Oilpainter is exactly right. If your plants are indoors, chances are that once a week watering is plenty. Don't let the pots sit in standing water either. And he's right. We've all done it in the name of "staying on top of things". FYI, the following plants on your list do not like hot weather. Here in my area, they are grown only as spring annuals (if at all). I start the seeds in January and plant them out in March. Then they are done by early to mid June. These dates would probably all be earlier for you. Petunia phlox: annual types sweet william (fall planted) snapdragon (fall planted) bachelor button forget me not: You must plant very early, but they will not stand freeze. If we have an early summer, there's little or no bloom from them. lupine: the hartwegii types are said to be easy . Bluebonnets need poor dry soil and must be planted in the fall. Hybrids, in general hate all areas of the south. asters: Annuals. The perennial types bloom in the fall, but very few like my summer heat. Probably even fewer would like yours.

What a thread- oldie, but goodie. My take is a bit of a compromise: All of our friends understand my 9 year old sweet Beagle Max. He was abandoned by breeders when he was 6 weeks old, due to their loss of lease on a property. We adopted him, brought him home and did our best. But this way-too-young-to-be-away-from-his pack was needy. We gave him all the love he needed. He's very smart and observant, and so simply started emulating his pack. That includes hugging when people enter our home, since this is the behavior he's always seen. He hugs, too. That's really all he asks, from a visitor. A hug, and maybe a sweet kiss- no tongue, he just puts his face on your neck. Funny doggie! It can get a bit "rambunctious" as people enter. But our friends get it, hug him like he's our furry two year old, and then Max calms down. Not everybody loves it, and we know the friends where we just need to remove him for a bit, until he gets less excited for company. Now, if children enter? Another story. He's not allowed to do that. He LOVES kids, but I can't have Max bowling toddlers over. So we keep that in check, and wait to see if the child is interested. Then we introduce them, let the child pet him (silkiest hair, ears you've ever felt), and he's gentle. Max is, like most hounds, also driven by his nose and stomach. He's not allowed around guests as they eat- he knows where to sit. If he get's invasive, then he has to go to his "room". He hates that, since he's social and just wants to be around people, so it's rare that he won't comply. Now- when a stranger comes to the door? We let them have the "full effect". Aggressive barks- and loud- until and unless we signal that it's safe. And we put his 'good dog leash" on, if this is (for example) a repair person, there to do a job. But if you're not invited? You're not invited, and he sounds like the Gates of Hell are opening, until he's told "ok". A compromise that works for us and our friends. My sweet pup, in his first month at my house. He just wanted to be ok. Grew up to be fairly mellow Still thinks he's a person.

Good question! I think it is so hard. First, we personally always look at the cost of the home, resale value, what we'd get out of it and what we are putting in. We will never put in more than we can get out. You have to research local real estate for that. If you've lived in a home for a while, you may be out of the loop of what things are really selling for, especially what you feel they may be worth. As a homeowner who has done some big (IMO) remodeling projects in the past, I anticipate future projects based on the past costs, and also my DH experience as he is quite handy and has done many hands on projects. Examples of hired work and some DIY: Installing central air and extending ducting into a home, moving a furnace, soffits and drywall for ducting, rebuilding a large cement and brick front porch requiring a structural engineer, redoing a kitchen (DIY via IKEA) and hiring an electrian (good friends' husband) to fix electrical. Painting. Framing and drywalling an office, redoing a small master bath with marble, laying laminate flooring. Laying decking, fencing, gazebos and landscape. Installing and boring out doors. Building decks and boardwalks. Refinishing wood floors. Etc. These past experiences give us a baseline. Before I had a baseline, I relied on a three quote system to judge what a realistic cost was for what I wanted to achieve. Most people that I know, have a budget, and then adjust design and materials accordingly. Others with very open pocketbooks may operate differently. Most people I know, if they come into a very outdated situation, come up with a plan for updating immediately. They may save for some big things, but basic cosmetic change up is usually a must. For most people I know, they either: 1) Save for a project 2) Set a budget, and then shop it out 3) Yes it usually goes over a little due to splurges. I can only speak for us, we have a set amount of money we want to spend. We prioritized where to spend it based on our past experience of cost, and what was most important. We set a budget for each area (hardwood floors, kitchen, master suite, siding, windows). At this point we play the see saw game of we go over here, so where can we cut, and what can we live with. Just my experience. It's hard. If you have been out of it a while, costs do rise.

My DH uses those soft earplugs all the time. One day they started disappearing from the dish he’d keep them in and he was finding them all over the house in the strangest of places. Turns out our cat was completely fixated with them. She’d carry them around in her mouth, toss them with her paws, watch them bounce around and then attack them. It was a hoot to watch. He didn’t have the heart to take them from her so he bought some more and started keeping them in his desk drawer instead. A couple of weeks later the problem started up again and we caught her opening the drawer with her paw. It was hilarious.