwater Creek used on it's catalogs for years. Phil told me that he actually saw it on a billboard advertising CWC when he was in Kenya once! That's a loooong way from Albuquerque! When it first came out on CWC, there was this big debate as to whether it was a wolf or a bear. I knew right away, but Phil confirmed it to me himself . . . it's a wolf. Luvs: and thank you for the great heads up on those cardinals! What a great buy for so little money. Yes, it was the best gift to have our DS home with us over Christmas. I miss him already. Jane: your compliments mean a lot to me, as I'm a huge fan of your own decorating and tablescaping talents. Thank you. OA: You can come anytime and be be a real guest here! "HL" is short for the store chain, Hobby Lobby. The Pecan Crusted Beef Tenderloins were fabulous. We found the recipe in Food & Wine. As for my trifle, no it's not hard, but it does take a while to get it all together. I first slice pound cake into long, thin, 1/4" slices and let them dry out a bit. Then I spread half of them with seedless raspberry jam, cover them with the other half and cut into 1" cubes. I sprinkle them with Marsala wine and then layer them in a large, footed, clear glass trifle bowl. The layers are the pound cake cubes, my homemade custard, fresh berries and tiny mint leaves, and broken (real, Italian) Amaretti cookies. I top it with mounds of fresh whipped cream, toasted slivered almonds, berries and mint leaves. Back in Victorian time, it was called a Tipsy Trifle because liquor was used in it. Anyhoo, it's wonderful and we all love it every Christmas Day dinner. Let me know if you ever want the recipe itself. Lynn

(Like Topsy, this entry just grew....and grew....and grew!) I had not thought through that the shape of a susan and what is stored on it might determine whether or not poles are a nuisance--and why I like my super susans so much. 1. Poles would be a nuisance and nothing falls off if: The center of rotation is some distance from the edge of the susan and large mostly ''cube-shaped'' items are stored there. (I have the sous vide, mixer, blender, processor, vacuum sealer, spice grinder, a set of large mixing bowls, etc. No small items at all. Of course nothing falls off! ) 2. Poles are irrelevant, and things fall off when: Small and/or tall items are stored. If I stored, let's say vinegars, oils--tall thin items that tend to be top heavy, of course they would fall off when centrifugal force tilts them even slightly. And a slight push from another item being adjusted might tip a bottle over the edge. However, a pole would not be much of a problem if any in the arrangement of small items. 3. The shape of the susan can make a difference in pole interference. Poles are less of a nuisance on some pie cut than almost any D-shaped susans. Some (not all) pie-cut susans have the center of rotation and hence the pole almost at the point of the pie cut. This is especially true of the attached door susans. The pole causes little interference in storage area. D-shaped susans usually have a fair amount of space between the center of rotation and the edge, hence more interference from a pole. So, do you want/need susans at all? Which shape and pole/no pole work best for you? 4. Considerations: A. Can you obtain a susan size that makes maximum use of the cabinet area? Often susans that are inches too small are used. Custom made susans are best, but not all cabinet makers will do them economically. B. What size items will you store here? C. Will you have a single-door D-shape susan or a double door pie-cut susan? (Pie cuts properly installed at the very front of the cabinet protrude further from the countertop during rotation than do D-shapes, allowing for easier access. Especially noticeable in the attached door susans. D-shape susans allow a possibly more useful front area of countertop.) D. Does the size of your opening and the shape of the susan allow you to have the center of rotation and hence the pole right at the front of the cut? E. What style of cabinet doors do you have? The attached-door rotating susans work only with inset cabinet doors. Hope I didn't digress too much from the subject of your kitchen design. It was fun to work through some ideas here that I had not done before. And I didn't even go into the advantages/disadvantages of having each tier mounted to a shelf in a super susan vs the pole susan having only one ''floor.''