Don't feel embarassed, Angela. We all make mistakes. Is your signature line correct - you live in zone 9? If so, you might not realize that lettuce can't grow there all summer. Lettuce is a "cool season" crop, which means that it doesn't like super hot temps. Which I'm guessing you're getting more and more of? Soon, it will bolt, which means that it will flower/make seeds. So the advice about harvesting the lettuce is because we're all guessing it won't last much longer, anyway. People tend to count on sowing successive crops of lettuce, even if they pick leaves as they grow instead of harvesting the whole head. There are various "heat tolerant" lettuce varities that are less likely to bolt. (Someone mentioned trying those.) I do grow those in the middle of the summer, but regular lettuce is fine for me with a little shade for much of the summer, too. But I'm in a much cooler zone that you. Lettuce has much shallower roots than the other plants, so it would be easier to move. But I hear you on wanting things a certain way. Why not try to make it like you want it? Be prepared to be nice to the plants you move for a week or two after. Don't overwater them, though! And you might still lose one - but that's part of the learning process. Plants do die occasionally, even when we do our best to care for them. As far as the aphids, I hear you're supposed to gently hose off the affected plants daily until the aphid problem is resolved. The water makes the aphids fall off. I have an army of ladybugs in my garden, so I've never had a big issue with aphids - I feel lucky! My overall approach is to attract the beneficial insects with flowers, etc, and let them take care of the "bad" insects. It's worked well enough so far. Enjoy & good luck!

The wine isn't a problem, however, the cooking down could be. Density is one of the factors in processing time, so you don't want the sauce too thick. Personally, I like VERY thick sauce, so don't usually can it, I freeze instead. Deanna

Apologies for the delay in response, the past 4 weeks have been terrible for me. DH diagnosed with a sarcoma, favorite dog I've had since college nearly died of heart failure (fortunately meds and subsequent Addison's disease diagnosis and more meds have fixed him right up, at least for another year or so). So kitchen redesign went on backburner. And to add to the angst, we've experienced lots of engineering delays with the load bearing wall removal. I had to fight my contractor to go with column-free design, then wait for the PE to re-do everything the way I originaly asked. This is all going down AFTER they completely demo'ed the kitchen. Going on 4 weeks of bare studs. But now the huge, column free LVLs are going in, I need to be ready to order cabs the moment they are done! And happy to say that after the surgery to remove the tumor, biopsy revealed DH had a schwalloma and not a sarcoma, which is very good news. So, after long-winded story, back to layout. Overall concept stays the same but I've juggled a few things around. Bmorepanic - the fridge will now be a 27" all fridge column with hinges on the left. Sub Zero somewhat cantilevers in, so all we'll need is a 2" spacer to ensure plumb with wall and handle clearance. Intend to use the island as landing for stuff coming out of fridge. There is a very nice forested view out of the bay window over the primary sink, so we're leaving that in place. Fireplace is also fixed. We will play around with hearth room furniture once the kitchen is complete. I am actually very happy with where everything is now, thanks to everyone's suggestions, the one HUGE concern I have is symmetry around the door into the dining room. Due to the joist design from the kitchen that "juts" out past the dining room on the exterior wall, we can't widen the right side of the door between the two rooms without more expense. And potential functionality impact to DR. But at the same time I am not sure if the bigger space on the right side of the door with drive me crazy. I would give up landing space on either side of the range if I shorten the cabinet run to the left, which I would really like to avoid. Would the larger expanse of bare wall on the right side of the door be acceptable? One of those things that looks off in the schematics but in real life wouldn't be so noticeable? Or do I need to redesign the cabs on the RH side? Our cabs are completely custom, so anything is technically possible. Please excuse the disaster of finishes on my design program, all I am using it for is sizing / spacing. Thanks!

Lots of wineries out there - I suggest talking to some of them first. And then tasting a lot of wine if you don't already know wine. And then remembering that what you want to produce may not be what you will be able to produce. LI has wet cloudy weather compared to the west. And that means the red grapes are going to be less ripe and whatever you do, you will always have some notes of bell pepper. Yes I know that there are many cab francs out there, etc., and some people love them, but for my money, I would not plant reds. After having tasted many dozens of wines from LI, my advice is stick with whites. Good luck!