Hello everyone and thank you for all your prayers and well wishes. I know that prayer works because Lee is still alive when doctors thought he would not make it past Christmas last year. Well he is still with us and is still cantankerous which lets me know that he is still alive and kicking. He does spend more and more time in bed and tomorrow we will learn what the Doppler of his neck and echo shows so that we know more where we stand. He still has the idea that he will get better though the doctors and I know otherwise. He has been made aware of everything but due to the bleed on his brain before I met him he does not have good short term memory so he forgets. I think it is this belief that keeps him going. Thank you for being dear friends and caring about him. As for me, well diabetic complications have set in with a vengeance along with the strangest rash and itch that anyone could ever have. The itch has been diagnosed as a honest to good allergy to heat. I am on antihistamines and prednisone at the moment (the prednisone is what makes my blood sugar so crazy). The itch has been so bad that I am taking 100 mg of vistaril and sleeping for 30 minutes and being up for an hour before dosing off once again. I spend a lot of the evening hours outside observing, feeling and losing myself in the night. I have developed kidney issues along with the retinopathy and neuropathy. I saw a new endocrinologist yesterday and she is running tons of test to see what else is happening in my body. Prednisone usually causes you to gain weight but I lost 28 pounds in a week and am still losing. The weight lose is good but not in this manner. Missing the amount of work I have this month is also wearing on us as it is my income that keeps us fed and pays a lot of the bills. Oh well, God always provides and I place my trust in him. For those who know a little about my new business adventure I will now give an update and fill you all in on some of the details. The man with whom I entered into the endeavor is not the type of person I wish to do business with so we have split. He is the type who is get it done yesterday and because of that he has made a lot of errors and created some bad first impressions. The up side of all of this is that I have discovered that I can run my own business and my other partner from the first business has joined with me. I am the detail person who does all the marketing research and all the background data that needs to be done before you run gun ho into business. I know what areas are saturated around the Orlando area and where there are areas that need filling. I also am bringing a new item to our business in that I will be combining my writing skills along with photography and desktop publication. I am finalizing our business plan and beginning the process of seeking funding etc. Please pray for our business. If you need a photographer or party planner let us know. We are cheap at the moment. My garden is suffering because I can not go outside at the moment but for very short periods. I have been working a little at night but because there is still evidence that the cobra is still in the area I am not willing to do a lot of work in areas that are not that well lit. I am starting tons of new seeds in preparation for Kates trade and fall gardening. My beefsteak tomato continues to grow and produce the most wonderfully flavored maters. I am saving seeds. Once again, thank you for being here and for all your prayers. I keep all of you in my prayers each night and if there is ever anything in particular that you would like prayer for please do not hesitate to let me know and I will pray for your particular issues. Love you guys, Linda

Well, my main borders are still a work in progress, and I know it at least! Since I didn't order my roses this past spring, I've been doing a lot of second-guessing over the past weeks since I got my arbor in. I *think* I have made up my mind, but we'll see if the plan survives reality, lol. But, so far, instead of Quadra climbing roses plus clematis on the arbors, it will be just clematis (Clair de Lune). In the freed-up space, I will move some existing echinacea purpurea on one side, and spread out my agastache on the other side. I'm still planning on getting Lichtkonigen Lucia, Lavaglut and Tuscany Superb. But, instead of Ambridge Rose (too wimpy of a pale peachy-pink, I think), I want a pink peony in that spot. And, I want to infill with some alliums behind the peony and my bridalwreath spirea. I'd been planning to eventually move my lilac that I'd put in the border as a holding spot, but it seems pretty happy there, so I think I will just leave it there. The big question is whether my White Dome Hydrangea will survive - it seems to be thirstier than most of my other plants. I recently moved a self-seeded cosmos that I think was not helping matters by crowding it and stealing water, and I think it is finally bouncing back. I also want to divide some stachys to fill some empty spots, and maybe move some of my iris to a corner spot to give my lilac more space. Oh, and I want to add some daffodils. Whew! But, other than hoping to plant a peony and some bulbs this fall, I want to be done for this summer! Of course, I did just move some marigolds that had needed thinning...I'm not sure if they are going to survive or not, but they needed to go, anyhow, so if they survive in their new home, that is just an added bonus.

weedsmakemecrazy, Glad to give you hope about the poison ivy. It is the nastiest thing going. Just be sure you are using the roundup poison ivy and brush not just the regular roundup. Regular doesn't work well. As for fencing in the area to keep the dog away, try having to fence in one whole side of a yard to keep a 5 year old away from it because she was so severely allergic to it she almost died twice after getting it. One problem I've found after I finally got every bit of poison ivy gone from my yard was this. It started showing up in new places a few years later. I turned green and had to start getting rid of it again. That fall I went for a walk down the street with my young daughter and found poison ivy on the side of the road and red berries on it. Then it hit me, new poison ivy was growing in my yard courtesy of the birds. So I started using the roundup stuff on the side of the road. Neighbors started helping me get rid of it and we keep after it all the time. Now all 10 houses on my street have had no poison ivy growing for 10 years. My little girl is 24 now, still badly allergic to poison ivy, but knows to be careful where ever she goes. She was an athlete all through school, varsity sports in high school and college and never got poison ivy playing. She'd walk the fields and side lines before a game and learned where to stay away if needed. Just keep after it and remember it takes a year but then it will be gone. Walk around the neighborhood and check the side of the road too. the birds will be very happy to seed more for you all the time. Fran

I love to know that there are many people like me who are thinking the same thing about their plants. I can hardly wait to get them outside. One is a Mandeville that I have wintered over for 2 years. It is never as pretty as the new ones that you buy each season, but I love the game of keeping it alive. My plants did not get aphids or spidermites or any of those icky pests this winter, so I feel very happy as I trim them up & get them ready for their summer vacation. :=)