Lifesblessings, Critters are funny. I wonder what it was? Our "funniest" creatures were the raccoons we encountered the first summer we lived here. They'd come jump up on a table on the front porch, peer in the window, and knock at the window. We didn't encourage them, and in fact, moved the table away from the window to discourage them. (Raccoons can be really vicious.) We have a lot of possum visitors too. One day I opened the front door and the dogs ran out. Apparently there was a baby possum sitting on the porch railing. That little thing scurried right up the porch post and clung to the post with all its might. My least favorite visitor was the mama skunk and her four babies. She was raising them in the woods south of us, but brought them out of the woods, across our property and down to the creek every morning and every evening. We really didn't see her very often, but we knew they were around. One day, our niece and nephew were visiting and we took the two dogs for a walk after dinner...on leashes. As we returned to our driveway, the kids unclipped the dog leashes and then we spotted mama and the 4 little skunkies crossing the driveway. (sigh) First, the young dog got skunked. Then the older dog went running to him because he was yelping and crying, so she got skunked. We humans narrowly avoided being skunked. Getting rid of the skunky smell took a while. Whatever your creature was, at least it didn't bite you, etc. Hissing and growling is fairly mild, if you know what I mean. Still, I hate "surprises" like that. My worst surprise was being roared at by a cougar which is not something I ever would have expected. It is always something. My best surprise was the herd of five does who lived in a clearing in the woods when we bought the place. They got used to us pretty quickly, and the oldest one seemed quite fond of us. She used to bring her newborn fawn to the garden ever year....leaving it on the edge of the woods between the woods and the garden--about 30' from where I was working. She always brought them when they were teeny-tiny....just days old.....and left them there for an hour or so while she (I'm guessing) wandered around and looked for food. I loved watching the fawn and felt like I was being used as a baby sitter. Living among plentiful wildlife can be very interesting. Dawn

Hi pps7 I haven't signed up for notifications and saw this only now.I always love the pictures you post. If I havent' told you before, I will tell you again, I love your house and especially your master bath. You have sucha great taste. Did you ever post a link after your gorgeus house was finished? If you did and if I missed it, could you please give me the link. I have seen it in bits and pieces only. What color is your MAster Bath. It looks so luxurious.. I will go that route too I think given the complexity of finding a good gray.

boop, Thanks; that print is similar. I checked at Calico Corners' website but didn't see it. The nearest CC is an hour away, but I plan to do some shopping over there soon. spring-meadow, That one is similar, but I don't *think* it's the same one. I don't believe any reference was made w/in the post to the fabric, just a picture was shown, so I don't think I'll be able to do a search for it. Thanks so much for trying! I do like that one; I need to see if it comes in any other colorways, in the event I can't find the one I'm searching for. jillinnj, That one is beautiful, too; I will check it out as an alternative, also. Thanks I can't believe I didn't save the link, at the least. I typically try to be very careful to save any pictures or links that I see b/c this website is so tough to do a search on. Love, love Gardenweb, but wow, it's finicky in terms of reliable searches.

This is so fun! Nycbluedevil, nice to hear from you. Yes Art fair is coming up in about two weeks. I just hope it isn't as hot as last year--that was brutal. I almost didn't go and I never miss it. It really hurt sales. Inevitably, though, it will rain. Not that it hasn't been monsoon season already. Autumn4, my mom and sister went to MSU, I went to UM and never left town. I support the green and white---most of the time LOL! A2gemini, I had a speaking suspicion. a2 or A squared is unmistakeable shorthand for our little burg. It'll be great to get advice and input from you and everyone as DH & I begin our addition and remodeling project. We just have to get the final plans. They will be ready in two weeks, something that has been promised for the past several months. Long back story about things I can't control. But we will eventually get them and go to pull permits.