Paintingfool, thank you OK, I will start another post (I just did not want to be a "post hog" LOL ) luvstocraft, thank you, yep those are some of the roses I bought from Walmart, I bought all they had, they were prettier flowers than usual IMHO, you have to really look thru their stuff, but sometimes they have gems. "Do I mix silver and gold", wellllll, not to much in the tree (so far). Usually in my trees there is always a plain "base color ball", a gold ball, or a silver ball, then a solid color ball that is in my color theme for the tree, ex: red ball, or cream ball or pink ball, then I fill in with the more fancy ornaments. And crystal or clear glass ornaments always go with almost anything. Now, if a person is doing a "traditional tree" with all the mixed colors of the rainbow, then I would think mixing golds and silver is perfectly suitable. IMHO Please understand these are MY choices, and in no way am I setting rules, I would not want to offend anyone with their style choices, after all a person should decorate their home and tree in any way that makes them happy. Many would say my style is way overdone, but overdone makes me happy.... but, I will say, I do love elegant simplicity, I start out that way, but end up with way more LOL My DD decorates her tree much like me, but uses fewer ornaments. As far as tablesetting goes you can see there is the gold and silver in the silverware. I also have the gold band rim in my crystal stemware, which I paired with the silver chargers, so I do mix that to some extent in my dinner table.

a really good-quality umbrella (men seem to like those huge golf ones that make some sort of territory-grabbing statement, which is really annoying in NYC). tickets to some event you think he'd like (though if you get him a pair, he may feel he HAS to take you--depends on the dynamics of the relationship) a new wallet--if you can see what style he's using already. My DH gets these from time to time, and they are useful, bcs his wear out eventually. Does he use a day planner or a PDA? Could you "up the ante" by getting him a new binder, or a new case for it? Perhaps a higher-quality one than he's got? And who cares whether he can get a better deal on it than you can--the point is not how much it cost, but that you thought of it in connection w/ him. And there are always books, if you know what he likes to read. Or DVDs. And, don't pressure yourself too much. Once people get to be grownups, the importance of presents falls a little--just one small, nice thing is great. Oh--oh--TOYS! the phrase "once people get to be grownups" made me think of this. Grownups don't get toys--not TRUE toys. We get "toys," w/ quotation marks. We get iPods instead of GameBoys, DVDs instead of action figures. Get him a toy, even if it's a smallish one. Lego makes these really great little things called XPods, I think, that are $10 or so, and you can make little bitty cars, or robots, or whatever is in the Pod. (here's a pretty good selection--they change the colors periodically, though) and for $20, they have kits for making dinosaurs, etc. And for $7, there are "mini Designer" sets The XPods are neat, bcs they result in a little result, which means they go together fast, and he can stick it on his computer monitor at work, or something, without looking like an immature geek. (not that a guy who puts together Lego dinosaurs is an immature geek, mind you...) I gave the Xpod to every one of the guys in my family at Christmas this year--they didn't go ballistic, but they were amused and they thought it was fun.

Mtn: Oh, gosh, that is embarrassing. It looks like I read your post, got the idea, and then forgot WHERE I got the idea. Ooh, boy, creeping senescence... I am not concerned that slate used as a floor tile would not be food safe. I suppose your concern is not the slate, but a chemical sealer? My understanding is that slate is usually not pre-sealed. Moreover, I really doubt that they pre-seal the stuff at this price point; it certainly did not seem sealed, as water did not bead on it and it soaked the oil right up. And sealer, which is meant to bind chemically tightly to stone, seems unlikely to be transferred to cheese anyway. I did run it through the dishwasher before gluing on the backing foam. Yes, the square shape of the cheeseboard looks a little off. I had been sort of intending to cut mine to something like 7.5" x 12" (golden mean), but I didn't feel like filling the water tray of the wet saw. So, instead, I googled for images of slate cheeseboards, and saw enough square ones to decide to just go with it. The other "flaw" is that the edges are square. Most of the cheeseboards you see commercially have more rustic edges. I figured I would just whack the edges of my tile with a margin trowel or tack hammer, and spall the edges nicely. Well, it wasn't happening; I was just making small chips in the edge, rather than causing any of the lamellae to delaminate. I then decided that square edges were acceptable in a cheeseboard :-)

Two.25 acres, I feel your pain. I should write a book about my MIL. She doesn't want gifts; but the one time I broke down and sent the minimal item she wanted, without doing the overflowing box filled with "stuff," she pouted and cried for ages. So, I listen to the "don't sent me anything" rants, and quietly fill a box with things I think she'll use. She always gets an assortment of teas; they delight her, thank goodness. Does your MIL drink hot tea? Would she use an electric tea kettle to heat the water? They are very nice. I add an issue of North Dakota Horizons (she reads and discusses it for months) and DH includes a copy of his North Dakota Hunter. It gives her lots of questions to ask him! (She lives in Maryland) I wrap everything. This year she's getting a subscription to the Horizons (4 issues). In the past I gave a subscription to the Smithsonian, but it made her angry. The articles were "too long," and the magazines came "too often" for her to read all of them because she had "other reading" to do. I think the idea of a subscription to her crossword puzzles might be appreciated by your MIL. My MIL lives on Excedrin. She calls it "Exxxxxxx cdrin." She says they perk her up. I tried to explain about the caffeine in them and suggested she try a B-vitamin supplement and strong cup of hot tea instead, but "tea is for mealtimes." She takes two Exxxxx-cdrin every afternoon, elevates her feet, crooks her head against the arm of the couch, twists her back in order to see the TV, and then angrily wonders why her back and neck hurt. I always wrap two or three large bottles of the Excedrin and include them in the box. Saves her a trip to the drug store. I give her a couple booklets of postage stamps each year. She gets in her car, drives 2-3 miles, and buys her stamps, one at a time, at the post office. Yes, she makes a trip to the Post Office every time she wants to mail one item. This year I'll add some 2-cent stamps for her to use when the postage goes up. So, a couple magazines, tea, stamps, and Excedrin are the staples. I'm adding a CD of Shirley Temple programs (her latest interest) and I'm trying to make a disc of our summer photos for her to play in her TV. I'll add some candy, and cookies, if I get them baked. I've made a couple friends promise they'll knock me off if I ever become as mean and hateful as she. Hopefully I will get old; I may get feeble. I'll be d@med it I'm going to become mean-spirited, spitful, and hurtful to anyone. I'm always delighted if someone gives my boys (dogs) a little "present." It can be a 25-cent sample of a dog treat, even if it's not one I'd normally let them have. One friend brings a couple tiny baggies filled with her dog's regular dry dog food. She lets them sniff it, and then puts it in their stockings (hung high near the ceiling) for them to "think about" until Christmas morn. This is such a wonderful present, for ME! And it does elevate their curiosity and "Christmas Spirit!"