Island - I may try to dig that oleander and leave it in the garage. I was just going to leave it because, once, again, it's loaded with scale and it also had gotten too big to drag in and out of the house. I sprayed it down yesterday, so I'll probably try and dig. Yardman - You sound the same as us. We are pretty clockwork with frosts right around Halloween here in Pittsburgh. As far as what stays and what goes, pretty much everything outside now (and in the pics) will stay out except I will dig the alocasias and maybe the cannas. I will be trying the butia and washie outside this year.

Great pics! Kevin does look like both his Mom and Dad! The girls look great too. Love the dresses. Everyone looks like they're planning a great night. Your Post Prom sounds like our Project Graduation. Here for Prom night most kids rent a limo together (8 or 10 kids) and go out to a nice restaurant for dinner, then go to the Prom and then on to breakfasts at different houses. I had a group here on Prom night this year even though my youngest is 21. It was mostly kids his age who are out of school, but they had friends and family going to the prom so they were in a festive mood. They just hung outside, laughed and talked till 3am!!!

This cold has my head so stuffed up, I can't think straight! Steph- You make an excellent point about the laundry, but now I remember why I had it, in the mudroom! The kitty boxes have to go in the back hall area, and I can't put them next to the dryer...since it's too noisy. Plus, I don't want the soaps and cleaners, open to the kitties. They are my indoor children (LOL) and I have to make a space for them, too :) So, laundry back in the mudroom, but I do want to add an extra foot to the depth, so there's room for the bench on one wall and some cabinets/tool storage on the other (by the outside door). This should keep my husband from putting tools, on the dryer! Plus, there's room for a cabinet, behind the door for brooms, cleaning supplies, etc. The bench in the mudroom is for him, but I'd like to put a bench (where the freezer is in the plan) for a few hooks for my coat and my husband's everyday coat. Then, the freezer next to the oven (back hall/utility side) and then a small cabinet, then kitty boxes under the countertop with upper cabinets, above. I plan to put fabric under the utility/farm sink, so maybe I'll put fabric to hide the kitty boxes, too. I'd better get back to work and maybe make some tea to get rid of this cold. Hope you all have a great day and spring will get here, eventually...right? This rain/snow/rain/snow, with occasional sunshine is starting to get a bit tiresome...but I'll be glad we had all this rain, this summer!

Slate is pretty porous and needs to be well sealed---much like concrete. If you want a surface that gets patina, then Corian is it. It's the right color---the Mint Ice--and it will get small scratches and nicks in it over time. Take a look at a local kitchen showroom to see for yourself. However, Corian is non porous, and even if you leave oil on it for weeks, it will never soak in. It may be a bit of a splurge for the aqua tile you show, but it will be cheaper than the sheet glass. Last time I priced glass from a local showroom for a client, she could have done granite cheaper. You really don't have that much backsplash to cover. Maybe 12-15 square feet from the counter to the shelf? Even if the tile is $75 a square foot, that's the $1200 expense that will completely make the entire kitchen. For the back wall, I think you should do more of the horizontal glass cabinetry. They should run the length of the entire back wall, except over the range. NO OTR! This isn't the kitchen for it. You have plenty of counter space for a small MW on the right hand side of the back wall. That glass range hood would be perfect over your range.