We are having more and more requests for speakers on gardening topics from different groups. I personally have spoken to garden clubs, church groups, and a Kiwanis group this year and I know there have been many more requests that other MGs have filled. Advertising the fact that you can provide speakers is always a good thing to do. Local newspapers, flyers posted in prominent places, phone calls to local groups such as garden clubs, nursing homes, or schools, will get the word out. We also set up booths at the county and state fair every year. Our area is blessed with several public gardens that allow us to give time as volunteers. We have had a clinic/display at a local shopping mall. Some of our MGs participate in a rain barrel project every year. Some of our MGs are trained as Urban Tree Specialists and go out on field visits to evaluate tree problems (never ones that involve safety issues, just pests or diseases or cultural problems.) Others are involved in a program for new homeowners in the area. They will perform an evaluation of the property and identify as many trees and shrubs growing there as possible. (The homeowner has to pay a small fee for this program. It covers the detailed report and multiple publications the homeowner receives.) We also have a similar program called Grass Roots that gets the homeowner a customized lawn care plan. I hope some of these ideas are practical for your group. Sandy

I'm afraid I can't be of help about those specific programs. However, since your son is majoring in Spanish, I think he would benefit greatly by choosing a program that houses him with a Spanish family. I heard a senior at my DD's school discuss her experience living with a host family in Granada. It was much more culturally enriching than the experience shared by a young man on the panel who had studied in London, living in a huge dorm with tons of other Americans. Oh sure, he could jet off every weekend to other countries, but he never really assimilated. Also, the girl took classes taught in Spanish, which is probably something else you want to look for. Don't know about you, but I really don't feel like sending my kid on a semester long vacation! Yer another consideration is whether your child's financial aid or scholarships will be accepted to pay fees at the foreign university.

First, thank you for talking us off the edge of doing any "refreshing" in the kitchen - we've decided we'd rather just offer a credit to the buyer so they can use it for what they want to do. The kitchen as it currently is, is clean, fully functional, well-maintained but *could use* (vs. needs) some updating. Same for two out of three bathrooms. I have to say that some of the assumptions about what we're dealing with because we live on a flag lot have been, well, interesting. I've tried to explain that the only easement is for the house behind us. Just ONE house, a nicely kept, well-maintained 4-bdrm, 1650 sq. ft home that has a right-of-way to come up and down OUR lane/driveway to their home, an easement that is set up in both their deed and ours. The driveway is our property; there is no easement through the house in front's property - no "nesting Russian dolls." Oh sure, the owners behind us or a new owner could block the driveway so that we couldn't get out, but then they'd have to get out of their car and walk about 200 or more ft. to get to their house. Through the rain, or snow, or carrying groceries, or whatever. Go for it. Or they could race their engines at 2:15 in the morning or whenever. So could anyone's neighbor living right next door . . . even if the house is located right out on the street. What would you do? Anyone, anywhere can get lousy, obnoxious neighbors. They're not limited to flag lots. We are not located in some shoddy, run-down house or neighborhood just because our house is located on a flag lot with a shared driveway. We're in a working/middle-class neighborhood of single family homes (no multi-family homes, not even duplexes) with a popular neighborhood center (great restaurants, coffee shops, shopping, library, banks, churches, etc.) a short walk away, and one of the city's most-deslred elementary schools just a 5-minute walk down the road. The high school for our area is nationally recognized. Our initial price was based on the appraisal; as I've said, agents showing the house, the ones that came to the broker's open and since all think the house is priced correctly. We lowered the price by $10K because we know that being on a flag lot, the location is different enough to throw off some buyers, and because we want to sell the house. Buyers who want granite or a remodeled kitchen on a more traditional lot in this neighborhood will pay $85-$100K more than what we're asking. At our price point, if someone wants the updated kitchen, granite counters and updated bathrooms as well as a more traditional lot they will be getting a smaller house, zero-lot line, smaller yard and no off-street parking, maybe a one-car garage if they're lucky (we have a 2-car garage). Those traditional lots will also be paying $1600 - $2000 more per year in property taxes. But, I still get that buyers are looking or dreaming about owning a home on a traditional lot with a fully-updated kitchen and bathrooms, granite counters, etc. That's their prerogative. There are lots of houses I wouldn't consider as well for entirely different reasons. So, we may have to lower our price $10K more; we want to sell the house. It's not what we want to do. We might just offer a credit toward kitchen and bath updates. Still, even if we lowered our price by $20K or $40K, we will come out ahead based on what we owe on the house. We bought into the neighborhood just when it was starting to come around, when the current elementary school program was being established and the high school was making changes to their programs and adding the International Baccalaureate program, one of two in the city. Home values in our neighborhood have climbed as a result, even with the bursting of the housing bubble. The right buyer will come along; they just haven't yet. We hope it's sooner rather than later.

Nice concept! J Design Group - Miami Interior Designers 225 Malaga Ave Coral Gables, FL 33134 Ph: 305-444-4611 https://www.JDesignGroup.com