novaplantguy, over the years I have gone the gammit from your situation, to an acre and back again. Some ways that I have kept my fingers dirty are Hydroponics units and artificial light gardens. My hydroponic units (with artificial lighting) work great for fresh herbs and salad plants, while my light gardens grow anything from begonias to ferns to orchids. I have found or made light gardens to fit into any decore and every conceivable nook. Ever filled your house with the wonderful perfume of Hyacinths and Daffodils? It's easy to do and doesn't require any garden at all. Feel free to contact me for more ideas and information.

I think it might look nice with the boxes on all three windows - it would give it a more balanced look. I would probably not do shutters since you don't have room for them on the other windows, plus your home is beautiful without and I don't think they would add to that. I also think your chimney is lovely as is. I know it's popular to grow something up them but your stone really makes a statement and I'd hate to see it covered up, which ND will do, plus it's a messy rose. I have a two story stone (river rock) chimney, too, and I considered growing a rose up it once. But I love seeing the stone against the soft yellow of my home without obstruction. Then there is the issue of training and upkeep of climbing roses, a chore one story tall let alone two. In addition, most climbers need to be trained laterally to really bloom well all over their canes, which can be tough to achieve on a narrow surface such as a chimney. A rambler would work better if you decide to grow a rose up it. Btw, love your roof line on the chimney wall. It lends an English cottage look to your home, perfect for a cottage garden backdrop. : ) Diana

Not a problem, you are in zone 9 so I would think you can dig and root prune now, I do this quite often when taking fuchsias into the greenhouse for the winter. I root prune and plant into smaller pots with quite a few of mine so they don't take up as much room on the benches. Make sure to sterilize whatever you use to prune the roots with. You should also cut the top back as well this will force new growth and this in turn will produce more flowers for you. Someone from your zone might jump in with more info for you but this forum is so slow some of us that grow Fuchsias don't check in very often. Hope this is of some help. A......

This is our bathroom. We opened up the ceiling to expose the roofline, added skylights. Also did the same in the hall bath, with similar result, other than the fact it was a very small bath that we were able to steal 18" from the landing to help enlarge it. Other than having only one real place for each fixture, it wasn't a problem. Shower and tub worked well in both baths, but the lowest height of the ceiling I think is 72". Here is a link that might be useful: Where my photos live