So is resin the best material? I had a ceramic bird bath that cracked, and it wasn't even in the freezing weather. I do have a heated bird bath for winter which birds like, but it's not very pretty, just practical for freezing temps. I'm not find a lot I like to look at for summer time, though. The tree stump looks nice. I have a dripper the birds want nothing to do with, which I can't figure out. Probably has more to do with my neighbor's roaming cats...grrrr...

My Grandad was a dairy farmer who farmed the old way with horses and such, and I spent every available moment at the farm. I have so many memories of Grandpa that I hardly know where to start, but I think one of my fondest memories was when I was 5 years old. They were hauling hay and I was riding the wagon, basically just getting underfoot so Grandpa worked out a solution. He had me stand at the front of the wagon and handed me the reins for the horses, he said, "if your gonna be in the field you gotta work, so you drive the team"....and I learned how to drive a team of work horses that day. (now keep in mind that Grandpa still had total voice command over the horses if a problem should arise). Grandpa was also a blacksmith and at 12 years old I was hanging out in the shop watching him work at the forge & anvil, and he says,,,"step over here boy,,its time you learned to make horse shoes too"... You can be sure my first attempt was at best almost a failure,,but i still have that horseshoe as a fond rememberance of Grandpa. For recreation Grandpa played a fiddle and had a job on weekends playing fiddle and calling Square Dances in a band at a local dance hall. I can remember many a night we would finally be done with all our chores about 9pm, go to the house and have a late supper, then Grandpa would take his fiddle down and play for an hour or so before we went to bed. When I turned 16 Grandpa used to take me with him to the dance hall, and that is where I learned to dance waltz's, Polka's, Foxtrots and Square Dances. I also used to love to hang around in the kitchen and Grandma taught me how to catch and clean a chicken, duck or goose, cook, bake bread, pies or home can fruits and veggies, but my fondest memories of Grandma were also late in the evening just before bedtime. Grandma never had a haircut in her life, but she always wore her hair up in a bunn. In the evening she would sit on a dining chair in the kitchen and let her hair down, and it would reach the floor, and I used to sit behind her and comb it out while Grandpa played the fiddle. At bedtime Grandma would open the oven on her old coal stove and take out a big firebrick that she had heated up. She would wrap that brick with a towel and I would head up to the bedroom, brick in hand. The brick was placed under the covers at the foot of the bed to keep our feet warm.

Hello guys, thanks to Nancy and a couple of other good friends, I was told to take a gander over here and I will take an updated pic.....It is full of color this year after it flowered...I will be back soon with a pic)))) I am thinking many here don't know why it's called the 'Mother Jade'? Because at one point years ago when one ever saw it, many didn't know the name after giving out dozens of cutting around this forum, and so many decided that should be the name... Mike

Love ( in no particular order) Extra deep counters with a full row of appliance garages and lots of outlets and plug mold so I have plenty of room for my toys without having to put them away every day or haul them out, so they are always on hand. An extra deep appliance drawer for those appliances I don’t use every day. My skylights and extra windows bringing in extra light. My Aga induction Elise ( boils a cup of water in 30 seconds). My double height ceilings with stunning ceiling height tile behind my Aga creating a focal point. Lots of drawers. Lots of storage space. My pantry with lots of space for mason jars and vacuum sealable containers. So much counter space and workspace for multiple cooks and helpers ( should we ever get back to having extra people over ) Great combination of aesthetics and function. Convection steam oven. Lots of refrigeration space. A great extraction hood. Orienting my work space to my view. My Koehler ombré sensation faucet (my cat gives it a thumbs up too. It provides hours of entertainment for her ). My unique cedar( with inlaid glass )countertops. Some glass fronted upper cabinets for interest and display. Ceiling fans. Places for my cats to sit and access to windows for them. My monogram 48 in refrigerator/ freezer ( on close out). Didn’t think I’d love it as much as subzero. The appliances I got on close out, saving a ton of money. 1 and Half hp garbage disposers. My instant hot water and filtered water dispenser. Hate Not having ( some of) my appliances panel ready. ( what I’m used to ). The stainless steel always shows everything and I’m always cleaning them. Hate my copper sinks. Also never look clean and don’t drain well. And a break down in communication resulted in them not being under mount. That the lighting designer never got here so instead of a centralized Lutron panel, light switches are in different areas. Don’t miss My microwave.