I'm loving Dicentra 'Goldheart' And all the emerging hosta. Way to go guys! Spring's here. Heuchera. My heuchera is looking really good in all the gardens, particularily H. 'Encore' and 'Marmalade.' However, in my front garden is an old seeded variety called 'Oakleaf,' well over 15 years old, grown in direct sun. It has exceptionally ruffled, deep purple leaves and never scorches. It gets bigger and better every year. I replant it about every 10 years, when foliage becomes sparse. I have a lot of the new villosa hybrids, which I like very much indeed, but right now, I have to say that 'Oakleaf' is remarkably beautiful. Hellebores - all of them. Any of them. All the time. Mertensia virginiana- (Virginia Bluebells) is just opening, and remarkably late at that, but those soft blue-green leaves and true blue flowers make my heart beat stronger. Tulips and daffodils. Maybe the weather has been horrible, but like hellebores, these plants just look better and better when conditions are cold and wet. Trilliums. Our trilliums were at least two weeks late this year, but my goodness, what a proliferation. Their blossoms are huge and expanded, and the forest floor is a carpet of white. Even better, the much more rare (in my forest) red Trillium erectum has decided to spread. There are clumps of it all through the forest, and its bloom season has been prolonged. I also discovered a huge, showy patch of Dicentra cucullaria (Dutchman's Breeches) in the forest. I have never seen it before. The flowers are just fading now. It's a charming plant, and although I've been on the lookout for it for years, never found it before. Fritillaria. I have a good fritillaria collection, and the bulbs have spread and bloomed admirably, lasting a nice long time during the recent nasty weather. I'm enjoying them particularily this year because I know that the dreaded Lily Beetle is very close to my gardens, and I expect we will be infested sooner than later. Euphorbia 'Bonfire'. Just get this plant. It is beautiful all spring, summer and fall, but is at its most fetching right now with glowing chartreuse flower bracts and purple foliage. Glaucidium palmatum. Google this, if you don't know what it is. I have a pink one, with several flowers blooming now, but all of a sudden, a white one has emerged in my back shade garden. It just glows. Curiously, I planted the white one in that place about five years ago, and it promptly died, only to emerge now in all its triumphant splendour. There's more, but I have taken enough time. There is also less, with the depredations of the deer, rabbits and ants, but today, finally, the sun is shining, the rain has stopped, and it's bad karma to worry about the imperfections.

Janie, I used to show dogs. At the dog shows there are trade booths that pass out free dog biscuits. Sometimes, if it was a local show, I would take the kids (about 6 or 7 years old at the time) and I would threaten them with their life if they ate any of them -- but they always did anyway. I would say "Open your mouth and let me smell your breath!" And sure enough -- dog biscuit breath! Oh well, they lived. Didn't notice they lost any weight though ;-)

Does it have to be a dress? How about nice black slacks, heels and a dressy top? Or a jacket and coordinated blouse. Cute earrings, cute bag and you're set. Do you have a Nordstroms? Was recently looking for a dress to wear to a wedding and saw some really cute things in the women's section. I don't wear women's so nothing worked for me, but I ended up with a print skirt, sleeveles beaded linen top and matching cardigan sweater which I got at Macy's. It was Jones New York, so nice fit and quality. I hear you about the dresses. I'm a size 12 pear, and every one I tried on was horrible. Too big on top, too small on the bottom, too low, big arm holes. I feel your pain. Good luck, and let us know what you do. (Oh and congrats on the weight loss. Keep going.)

It looks a lot better. I a glad they were able to improve it. Marion, I had the same choice as you regarding seam at sink or seam in corner. I opted for seam in corner and I'm happy I did. The corner in my kitchen is a less conspicuous spot. If the seam was at the sink, I'd be looking right at it all the time. And what if the seam was not perfect Like so many have expressed here. Also, my friend has her granite seamed at the sink and a plumbing issue cause the granite to shifts bit. They wanted her to sign a release of liability to realign it so that if the granite broke, the repair man was not responsible. That was another reason I chose the corner. Not as much risk of shifting above my lazy Susan.