I actually really like the green front door. I like the green shed even more. Check out Annie's Annuals website for more inspiration-- she is the Queen of Cottage, and incorporates a LOT of color in her schemes and scenes. Likely with purple and red. hahahahahaa (I love it) California tropi-cottage sums her up pretty well, as does Fantasia. Something that crosses my mind though-- could you affix a trellis/arbor/support of some sort in between your front windows? Since it appears that your lower 2 windows are at the same spot as the upper 2 windows, you have a large blue canvas, over which something lush and chartreuse/acid green or (and? LOL) red would pop *smashingly*. It's maybe more industrial in style than you are comfortable with, but a lot of people out here (most houses are craftsman style bungalows here) use long lengths of wire cable, planted into the ground (not sure how?) and anchored to the eaves of the house with large eye screws. So you have 8-10 foot (~ish) tall lengths of cable that morning glories, clematis, honeysuckle, whatever-- can climb up. Ooh! Sweet peas! The possibilities are endless. I don't mind the sight of the silver cables, but once the plants really get going, you don't see them anyway. Something to think about. I think I would like a little short fency looking border around your bed near the front walk, too. I love your house!!!!!

Dawn, Didn't you say before that you thought your floors were fir, not pine? That's what they look like to me, at least the picture with the white paint blobs. Before I'd sand the floors, I'd try a variety of clean-up/ strip off test areas to see how the floors look without going down beyond removing the current finish (by stripping alone or in combination with a very light hand sanding). It might surprise you, how nice it could look. Do not put down any trial finishes on the test areas once they are clean. The areas may still look quite dull, though, without any remaining finish. To see how a the floor might look with a finish on it, you can try a quick wiped-on coat of mineral spirits or paint thinners. BE VERY CAREFUL WHEN DOING THIS (if using solvent to get a quick test look) as you are creating a flammable condition and the floor and any rags used will be at risk of fire until it is all safely evaporated. Use lots of ventilation (fans to outside are good) and dispose of any rags/paper towels used in solvent test clean-up sealed in water-filled metal cans, for safety's sake. If you clean off a test square yard or so, you'll get a good idea of how your floor might look (vis a vis condition issues like dings, scratches, etc.) if you just have the current finish removed (along with any surface dirt, drips, etc.) The real test is in areas where you might have stains from water or other liquids that have penetrated whatever finish is on now. Those stains might be so deep and obtrusive that you might want to sand them down to make them disappear. The downside there (aside from loosing the overall patina) is that some may be so deep you can't sand them out anyway. There are ways to improve water stains using acids and bleaches, but they are not always successful. You could also, for a small area, remove a piece of the floor board and make a repair using a Dutchman to eliminate a really deep stain. I didn't see any cracks worth packing or filling. One other negative thing about sanding down the floor, you may still have darker lines along the edges of the floor boards that will be more annoyingly visible if the surface of the boards is sanded down to lighter, un-age-darkened wood. There is no way to get the cracks completely lightened up. Do you know what your floors are finished with, now? The options (for older materials) are varnish (most likely) or shellac. You can separate the two by seeing which one is alcohol soluble. (You can use any kind of alcohol from Stoli to rubbing alcohol, but probably not beer.) Shellac is alcohol soluble, varnish is not. You will be able to feel the disolving of shellac by the alcohol, because the wipe or rag will get a little tacky. Meanwhile, if your floors seem too grungy to live with you can scrub them if you are careful to get any water you use back up quickly. I use hot water and liquid dish detergent, not Murphy's Oil soap which can leave a residue, with a stiff scrub brush and a couple of bushels of machine washable cleaning rags and drying cloths. A much better solution is to use a powerful steam cleaner like a Ladybug or TidyVap. These are pricey, but I have found mine outstanding for heavy duty remodeling-type cleaning. I find most of the other uses posited for steam cleaners to be overblown, though. Perhaps you can borrow one from somebody to give it a try. The benefit of the steam cleaner is that it is much dryer than the scrub-and-wipe method; virtually no moisture is left on the surface. Also hot steam is great for removing grease. You certainly seem excited and energetic in learning about your neat old house and how to bring it back to it's former glory. Good luck with your projects, just remember you don't have to get it all done at once. Be sure to plan for plenty of non-work periods, so you can enjoy your house, and enjoy your life in it. (Perpetual remodeling can be hard on a marriage!) Molly~

I think I found the answer. The technique they used (raising his thumb or hand) is called "Conventional Audiometry" and is used on children 5 years of age and older. He is not quite 4, so I suspect he was not developmentally ready yet. Or he was too distracted by the multiple commands from three adults. He's just fine! :-) Jen

That's such a hard question to answer. Of course, you are the person who will use the kitchen most and you are the person who has the vision. But you want your family to enjoy it too. You just have to balance that out in your own mind. ....which, of course, is not an answer. Maddening, I know. Are they understanding your vision and rejecting it? Or are they not seeing it in their mind's eye and rejecting what they think it will be? Have you shown them the pictures that sold you on the idea? I had one of those esoteric visions in my head for my kitchen. It's small and narrow and I wanted two different colors -- one on one side and one on the other. And I wanted a different color for the breakfast area and pantry. Every single person to whom I described it said, "Isn't 3 colors too much?". Without exception. The cabinet maker had to do 5 sets of drawings to get it all right and then still was only willing to do one color and door option at a time. My GC confessed to me when it was all over that he thought I was nuts and creating a disaster until he saw it come together. Now that it's done, everyone really likes it. My family is crazy about it. They just couldn't see it when I described it. OTOH, even though my husband was supportive all along and said it was my choice, if it hadn't worked, I would have been miserable knowing I was the only one who wanted it that way. Take pictures of your layout and use tracing paper to draw your modifications. Go get several large-size copies made. Color them in so everyone has a clear idea what you're talking about, what they want, what compromises are possible. It just comes down to the painful process of decisions and consequence. The more concrete you can make abstract ideas now, the more the consequences will be wonderful and comfortable for all. Good luck!