Chopin, Clematis is a good choice. There are a number of varieties. There are three broad categories of clematis - depending on how they need to be pruned for maximum flowering. I would suggest you probably want to get the ones that flower on old wood so you don't have to prune aggressively at the end of the season every year. There's a very informative web site - www.clematis.com - that has more information than I'll ever read through, but it is a good reference. I even found a clematis varietal called 'Fryderyk Chopin' with a very interesting grey-blue flower. You might want to try a climbing honeysuckle too. They are quite hardy and the scent can be attractive to humming birds and butterflies. The trouble is that they are also attractive to bees - so if you're a little nervous of bees, best to avoid honeysuckle. Good Luck Here is a link that might be useful: Katamat Musings

Alisonn, love your room! And happy to hear that "painting everything white" wasn't the consensus here. Our new home has a lot of wood, with a cathedral wood ceiling in the great room. All I ever got when asking for suggestions on colors or decorating, was "paint it all white".....not necessarily always on this forum. I agree with aktillery and could see a muted olive green leaning toward gray tones shade in your room. Not necessarily what your husband would like. Maybe you could suggest to him to bring COLOR into the room through a bold rug etc.

What millworkman said: support the roof with a post or jack or temporary wall, then cut the bad post out. Use a post base on the replacements. On the top part, I'd just take a sawzall and slice between the beam and the 2x6s to cut whatever fasteners are holding them together. There might be a bolt cast into the concrete that the post fits over, so slice the post in half a couple feet up, then pull off/out the pieces. Once you get one out you'll know what you've got to work with on the rest, and you can just lather, rinse, repeat.

Whatever paint you choose, the prep must be very good, especially if you have mildew issues. Lots of methods on the web -- power washing, TSP, mold killing compounds, etc., and make sure it is very dry before you start painting. You should pick a paint specially formuated for wood decks, and the label should have guidelines on prep.