Trends: Outdoor living
The grill of my dreams... This go-round, we'll explore extended-family rituals, specifically the reunion. When I decided I wanted to marry the lovely Mrs. Y nearly three decades ago, she was the lovely Miss R. Actually, she was the fourth of six Little Rs, each of whom would eventually become Big Rs who would start and grow families of their own. Consequently, when we get together, our we is more than a wee bit crowded — regardless of which R plays host to the event.

You can set your clock by our routine — or at least your calendar. Thanksgiving is our gig. The pre-Christmas party goes to the former Amy R's home. Christmas proper is the property of the former Katharine R. The former Amy R always does such a good job entertaining the troops at the pre-Christmas party that she also inherits July 4. Then, of course, there's the marking of the birthdays of the next generation, eight in number at last count — but then, my second son recently got married, so who knows where we'll eventually exponentially wander?

All that is to say this: We get to do a lot of gathering. And a lot of eating. And a lot of cooking. And there is no better cooking than that done on my brother-in-law Rodger's grill. It's a deluxe model — gas-fed and spacious enough to sear several meats at once. At least that's what I did to them the only time he let me try my hand at "cheffing." He had to work on the "fixins," so he handed me the spatula and told me to have at it. What he didn't tell me — the charcoal briquette guy — was that the gas grill would get hot fast. I figured that out when the flames singed my eyebrows as the burgers were consumed by molten lava, or some such.

Of course, had I gone to the HGTV Start at Home Outdoor Living page, I would have had, at my literal fingertips, access to all things outdoor, from how to build the deck on which my grill sits to how to use said grill without alerting the local fire marshal.

It's okay even if I do that, though. I'm pretty sure we're related.

Puzzling pictures
Piece, brother!... One of the pictures below is a puzzle. Select the correct one and then piece the product together again. Should you be caught or killed in the course of this mission, the agency will disavow any knowledge of your actions.

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Pick 'n Click
Product info, fast!... To help you find pertinent garden/gift items — that's the only kind we market! — we've created this list of links to the suppliers. Please click the company for e-reader service.

Achla Designs Alpine Corporation Bamboo Accents Bartlett Bench & Wire, Inc. Benchmaster by Structural Plastics Bird Brain, Inc. Bowling Enterprises Carruth Studio, Inc. Carson Industries Casual Furniture & Accessories Market Ceramo Co. Clean Air Gardening Collier Metal Specialties, Inc. Color Wheel Country Originals, Inc. Custom Decor Danove Corporation Discount Pond Supplies, Inc. Dorothy Biddle Service DP Foods, LLC (Daniels Plant Food) Dramm Corporation EasyPro Pond Products EbioExpress International Fabriscape Fafard Friendship’s Garden, Inc. Garden Market EXPO/CANGC Garden Works Gardenware Gifts That Bloom

Good Directions, Inc. Hydrofarm Jackson Pottery Jamaica Cottage Shop Kay Berry Little’s Good Gloves Magnet Works Melrose International Michael Gordon LTD Novelty Manufacturing Co. Ohio Wholesale, Inc. Olds Seed Company Outback Chair Co. Outdoor Connection Pacific Northwest Christmas Tree Assoc. Par A Sol Parker Davis Company, Inc. Principle Plastics Punxsutawney Glass & Tile Co. Red Carpet Studios Riverside Enterprises Rustic Natural Cedar Furniture Co. SATO Labeling Solutions America, Inc. Sherman Nursery Company Sunlight Supply, Inc. T-Mate-O Tula Hats Vitamin Institute White Cedar Gazebos

 

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Oh, yeah, the riddle answer...
A wheelbarrow

 
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