Boy, do I feel for you! At my home, a small farm, when it is really bad mud season, I keep a bucket by the back door and dip each paw into the bucket and swish it around, before drying it off with a towel. Not ideal either ... but it works for me. I don't have any idea what might grow in your area, we'll shortly have a good covering of snow which is much easier to deal with on paws than mud. The only thing I can think of is landscape fabric ... but that's a mighty big yard and that could cost a lot.

I think it really depends on the brand you choose. My GC has bamboo in his house and he HATES it - swears he'll never use it again and will advise his clients the same. When I told him my cousin was considering it for their beach house, he had pretty strong opinions. He said that the first time he had a party at his house, his floors were totally destroyed the next day b/c of the women wearing high heels. Personally, I would not want to have to tell my guests, esp. at a party, to remove their shoes. He also said that besides the issue with the heels, it scratches VERY easily, and that the scratches are a different color than the finish, so they are VERY noticeable. So my cousin tried abusing his samples - he had one that was considered "commercial grade" and while that one did hold up better than the residential, it still scratched kind of easily. And the scratches were a different color. He decided to go with it, since theirs is a beach house and bamboo IS great w/moisture, plus they are in the habit of removing their shoes at home anyway. it's being installed now. I'm worried about it for them though, as they keep their primary residence meticulously won't be happy if the floors end up living up to their reputation. Plus they plan to rent it, and you can't dictate your tenants also remove their shoes. We'll see...

Maire, while you were at the salon I was at the massage school getting a massage. I've been going there for years, almost always with satisfactory results, but my two most recent massages haven't been the best. The name of the school has changed, and I wonder if the curriculum has, too. Anyway, I'm posting here because the student massage therapist asked me the usual questions about my preferences, but she added one I hadn't heard before. "Do you want me to do your hands and feet?" she asked, with a flicker what what appeared to be distaste crossing her face. I said yes. She gave my hands the usual amount of attention, but I can't say the same for my feet. She's going to have to deal with this if she wants to make a career out of massage therapy. I, too, enjoyed the leg massage. :-)

Thanks so much for sharing about your floors Debbi. "I feel like it's almost bullet proof" - I'm hoping the white oak will be just as durable. My current red oak cabinets have been very tough and have stood up to lots of abuse and neglect which is what made me choose oak again for my new cabinets and floors. :) When I first started the search for HW flooring, I thought all I'd consider was solid. Then I saw some high quality engineered floors and was sold. I think the extra stability from the engineered core of the will make the floors more durable. The floor I'm likely getting also has a 4.5 mm wear layer. It's like a thick slice of wood. It can take up to 3 sandings (or so I'm told) so I hope they'll stand the test of time and last for decades. "Everything is expensive, but when we are buying, we're hoping to only have to do it once." That is how I'm justifying spending the gobs of money going into this reno...! I've been selecting higher quality materials that are (I hope) quite timeless so that this kitchen will only have to be done this one time.