"The day the Lord created hope was probably the same day he created Spring. " — Bern Williams
Spring has come to my door and I wanted to share it. The azaleas are all past their bloom (lower left of photo). The Shasta daisies (white flowers) started about 8 or 9 years ago as one pathetic little clump you could fit in one hand. A friend brought it as a housewarming gift when she visited us from her home in Oregon. This is the 3rd house since then and every time we have moved, I've dug it up. From the beginning to now, that one little clump has morphed into a hedge about 12-15' wide, usually about 2' tall and 3' deep when they are established. This first year they're still getting used to their relocation from last October so I expect them to be modest. Next year they'll be huge. They're nothing special but they make me happy and they make me think of my dear, childhood friend every time I look at them.
When we moved in, the area where the Shasta daisies are was a hedge about 4' tall and filling that whole area. It was boring and ugly plus I didn't like that it hid the porch. Got the rocking chair a couple months ago and I think it suits the porch nicely. Those potted geraniums are all ones I mixed together that were in their own pots originally. My former upline and dear friend Maria was moving out of state so she gave me all her potted plants. They did not do well at our old house but I gave them some TLC, planted the 6 plants into 3 pots, gave them a swig of Miracle Gro and, voila, they look great! Yet another plant that causes me to think of the gift giver.
We hired a landscape architect who is right this very minute drafting a blueprint for a planting plan for our back yard. We are gutting it all except the grass. We should have the plan within a week. So eager to see what he comes up with and to see what parts of it we can afford. We'll do it in stages. Even having some cool lighting designed so we can really make our backyard a focal point for fun and leisure. Doug keeps this pool so clean that Kendall says it's his "5th child". I guess that'll bump the BBQ to "6th child" status, LOL!
I can hardly wait to have fresh plants and trees, no weeds and enjoy our first pool. I am a sun goddess and love laying out by a pool so this is heaven for me! We're having a "staycation" this summer (except for a short trip to Las Vegas for Matt's 21st birthday) so we will really be living (& napping) back here.
A couple days ago, Doug bought me my Mother's Day gift. Ok, so it's not a purse like last year or perfume or something else girly but this is what I really, really wanted – patio furniture. We got this conversation set plus two chaise lounges. Kirsten, who comes home from college May 9, said "Mom, you have a May 9 deadline to get some chaise lounges for the pool area." Matt [who flies in May 11] told me "all I want to do this summer [besides work] is lay by our pool and read books for fun" [and not for homework – he is an English major]. So, this Mother's Day gift will go a long way for everyone's benefit and we met Kirsten's May 9 "deadline." (She was kidding of course but it was good to have a date to focus on). Now that we've bought this, we'll be eating beans and water for dinner as we're now broke….again!
