IâÂÂm sorry for my text! I have 2 pipes elevating my wood off the floor w/o any breathing once that area is filled with ash/coals. The added expanded metal on the pipe has added breathing and separating of ash and coal. I also have 1 yr old Red Oak I feel this breathing will allow to burn with this cold front coming into North TX tomorrow. Wish Us Well On These Small Old Lots and large trees that are barely clean from the last front approx a week ago. The freezing moisture before leaves have fallen or thinning is a major issue. The wood is becoming plentiful but the hazards are the major issue. Our Live Oak needs more thinning since our 2010 Ice Storm. The Silver Leaf Maple 2 door away is not worth burning but it had to come down for the neighborâÂÂs safety. I did get some Pecan with more and Red Oak coming in a similar situation.

We went to a couple of barbeque places today and ending up buying the extra large Big Green Egg, and I think we will be very happy with it. Kevin thinks it will be great for parties, and now it will be even easier for us to cook for a crowd. Since we now have three charcoal grills, we can use separate grills for separate dishes which will make it easier for us to make multiple dishes at once, even if they require different temperatures. We also have the electric smoker, and I have to say that we get a more intense smoke flavor from that than we do from the charcoal - or at least it permeates the meat more. For smoking chilies, only the charcoal will do the job the way I want it. The BGE that we bought also has a pizza stone and can be used for grilling pizza - something that I've been wanting to do since first visiting the pizza making forum. We bought some outdoor lights for our pergola, and I think they will provide way more light than we required, but at least we can lower the wattage when we want to. I haven't bought anything for lighting the fountain yet because I want to have that installed by an electrician on an exterior wall of the house. I'm hoping to light much of the back yard that way and have it on a dimmer. I don't really want underwater lights in my fountain at this point but will talk with the electrician about that. I'm thinking that I will get my yard lit in stages and start off with getting some outdoor outlets installed at strategic points so that lights could be hooked up later. We went out for dinner this evening because I wanted sushi! We haven't assembled the Big Green Egg yet. Lars

Whoo Hoo! Your first Weber! Play time ahead girl. You have got to do a chicken. Cheap easy and you will be amazed how easy. Here are some action shots of my grill... click the thumbnails for a big picture. Charcoal on the sides under the grate flaps. Later you can drop some wood or more charcoal. Probably won't need more charcoal! Bird in the middle. Stuff if you want but at least get the gizzard package out. Vents both bottom and top wide open! Go drink alcohol and party! *picture censured for indecent content* When you are drunk and partied out return for food. Note paper like skin. Eat it with your fingers while slugging on your beer. Relax... beer and chicken skin are calorie free when consumed together. Often best to work with kitchen gloves and tear the bird apart with your hands. Leftover skin, fat, and the bones should go in a pot for soup broth... a great lentil soup base because of the smokey flavor. There is a whole 'nuther bird stuck to the bones and you will be amazed at how meaty the soup is! After simmering for about an hour strain the broth to get the skin and bones back out. A wishbone in there!... remember those. Return any meat to the pot that you don't nibble away. In the picture I added coconut milk, curry paste, and cayenne pepper (flaming hot! and !!! hot) to the chicken broth and spooned it over lentils cooked in the microwave.... lentils cook in about 20 minutes when nuked! Being single I reserve the breast meat for sandwiches. Thighs have fat deposits that pick out with ease leaving nice lean meat. Wings and legs are prime snack parts... hand to husband and tell him to go lay down.. "good boy". I can still get a decent fryer bird for about $4. Leftover shredded chicken meat can be covered in bbq sauce and refried for a dandy sandwich filler... taco sauce for taco meat... soy sauce for fried rice... you get the ideas. Best spent 3-4 bucks in my whole grocery bill. Works fine with a whole turkey. Note the bird is so tender and well done that the legs pulled out to their sockets while rolling into the pan for transport to the kitchen. Works with every meat I've tried!... london broil, eye of round, bottom round, pork roast, and brisket. It even makes a meatloaf if you wrap the loaf in foil. Caution with foil wrapped stuff as there may be hot liquid to drain off... don't get splashed or drizzled on. It works in the winter and in the rain! No need to let a little rain stop the bbq. In fair weather you can use your Weber with the top off for traditional grilled steaks or whatever. Sometimes when smoking a chicken I'll slip a burger or steak over the coals. You may need extra charcoal if you lift the lid often... like an oven it cooks faster when left alone. Soak the wood but if you are lazy like me just drop a chunk on top the charcoal. A few peppercorns on the coals makes a pepper smoke... great flavor but don't get the smoke in your eyes. Now you need an injector kit! Inject those dry beef roasts with good stuffs for super juicy tasty experiments. Butter and cajun spice are a favorite. The grocery store probably has a dozen pre-made liquids for injecting. I'm currently eating on a beef brisket that I thusly smoked using charcoal, hickory wood, and black pepper. Last night pulled a chunk of cooked brisket from the fridge and covered it with vinegar, evoo, and rosemary before reheating in the microwave... a great main course in under 2 minutes! So good I'm having more for breakfast. I like to put an empty catfood can in the middle of the ash catcher to collect dripping grease... much of the fat will drip out the bottom. Your dog will probably eat it ashes and all before redepositing it on your livingroom carpet. : ) lyra

Fantastic pictures, thank you! Yes, I plan to paint all the trim white. Between the stove and the fridge there is some counter space - that is where I have my kitchen aid mixer and my canister set. I love to cook, and though my kitchen is far from ideal I've learned to make the layout work so far. The ceilings are not drop down so I do plan on removing the ledge in the dining room and doing floor to ceiling in one color. I love the idea of aqua/turquoise accents, so I'm thinking maybe a paint color with yellow undertones (although I'm kind of scared of yellow) but I don't know what other color goes really nice with turqoise accents. Thank you boxerpups for posting my pics for me. I guess more specifically, a few questions I have are: Does white trim = white cabinets = black/white or grey countertop? And does cream cabinets = brown countertops = cream trim? I don't know what the rules are about warm and cool colors. Thanks for all the help!