Flowering pear like the Bradford are not forever trees. They're soft wood and if not pruned very regularly will loose branches in bad weather. Here in St Louis, ice an snow break them completely in half regularly. Even wind can damage them. The Kousa dogwood has a small leaf (less raking) and an interesting shape for winter and blooms nicely. I think the Crepe Myrtle is a great idea too. I like a small tree with more delicate upswept branching. Your house is adorable, love the color. You will want to have your utilities come out and mark the yard before you dig. And make sure you don't plant directly over your lateral sewer line. http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3Fei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Dkousa%2Bdogwood%2Btree&w=160&h=140&imgurl=www.bing.com%2Fimages%2Fsearch%3Fq%3Dkousa%2Bdogwood%2Btree%23focal%3Def5fa90e57ff75de6445f8ba31299437%26furl%3Dhttp%253a%252f%252fwww.goshenenterprises.com%252fhtml%252fplantcatalog%252fplantpages%252fp_images%252fcornus_kousa_1.jpg&size=&name=search&rcurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bing.com%2Fimages%2Fsearch%3Fq%3Dkousa%2Bdogwood%2Btree%23focal%3Def5fa90e57ff75de6445f8ba31299437%26furl%3Dhttp%253a%252f%252fwww.goshenenterprises.com%252fhtml%252fplantcatalog%252fplantpages%252fp_images%252fcornus_kousa_1.jpg&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bing.com%2Fimages%2Fsearch%3Fq%3Dkousa%2Bdogwood%2Btree%23focal%3Def5fa90e57ff75de6445f8ba31299437%26furl%3Dhttp%253a%252f%252fwww.goshenenterprises.com%252fhtml%252fplantcatalog%252fplantpages%252fp_images%252fcornus_kousa_1.jpg&p=kousa+dogwood+tree&type=&no=1&tt=115&oid=http%3A%2F%2Fts2.mm.bing.net%2Fimages%2Fthumbnail.aspx%3Fq%3D1131337035837%26id%3D44da4baa5055adf7a92b98bbd657032d&tit=Kousa+Dogwood+in+Bloom&sigr=16cseut90&sigi=16538ka1f&sigb=11s9dsmvf&fr=yff50c

I have a small 50'x100' lot but grew up growing our own food. So I grow a few dwarf fruit trees like peaches, apple, and cherries. I have blueberry, raspberry, wineberry, blackberry and dwarf cranberry bushes, grape & kiwi vines, & strawberries. Perennial veggies such as artichokes, asparagus, leeks, garlic, oregano, coriander, fennel, lavendar, rosemary, sage, & thyme. As for annual vegetables, I grow cucumbers, eggplants, sweet and hot peppers, tomatoes, cherry tomotoes, zucchini, summer squash, spinach, chard, kale, broccoli, potatoes, green beans, peas, celery, basil, and plenty of salad greens. A coffee tree and 3 fig trees which I bring inside for the winter. Long lsland gets cold winters, we're zone 7, so I overwinter a lot of my sensitive plants in a small greenhouse. With the greenhouse I can grow spinach and lettuce year round. And of course of native pollinator plants to maximize production. So much better than growing grass.

We reside in Chicago, but our heart is out west. About ten years ago my husband had a Meyer lemon tree shipped to us. In lives out side from May through October inside through the winter where we enjoy the fragrance of its blooms if you are not familiar think gardenia. We average about 40 lemons a year we do share some while most are used for lemon drop martinis. It is a pleasure to share with the locals that citrus has varieties and for those who are very unfamiliar a band-aid after they encounter a spike. For those who are having trouble growing their lemon trees ours is potted, we use only organic potting soil and citrus food. We did pay more for a larger tree and had lemons the second year.

I don't understand why the mirror is there. It's not reflecting anything that's interesting. The point of a mirror is to have something interesting in the mirror. When people sit down, all they see in the mirror is the ceiling. I'd put a piece of art there and move the mirror someplace more suitable for a mirror.