I live in northern california too. Harvest your pumpkins when you feel like it and let your vine continue to thrive and grow more pumpkins until late winter. Unless you have been using fungicide, your vine will probably be mostly destroyed by mid winter from powdery mildew though. You can put christmas lights on the vine to protect it from frost if the vine is still alive at the first frost (this is the first time I am going to try this this year, so dont expect it to work). If the bees stop coming you may want to help your pumpkin vine pollinate its flowers so you get more pumpkins through the fall and winter!

kharamarie - Your kitchen choices so far sound beautiful. I have been quite enamored with gray these days. I am curious, do you like more of a single tone from counter to cabinet (say white cabinet and danby marble counter) or a little contrast (say gray cabinet with the danby marble counter?) But don't think I am lobbying for marble, you can get the same looks with the quartzite and swapping the counters. Personally, I appreciate both but lean toward contrast - where are you? Full disclosure, I have a white quartzite island but LOVE marble (didn't think it was a good fit for our family) so I guess I am not really biased. You are choosing between two lovely stones. The surprising part of the quartzite is it isn't as 'loud' once on your counter horizontal and it looks amazing with soft white cabinets (my island is BM Dove Wing which is white with a slight gray/almost green to it.) It provides a some contrast to the white without being as dark as a soapstone (which I also love with white.) I did hone mine, which was a fantastic surprise (soft with small areas of quartz that shine slightly in certain angles.) Here are a couple of photos to get the big picture and see if it is the look you are going for (we have gray pietra del cardosa counters in the perimeter.) One of the first things that everyone comments on about the kitchen is the island - everyone (non-GW :) thinks it is marble. Shot of kitchen with super white quartzite A higher angle, just of the counter Another thing to consider for counters are your "views." My perimeter counters are viewed from a distance, it is a more softer subtle look - like a gray soapstone - with tone on tone lines, some white and black veining - I call it calm and relaxing. It is a great 'backdrop' for the kitchen but when you are working on it or looking up close (which most people don't) is has a lot of interesting detail. I view my super white at both a distance and up close when you are sitting at it. You see the 'whole enchilada' were the perimeter is more bits and pieces and on an angle because you never sit at it. If you were to use superwhite on a perimeter you would even soften it more because it was viewed at a distance and in bits and pieces. So the three questions I see are: (1) Do you prefer more single tone to contrast(this hinges on your cabinet color) (2) do you prefer white with gray (marble) or gray with white (SW) and (2) do you prefer the clunking of SW (my husband said it reminded him seeing glaciers from an airplane) or the linear look of the marble. Last question - is there an island in the kitchen? Would you consider quartzite on the island and the marble on the perimeter (or vice versa?) Not sure if that would be too busy for you. It is another play on the traditional soapstone/marble kitchen. I love soapstone and understand there are different varities that have different colors (gray, black, greenish) as well as durability (my friend has soapstone and I love it but there tons of chips in the sink which would bother me, must have been a softer one.) I think you can't loose here - just what speaks to you. I have included a link to my nearly finished kitchen album. I could not get enough of photos of counter and cabinet combos when I was in the process. I would also recommend searching google images for "marble island" "gray cabinets." You may find some real inspiration. Good luck. Here is a link that might be useful: My kitchen with Superwhite island

Quilting requires many skills that need practice. Take some classes and read some general quilting books. As you develop skills, your quilts will look better and you will feel better! My first foray into real quilting came with the book "Jacket Jazz." The book taught about 30 different techniques. I bought a cutting mat, a rotary cutter and a ruler and it was the start of a lifetime obsession. Once you have the general knowledge about "how to," you can branch out to art quilts for your walls. Another tip...find your local quilt guild where you can do workshops. Use your local Brother dealer fabric store to learn more about your machine. A really good sewing machine is an absolute necessity to minimize frustration! I love my Janome. I'm just reminiscing here...have fun with it!

The assessment of trades above by @User is correct. You’ll need a HVAC person, an electrician, and someone to do drywall. You’ll also need a new dedicated electrical outlet for where you moved your MW. I’m not sure why there isn’t an outlet above the range, where you moved it from, but it wouldn’t be in the right place for a chimney hood if it were. That’s why you have to decide on the hood, and design everything around the exact hood’s specs. The location and shape of the duct and the electrical location is NOT universal. It’s normal to have to move or adjust everything, or do new. You need the specs and the hood on hand when talking to contractors. Don’t forget an exterior damper to keep cold air from infiltrating your home! You will get a better job, done faster, if you hire a General Contractor, rather than trying to hire the trades individually. They have their subs that they give lots of work to, and who will return phone calls and show up. And pull the permits that this will require. A homeowner doesn’t get the same price or response from the trades, and it takes weeks longer. I’d suggest posting on your local NextDoor or Facebook neighborhood or city group to look for a licensed and insured (check this!) contractor who can do a small job. But, it isn’t as small as you think!