Mindy, I grew up calling them and knowing them as curly lilies, but I believe it's only a central V.I. nickname for them. Down island they're called trout lilies. Erythroniums grow wild in many areas on the island. When we lived on a small acreage in Saanich (south V.I.) we had many rock outcroppings covered with Erythroniums, literally 100's of them, it was a beautiful sight. Annette

Thank you again everyone for the kind words. :) Where am I going to put all of these ? That certainly is the $64,000.00 question !!! I counted yesterday: 31 different types in pots 3 of those pots are Andrew 33 pots total 3 different types in the ground 3 Elegans (stationary, not moving them) 2 Wide Brim 1 Tiny Tears 5 NOID in ground 3 clump #1 3 clump #2 1 ½ clump #3 1 mature mini no ID 1 mature mini no ID TONS of Elegans seedlings we dug up out of the front bed and put in the back. That is all the hosta on the property. So I have about 31 places to find for all the new additions. This does not include the 40+ I have still “to order” on my wishlist. As of today 7/29/12 I have only one bed clear. Initially I feel like I want to panic . . . but the flip side (for me at least) is I am not necessarily in any hurry to get them in the ground. I would almost prefer to let them get a few years in pots where I can coddle them and take my time finding just the right spot. So, in theory I believe I have enough room for them all (plus more) but it may be a good long time before they get placed in a permanent position. When I started this project I knew it would be a long hard road to beautification. My goal is to work with as much already existing in the ground as feasibly possible. I will be ripping out a lot of established shrubs and moving existing perennials, but more so to rearrange and start over. There is an existing design that was originally landscaped into the yard, so I will be working with that and adjusting lines and height as needed. But for the most part I am settled into a very long project with no real agenda. I will of course keep you all updated as to any progress that is made. This year though is rather uneventful since I am still in the process of amending and clearing out the first bed so that I can be ready for a spring planting. Here are some glamour shots of “The Jungle”. This first one is a pic of me in the process of clearing out the first bed. These were all taken in early June. And here is basically the jist of what it looked like before I mowed it all to the ground . . . The next grouping are of the section of yard that leads up to the side porch. This I don't think ever had anything planted in it. There is a bed separating the two sections of the front yard so you can't get to this part without going around the house and coming off the side porch. The Hosta in the picture are of seedling Elegans and one of my MIL NOID. It is still too young and neglected to pitch here for proper ID. So all in all I def have enough space to keep me plenty busy for a very long time. Plus we are having an arborist come out in the winter and trim a few trees that desperately need it as well as remove a few that are too close to the house. So there will still be a nice canopy but I will have a lot more light coming through starting in 2013 and that is also something I am going to keep my eye on for plant placement. Thanks as always for looking and reading, Ludi

Thanks, Amy. Actually, I thought we'd be in by last Oct or Nov. Feb 1st was the due date for our construction loan's last extension we were allowed (18 months from pouring footings), so no matter how you look at it, we're definitely running behind. We actually started *unofficially* sleeping here awhile ago, but for awhile had to run back to the mobile home to use the bathroom, and until last night, to use the kitchen. (Actually, there was a LOT of running back and forth last night, too, since we haven't moved anything over yet). We have some clothes over here since the mobile home laundry equipment quit and things migrated over and stayed. How complete: Door casing is about 80-90% finished, baseboard 95%, window casing 0%. 'Phase 1' of the cabinets are in, but without their doors and drawer-fronts yet. (We reduced the number of cabinets by about 1/3, so we could get the necessary ones completely done, then work away at the rest after moving in.) There is a definite need for some landscaping work. So, it's all cosmetic, but my dining room and living room floors are covered in plastic for several sawhorses sitting there with drying wood trim and cabinet doors that I'm finishing or painting. There's still a big chop saw for cutting trim in my kitchen, along with the contraption that bores holes for cabinet hinges, which is sitting on the island. My sewing room still has no laminate on the counters and is covered in trim lumber. Closet rods and shelves are here but not in, and we haven't even thought about window treatments. I had dreams of moving in and putting everything away, teaching the kids to keep the new house clean, neat, and organized from the start. They've developed bad habits living in the mobile home, where stuff was up around our ears and impossible to keep clean. I wanted them to see this place differently. Oh, well. We'll get there...Maybe by next October!

That's right, Lydia--hopefully the shelters hold on to all those people who didn't get the "celebrity" dog. Should be a requirement that if they don't get the dog, they are REQUIRED to take another!! LOL!! Shelters should make up fabulous tales about the other dogs locked in cages, maybe that would work. They could recruit elementary school kids to write stories and attach them on the cages. Schoolhouse--it's pretty sad, but the help the pooch got just warms the heart. I'm not recommending you look. Some people cannot watch Animal Planet, but I like it because those poor animals get help. I love to see the way they thrive and hang on in the face of cruelty.