I pull up the plants late in the summer, before the pods start to decompose and tear, but when they are good and dry and relatively easy to strip. I take the uprooted plants to whatever part of the garden or landscape where I'd like them to grow in the future, and shake them rather briskly (not hard enough to break the stems.) If you pick them on a nice dry day, the seeds will fly! Most, but not all, are shed in this manner, and the remainder must be stripped by hand. Honesty is a biennial. It takes two years to mature. The first year after shaking branches of it in a particular area, you get nice little soft round plants that make a nice groundcover under and around other plants. They're easy to pull up if they sprout in the wrong place. I generally leave as many as possible in place. The second year, in the spring, each of the little plants sprouts into gorgeous bloom - you may have to thin them out at this time to allow enough space for them to develop. when the blooms fade, the seed pods start to develop, and the plant becomes more and more unattractive. This is when I yank out almost all of them, leaving a few in inconspicuous places to mature and dry. When rubbing the pods between my fingers, I work, for the most part, in an area where I'd like future plants to grow. However, I "clean" some of the branches over a piece of newspaper so I can collect and save the seeds. I store them for a year, and then scatter them in late summer. Otherwise you'll get silver pennies only every other year. this assures an annual crop.

Wow - you should be very proud. That's a good ethics question. How do you answer that question of why cheaters do sometimes win? Some skate by for a while, then get caught. I had a classmate in college that I discovered had cheated off me (he stole my term paper and literally xeroxed it and turned it in as his own). (He cheated out of pure laziness, not out of plain greed or anything, and that laziness got the best of him.) I think in a lot of cases, the trait that drives the particular liar or cheat will get them in the end. Greed can grow to a point that they try bigger and bigger schemes until they get busted. My DD is 9, and our neighbor of the same age is a liar who lies and steals things just to get attention. It only gets her negative attention, but I think in her family dynamic, that is good enough for her. In my professional life I have known one or two cheaters who steal other people's ideas and then take credit for them. And you only seem like you're sour grapes if you try to complain. My philosophy is fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me. Once I discover them, I steer clear. In some cases, it all works out in the wash and management discovers they were a fraud all the time. Other times, they move up the ranks undetected. It is frustrating to be a goody-two-shoes and see cheaters rise up anyway. Even at my 40-something age, though, I still have an overriding desire not to disapppoint my parents. So I think the values you have instilled will serve her well. And I don't have a good answer to her question of why some (but not all) cheaters still move up in the world.

Oh my, I had no idea y'all were still tweaking with my room....wonderful ideas, too! I've spent the last week steaming and stripping off the wallpaper beneath the chair rail. There was damage to the walls behind the paper that a contractor had done and just papered right over, and this was my opportunity to finally fix it. I've replastered all the gouged areas and sanded down all the sheetrock beneath the chair rail. Now that the surface beneath the chair rail is repaired, it's back to the original white color that we first painted the entire house. Already looking better than all yellow walls. As much as I love the blue walls, like those shown in the photos that oceanna posted, (thanks oceanna, you don't know how much I've pondered over all your gallery contributions), I've decided that the best way to bring in the blue I like is through bedding, accessories and pillows. I just haven't found a blue wall color that I'm comfortable with, and believe me, I've searched all over. I went on a search yesterday afternoon, and was instantly put off by the fact that our local BM paint store wasn't open on the weekends. I'd stopped in there once before, (during the week, apparently), and wasn't impressed with the attitude of the fellow working there. He just wasn't helpful at all and seemed totally uninterested in selling paint. Their being closed yesterday clinched it. Just around the corner was Sherwin Williams, open 'til 6 and with the most helpful staff. I walked out of there with my toile pillow and a handful of chips that matched the yellow and white shades I was looking for with a smile on my face. If you've read this far.....lol!....I will tell you that I've decided to do a SW creamy white beneath the chair rail, and a SW softer buttery yellow above. The bedskirt will be a Waverly blue/yellow/white plaid and I'll find another blue and yellow throw or quilt for the end of the bed. Going to Penny's for that search, thanks Piper! I'm changing out the pillows to add white Euro shams with yellow pillows and a blue bolster type pillow. Looking for small blue accent rugs for the floor. Plan to build fabric covered cornices or pelmets for the windows to take advantage of the 9' ceilings and raise the eye up above the windows - that way I can keep the curtains, which I love. I'm also adding white trim to the top of the curtain flounce. Whew! If you are still reading, thank you all! Your ideas and suggestions have been fantastic and the room will eventually transform into what I was wanting all along!! Heidi

I saw your pic last night and was too tired to comment. You looked great in that dress and glad you were comfortable and had a good time. Not much advice for Minnesota as it is hot here too. Do you have a sweater type longish cape or ruana that would work over pants, jeans or leggings? You could wear or carry it on the plane and use it when it’s chilly.