Tom - no I have never had one stay but for more than a day or two - as Marcia says that may start soon. This guy showed up Jan. 10 and has been a daily visitor. Then on Feb. 11 saw a 2nd, an immature male and he has visited but only in the late afternoon. I think my resident one may have moved on or at least he is definitely not hanging around throughout the day as he was. A few of my neighbors found out that I had one and they have also put out feeders or at least said they were going on. I don't know if he would move to another house after being here for so long. Anyway, only saw one feeding at noon and only for a few seconds. Its color under the chin was coral - not as deep red as "Hummie" but more than the immature. As I said it was only for a second and it was bright outside so maybe it was him. But he hasn't been around for the long afternoon feeding he used to do. I feel kinda sad. As far as butterflies - not much going on here. Have seen more Sulphurs than anything else. I have tons of Milkweed and even some of my Passionvine made it throught the cold. I have several pots of Parsley, dill and fennel. My poor Pipevine really got hit hard, burnt to a crisp on top. Wild Lime is okay, Rue is struggling. I haven't seen as many Gulf Frits or Monarchs as I usually do throughout the winter. I too have a couple of Eastern Black chrysalis and a couple Giant Swallowtails overwintering. I am sure there are Polydamas underneath the Pipevine. My neighbor found a chrysalis inside her screened porch, attached to the frame of her sliding glass door. Hope we are finished with the cold weather. I am ready for spring!

We live in a very small town, and there were SO MANY houses lit up this year. There are usually quite a few big displays, but this year those big displays got bigger, and the previous medium displays grew to large, and the small displays grew to medium. Many houses that didn't decorate with outside lights previously, had at least some this year. I don't really know why. It seems that it has been increasing little by little for years, but this year it was very obvious. Next year, I want to shop for outdoor Christmas things EARLY - as soon as they come out. This year if you didn't get things early, you didn't get them at all. I decorate outside for Halloween, more than anyone in town. Nothing gruesome, but cute and funny scarecrows around the yard, lots of jack-o-lanterns and pumpkin/gourd displays, black cat planters, etc. And I dress up, sit in the yard and play music on Halloween night. This year I only had three scarecrows - one was riding an old rusted bike, one was chopping in the flower bed, and the other was pushing an old rotory blade mower. Due to my work schedule and commitments, I am increasingly busy from September through December, so I get less and less energetic and more and more stressed as the season progresses. So what I can accomplish in Oct. is much more than what I can accomplish in Dec., unfortunately. Plus I am more picky - or have not exactly found my niche - in Christmas decorations. I want something that not everyone has, and a religious theme is a plus. And it seems like all the Nativity sets are pretty much the same, and not really as large as I would like them. Then there are alll the pieces to deal with. Lights in trees or on bushes are really pretty, but our front yard trees are just too big, and all are problematic in one way or another. We don't have any bushes in front either. I am hoping to buy some arborvitae (cone shaped evergreens) trees this spring and plant them in the front, but they will still be small at Christmas. Still I think it might be cute to have them lit up like 'mini Christmas trees'. Wanda in South Texas

I agree that the poor economy has a lot to do with more "frivolous" shops closing. In our town we have lost the largest and best-stocked consignment store (I guess people are holding on to their stuff) and a totally unique, one-of-a-kind home and garden store. Some boutiques and craft stores of long-standing have held on, but it is sad to see the number of places that are boarded up. Duluth - If our children and their families are any example, younger people are building emergency funds and saving for retirement. And they are using their discretionary money to travel - whether longer trips or just getaways.

Kids really like the inflatables and they do have the advantage of taking up very little storage space. I had a few that I bought on clearance at the house before the divorce but I only have a porch and a small slope to decorate at the rental - the inflatables wouldn't work. I'm sure people thought blow mold decorations were tacky too but I still love those. I bought my dad a blow mold Santa at a yard sale this summer for $2 - it was in great condition. I knew the one he had was quite faded. I was at an antique market a couple of weekends ago and they were selling the same size Santas for $55 and up! They wanted $95 for Santa in his sleigh with his reindeer.