I am doing square foot gardening with a twist...I use to live in the country with lots of room and did the Ruth Stout gardening technique....but with less room, I am doing the square foot garden this year...I have harvested so much form just one bed it is amazing,,,we have four 4x12 boxes and a long 12" wide bed in the back where I have these wonderful Sunflowers...I plant a few marigolds here and there too..I don't know if they help with the bugs but they are pretty. I tired to plant just the number of plants two people will need, so I have a variety but not too much of anything. I love this method,,,no weeding,,,and mulching everything the way I do,,,,I really am not watering that much although it is in the 90s here now. Right now, I have squash,,several types of beans, broccoli and peas are just going,,cabbage,,onions, peppers, hot and sweet, basil, tomatoes, carrots, mustard, eggplants, bausch, and I just noticed I have little watermelon and cantaloupe...I also have strawberries, only six plants, and cukes,,pole beans (Kentucky Wonder and Contender) and patio, cherry tomatoes,,I tried to grow lettuce but only got one picking,,,I think it got too hot... Here is a link to my blog...

I can so understand your indecision. I went through the VERY same thing. DH really liked the grain in the cherry, I really liked the shaker style so we went with Quince. But the stain, we had stain samples all over the house. We looked at them in daylight, at night, at an angle to the window, next to granites and flooring samples. I started out wanting the wheat color, but was told that the lighter stains can change more than the darker ones. We actually ordered cherry in the chestnut finish, but several days after the order I looked at a neighbors kitchen and changed my mind to the pecan with sienna glaze (I think it's called). They are gorgeous and look wonderful in the kitchen. We did have to send 2 back because they were out of square, but they should be replaced in about 6 to 10 days. Take your time. Your granite choice will go with any of them.

Patricia- your story made my day! Sounds like something my father would do. I would love to wait on paint, but DH is insisting we do it before the new floor is in, which is happening well before the furniture is moved. *sigh* I guess he will learn about that part of decorating if we have to repaint because our color pick looks horrible with our furniture. anele- I was thinking about a creamy color I suppose, though I am so tired of living in a vanilla rental box. The biggest problem I'm running into with the couch is that many tones (even some non-neutrals) are making the couch appear yellow. So I'm still playing around with it. The other issue is that whatever color we pick for the living room will need to go down the hall (see my flooring x-post in this forum for a few pics) since there isn't a good place to transition the color. I will probably make yet another thread about paint after I take some good pictures tomorrow. holly-kay: I think I'm going to sneak the cow in and put her in the office with some fun, bright curtains! I think DH will let me get away with a little more in there :)

Flagstone patios are wonderful. The only downfall is that the stones have uneven surfaces which can make for difficulty leveling tables and seating. Personally, I do not like concrete. No matter how carefully it is installed, ground settling, climate change etc. cause cracks to develop. Consequently, I installed pavers. They can be lifted and re-leveled is necessary to maintain an even surface. I believe there are even flagstone looking pavers made now. The base compacting below the install is the critical element and if you have experienced contractors to consider, ask them what they believe works best in your climate. Good luck.