A friend of mine installed one of the car-topper luggage bins on top of his old travel trailer, then he put a large plastic water container in it, filled it at home, and when he got to camp, he had hot water all ready for his next shower! This only works good if ya park in the sun! Great for desert camping, but i would think all of your water would be hot out there! I bought a coach with a shower/ tub combination. My wife likes showers, but, if i want to take a shower, i have to remove my wooden leg, which spells DANGER!! So, i use the tub! When we went to Daytona beach on our honeymoon, i could walk to the waters edge, but couldn't wade! If i took off my leg, i couldn't walk to the water! RATS! And, you can bet i'd look goofy crawling across 50-60 feet of beach to get into the water! I haven't let my wood leg get in the way of anything else! I do anything i want to, including riding my motorcycle! Some wag asked my why do i ride a motorcycle with a wooden leg! I told him it would be impossible to ride without it! Any way, get out in the snow!! build a snow man, get the kids out in it--it'll be gone soon, and then you'll have to be getting the camping deal in order! by: Rustyj

Mostly what I call my 'jammies'. Old sweats and sweatshirt. I put them on the minute I get up, change for work, back into them when I get home. I've got many 'sets' of these.......if I get flour or spaghetti sauce or strawberry jam on them, oh well! Summer time is old shorts and old T-shirt. So, if you're in the neighborhood, call first so I can "get dressed", okay? I do own a couple of aprons (full frontal), but usually wear them only on holidays, etc. when I HAVE to be dressed and still cook! Deanna

Well, our first order of business is removing all the 3" baseboard (!!) that isn't even clear trim quality wood and restoring some "natural order" with a smaller opening to the dining room from the living room and creating an arched opening. That little "dinky wall"? I'm thinking of creating a Craftsman like "cabinet/column half wall" type of thing. Just to give the foyer (I'm from the South ;-) ) some space of its own. Also, every single interior door (3 - we're not talking big money here) is hollow core - and beyond that, they don't even match!! WTH??!!! The only interior door on the main floor is the powder room door - we already have a traditional five panel coming. And proper hardware. Yikes. When you start to think of it, it all really adds up! Marcolo, if the first floor offends your sensibilities, I'm afraid the second floor would make your head explode. It surely does mine! In the 90's reno, they removed all the Craftsman era details that were in the house and while not a true Craftsman, I think that restoring some of that feel to the house will be a better fit than Miami Vice. I'm just ignoring the vinyl windows for now ::faints:: We felt the house has good bones, is in a great neighborhood, and can clearly be nudged toward a modern lifestyle just not quite that modern. :-) The 90's reno made it so not a family home but we intend to change that with a plan that gives us 3 independent bedrooms and 2.5 functional bathrooms. That's to explain the choices in the kitchen that are more forward thinking/traditional rather than what would suit only my family (we could, for instance, have a 10 cu ft. fridge and an 18" dishwasher but I know those aren't good future choices for a hardworking family house). I'm getting my plans from the KD today. He really just drew up my initial impressions, so let the games begin!!

My sister has the freestanding Whirlpool double-oven, and loves it. Pictures in link. It is very affordable and cooks like a dream, she says. (She and her husband are true gourmet chefs and very picky about cooking gear.) That said, I think the new Bosch slide in is the bomb, and for not a lot more money. But you will give up one oven to have it over the Whirlpool. I went with a 30 inch Bosch induction cooktop and an Electrolux oven and warming drawer combo. I wanted an extra oven but did not have the space, so at the excellent recommendation of people here, I supplemented with a Breville countertop oven, and could not be more pleased. Good luck with your selection. Here is a link that might be useful: Whirlpool induction range with double ovens.