What did I do wrong?????????? I made the dough exactly as listed in Marigene's recipe....however, when i put them in the oven they turned into a soggy mess. Could I have waited too long between rolling out and cutting before putting them in the oven???? I have to make these cookies ASAP. I have the rest of the dough in the fridge. I am going to attempt to put another batch in the oven later today so that the dough is completely chilled. OY!! The ones I made over the holidays were wonderful. Hey.... maybe I made these too thick? is that a possibility? any help would be appreciated

I might consider upgrading the garage door to something more decorative with windows and maybe a pair of large handles in the center, and doing something with the driveway (stain or stamping if the neighbors do it) and/or hardscape curves (pavers?) between the driveway and the door. Then I would try to think of something to put below the windows: extra trim or window boxes? I don't know. The whole left side of the pic feels blank. I know this all sounds expensive. Keep thinking about it and researching it and eventually you'll come up with some ideas that may be more cost effective. You may want to hire a designer before you invest too much. You could also line the driveway with plants and flowers. Think about ways to introduce curves. Paths and plants and paint. Can you put a flower bed around the mailbox? I love to see flowers around a mailbox. A paver seating area in front of the windows? Would you use that? It might be nice surrounded by shrubs. So many directions you could go in. Take your time.

There is an old (and tired) joke that comes to mind. Two guys were camping in bear country, one was very nervous, while the other was calm. The nervous guy finally asked why the calm camper wasn't worried about the bears. The calm camper responds with, "I run pretty fast." The nervous camper says, "So you think you can outrun the bear?" The calm camper responds, "No, but I am pretty sure I can outrun you." You have a perfectly fine starter home, you need to come to terms with the fact that it will probably not be food for your soul, but every house doesn't have to be. So just make it nicer than your neighbors', and find things to enjoy while you are in it.

When house hunting we saw a house that was nothing special by itself but had the most amazing(and probably very expensive) windows. It stood on a rather boring street, was nice but not the best layout inside, and I didn't like how it faced open space for dog walking with some superugly fense around. Yet the windows made this otherwise non descript place in a way that I remember it 4 years later..to the point I gave it brief consideration even. I told my DH "they'll sell it tomorrow". I was right. It got multiple offers and went under a contract in a day or two. And the sole reason for it was these windows:) Which, by the way, they had only in the front..:) The house you show is not bad at all, if you compare it to many. Imagine it with different windows..add , mentally, flowers to that tree in the front..the inside should be seen, in order to make suggestions. And one's style should be known. You can't do anything truly great to the inside of the house where there's not "you" in it. Nobody cares that much about orange peel of the walls- art is what makes people stop and stare. Color that'll make them feel cocooned or invigorated. How the room will reavel itself differently from each point. People love to discover. Give that sense of discovery, even with few and mundane things it can be given. But of course one can go for smooth finish if orange peel irritates him. One can go for wallpaper or murals if he loves them enough. One can add arches, skylights, moldings..glass doors when one needs sense of privacy without loosing the light, where makes sense..carve out more storage.. It's a question of budget (windows are very expensive for example) and thoughtful consideration and what bugs one, and what doesn't, and what brings most joy.