Clematis are outstanding vines with many colors and forms. I plant the non vining integrifolias in my mixed borders and they just scramble around. We had cedar fences and arbors already that needed decor. I have some blooming from March to October. Daffodils are so easy and so many forms and colors too, not just yellow though the yellow is very cheerful so early in spring. Their foliage is easier to hide than tulips and they are more perennial. I have a lot of crocus and dwarf iris too. Huecheras have great foliage colors though root weevils are a problem here. Grasses come in so many colors and sizes, I just love their blowing in the breeze. Oriental lilies have fantastic fragrance and take up little space. Hostas have great foliage and some are fragrant. They light up the shade. Dwarf Rhodies stay small without pruning and bloom early with the daffodils. Many are grown and hybridized here they do so well. I have about ten small ponds so waterlilies are a natural. Hardy fuchsias do really well here with almost no care and they bloom and bloom and bloom. They don't need shade and as much water as the hanging basket types and aren't whitefly magnets either. I love the hardy geranium Rozanne. What a long blooming workhorse without the scraggly wilty growth of Johnson's Blue. Heaths and heathers are evergreen and some are blooming year'round. They are very easy and mix well with dwarf conifers. Daylilies, well I didn't realize that they all didn't bloom for just a week. Stella never did that well for me and she was supposed to be the longest bloomer so I didn't ever bother with them. I just don't have room for something that blooms a week. Then I moved Always Afternoon and was also intrigued by your posts here........I'm up to a couple dozen I think....

We are in the design stages for our outdoor grilling area. What are the appliances and amenities that you just can't live without? We are considering including the following: grill, burner, ice compartment, 2 drawers, and a frig. I want electrical outlets for blenders. Our design is currently a split level height area with counter height seating all along the cooking & prep areas. We are also wanting to incorporate a lower fire pit seating area at the end of the entire structure. Any thoughts?

I bought a pack of 10 white bibs at Babies R Us. These were great because I could Oxy-clean them or use a little bleach. Same with white onesies. Also white cloth diapers for spit up, spills and everything else! I also liked: -travel high chair (I think it's by playskool) great for vacations or overnight trips where they may not have highchairs, also used it when the baby outgrew his high chair and wanted to sit at the table. I just took the tray off and pushed him up to the table. -The First Step catalogue has a lot of great products. -cheap umbrella stroller, very easy for shopping trips. -Jogging stroller for around the neighborhood and getting back in shape! -I used the Avent bottles and milk bags while breast feeding. My hubby was able to heat up the frozen milk easily when I went back to work. -I found I was always losing tiny baby socks, so I just bought a small pair of sock-slippers. They seemed to stay on better. -When baby gets older: cheap First Years sippy cups and spoons and forks. If they get lost or scummy, you just buy new ones. -Pack N Play -baby monitor (if you have a large-ish house or baby will be in another room). -baby first aid kit. I know there is more, I'll have to think about it! Also, one problem a lot of moms I know run into with baby showers and clothing gifts, sometimes the clothes are OFF SEASON. Make sure your daughter saves gift receipts and tags. Sometimes the cutest outfits are given for winter, in a size the baby will be in the summer.

LOL Ok depends on the house. In my alaska home I want reflective quality in the winter, so most straight painted walls and ceilings are in semi-gloss (shock and horror and yet it looks wonderful). Some walls are finished with varnish or shellac (even more shock and horror but they are the walls ya'll always compliment LOL) and others have a metallic finish. A few are finished with paste wax which when burnished is pretty glossy. Only my very deepest wall color in the basement is done in eggshell and that's because it gets too much light and was dang near glowing heh heh I'm also old fashioned so all trim is done in the highest gloss possible and I love that look. Now in the victorian, flat, matte whatever you call it for walls, though the ceilings will be in metallics most likely on the main floor. Trim paint is mostly being removed but the interim trim paint will be high gloss paint. I had a high gloss and then lacquered finish wall in one of my townhouses a few years ago. It was for art and it was stunning. The other walls in the room had to be semi so they didn't scream "different sheen" next to that long wall.