Of the crocus that seemed to be absent, I found one under the litter that poked through the soil. I have also found four tulips (in two different spots) on the shady left side. This confirms that bulbs on the shady side will in fact grow, but not at the same speed as the ones on the right side. This is great news, because this means the total blooming period will be stretched by a few weeks, maybe even a month, so I will have a longer spring bloom than most of my neighbours, who have similar conditions on both sides of their entrance. In short, I will have tulips when the neighbour's tulips will be long gone. Thanks for your encouragement! P.S.: I just found out that last year's daffodils (which will bloom for the second time this year) will have on average three times as many blooms. Of the few that are already lush and leafy, most have three flower stems with juicy buds rather than the one each they had last year. About 25% of them already have babies, too, because some of the new growth is a couple of inches further from the mother. They are planted close enough together that they will form a uniform patch of happy flowers, but not close enough that I would have to lift them just yet. Not all daffodils are created equal and I know not all naturalize and increase over time, but this one is really fast. If you are looking for white daffodils that will increase rapidly without much help (they didn't get shrooms, I only added a bit of peat moss to their planting hole to sweeten the clay and only gave them one shooter of liquid fish emulsion after they were done blooming), look no further: Mount Hood daffodils are most satisfying. They are also huge (three inch diameter flowers, close to 1.5 foot high) compared to other daffs. Oh, and these daffs were bought at the worst place for bulbs - at a big box renovation store! Just sayin'!

Gail, it is great seeing these late Easter pics! Your seasonal tree is wonderful and looks great with the Easter decor (espec like the ?egg with the cross on it, that is special). I also like how you decorated your silver tea tray. Isn't it neat how just changing a few items here and there can add some life to your home? I REALLY like your candelabra and the colour of those candles with your walls. Thanks for posting! DD

This may not be quite in the spirit of your question, but when we were younger I wanted a BIG house with ALL the bells and whistles! When I saw a new idea, I wanted to incorporate it -- media rooms? Wow, that's a thing? I need it! A kids' den, a game room -- yes and yes! Oversized eat-in kitchen AND formal dining room. Of course I want those! Now that we're older, I think more about the house as JUST ONE of my priorities, and I think more about opportunity costs, maintenance costs, and cleaning. Now I want something much smaller and more practical. Now I'm much more interested in efficiency and doing things RIGHT instead of just having appealing spaces. The irony: Back when I wanted ALL THAT STUFF I couldn't afford it . . . but now that I could easily afford it, I don't want it.

Ray,Ray,Ray. I have a friend that would like to make concrete castings of your feet. No,he isn't going to put them on Hollywood Boulevard Walk of Fame,more like the dinosaur museum. That much dirt hasn't been moved with a shovel since before illegal aliens became guest workers. It sound's like in the past drainage problems caused dirt to be piled up in the yard until house was sitting in a basin. When this *@!& black dirt dry's out I will be addressing a similar situation with a house we bought. Since it was built in 83,dirt was imported until house was the low point. Dry cracked soila in Summer followed by seasonal rain caused foundation to shift. A widely advertised foundation contractor was hired to correct foundation. Once contract was signed, they pulled shrubs, dug holes around house,drilled and busted holes through slab inside house "THEN" told homeowner additional things he must do in order to make the famous "Lifetime Warranty" valid. Amongest those was installing gutters on house. During ensuing years,contractor was called back due to continued shifting. Last year contractor marched out new requirments that homeowner must forfill in order to preserve warranty. One of those stipulations was removal of more than 35 year old Live Oaks. Owner put the place up for sale and buyers spooked when they found out about ongoing foundation issues. I bought the place hoping to draw on long time experience to turn the tide. So far,I've come to an aggrement with foundation contractor that they don't have to do any work for one year but keep door open to continued warranty while I work on house. If you want to call me dumb,,wait for the rest and you might change that to insane. I don't believe the contractor can legally back out on warranty over those trees since they were there when they issued warranty. Here's the part where common sense (much less engineering) has been applied during the time foundation continued shifting. Remember when I said hose was the low spot after all that dirt was hauled in on the yard? It's still that way. Remember that gutters were required by foundation company as condition of warranty? The gutter downspouts dump water in concentrated areas which is worse for foundation than if water was destrubited along intire perimeter. What might you ask,are people supposed to take away from what I've said here? In my professional opinion,based on decades around building trades,one ,two or three man operations are very often more skilled than multi-location giants. Hug your owner/operator HVAC technician next time you see him,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,unless you happen to stand 6 feet,weigh 210 pounds and have a beard. Ray will just settle for a hand shake,thank you.