Hitting A Stride, Even Though It May Not Be Mine

After several weeks in a row of interruptions to a normal routine, this last week was pretty much back to "normal life". I always find it hard to work a full five day week after having a few shorter weeks - and indeed, this last week did feel long. Maybe because I'm now in second half of the school year and June doesn't feel so far away, or maybe because it's been several months of living at a hectic pace and I'm finally "psychologically in shape" for all that I've been trying to do...either way, I found it easier to find calm in the midst of some very full and very busy days. I'm not saying that I like being this busy, because I don't. Just yesterday the husband and I were talking about the future and me having more free time for the things I love but have had to cut back on or give up altogether since last September. I don't know how it happened but, I've found that I feel peaceful even with so much on my plate. It helps that I really love my job...it's challenging me like crazy, and somedays I feel like I'm in over my head, but I truly love it. The other day I used the analogy of the job feeling like running a marathon that I didn't train for...but since saying that, I've realized that I have trained for this "marathon"...if I really wasn't meant to be teaching in the school that I am during this time, I wouldn't be enjoying it and I wouldn't be having the success that I am with my students. Not to say that I've got it all figured out, I don't, but again, I love it and I'm learning quickly on a very steep learning curve.

Speaking of steep, I took a nice walk this morning with Bambino, part of my route is a steep hill. Even though I know I am not in good shape right now, whenever I've taken that walk in the last couple of months, I have been able to keep a good pace, work up a sweat, and end the walk feeling energetic. I am not exercising as frequently as I need to be - especially considering the amount of stress I have in my life right now...but in the last few days I've been trying to turn that around. I'm committed to getting that part of life back to where it should be. I've managed to keep from getting the last round of colds and flu that hit our house and took the husband and s-son out, which is probably why I'm even trying to be more physically active every day. Normally if I get sick, all plans and attempts to exercise and be active are completely derailed.

Next weekend is the daylight savings switch back, one hour of sleep lost, but an hour of daylight gained. Usually I dread the lost sleep, but this year I'm not feeling that way so much. I'm actually kind of excited to have more daylight when I get home from work to enjoy doing things like going for a walk.

While I was out this morning I noticed that our trees have budded out and are getting closer to blooming, and many of my tulip and daffodil bulbs have started to peek through. In a few weeks things outside will look completely different. I love spring - it's definitely the most beautiful time of year (to me) around here.

That's all for now, cheers to another peaceful (albeit busy) week!

Flowers All Over

It's that time of year where the flowers are everywhere and I can't get enough! Ahhhh Summer, I now remember why I love you so!

Sunflowers

Sunflowers are the sign of late summer for me...when the first sunflower blooms I know that the days of summer are numbered. But I still can't resent them, I love their gorgeous color! I'd love to one day live in Tuscany, but until I realize that dream, I am completely happy to have a bit of that Tuscan sunflower yellow in my own garden.

Happy 3rd, Baby!

Yup, we've made it through 3 years (yesterday)! It's been a very full 3 years, and in particular the last 3 months (or 3 weeks for that matter!) have been very full. We (or rather the husband mostly) are in the final stages of finishing a building project on our property. For my part I've been part of a couple of painting days as well as a day spent tiling floors and a day of tiling a shower. These are things we've done before which makes the work easier. A new challenge this time was learning how to do some rock/masonry work, it ended up being pretty simple once we go the hang of it. I've been reminded lately of how well the husband and I are able to work on projects together. I feel like I always hear how married couples can't work well together with remodeling or construction-type projects. So far we've been able to make it work, and we're no where near killing each other, if anything it's been good for us. In addition to all of that, I just signed the paperwork for a new brick and mortar teaching job which I will officially start next month. In the mean time though I have already been to some strategizing and planning meetings with other faculty - proving further to myself that this job is a great opportunity for me. I am still working part-time at the greenhouse supply store for a few more days until the end of this month, it's a bit torturous to be a short-timer there right now, it would have probably been better for me to give two weeks notice and call it there, but it will pass. We have also in the last week hosted a bbq for extended family and had some dear friends and their four great kids come from out of state to stay with us for a few days. I also got hit with a nasty summer cold that turned into an even nastier sinus infection. It's one thing to be sick when it's gross and rainy outside, it's a whole other game to get sick when the weather is gorgeous outside, summer illness is no good!

So here I sit, happily married for 3 years now. Life is full of joy and anticipation. I understand now when I hear people say that they love their spouse more after years together than they did the day they were married. Evolving as people together has been key, so has good communication and flexibility. I feel very lucky in life and love!

By the way, those flowers are my "wedding flower", liatris. They once again have blossomed just in time for our anniversary and making me think back 3 years to that beach in Hawaii. *swoon*

We plan to celebrate a bit more formally next month when our project is finished. I'll be done with my greenhouse job and there wil be a few weeks before I go to work full-time. We've talked about heading to the Oregon coast, which sounds very restful, and before the busyness of a new school year, I can go for that!

Wisteria Vine is Home!

I am finally getting around to doing a little show and tell with this one. The wisteria vine I received as a birthday present finally got it's permanent home. The husband custom made this cedar planter to fit around one of the deck support posts on our patio. Once it was made, he and the s-son worked on staining it. Then I filled it with dirt and planted the wisteria. It will be here for many years and I love the way it looks! I am going to train it to grow across the bottom of our deck so when you are on the patio below you are underneath a sea of wisteria blossoms - gorgeous!

Next Year's Flowers Planted.

This past Saturday I spent a few hours putting several hundred bulbs, corms and tubers into our front flower bed. I got them cheap, a buck a bag, which worked out to about 10 cents or less per bulb. It felt good to get them in the ground, this chore had been looming for several days. But, at the same time, it's a bit anti-climactic to plant bulbs that won't be up for another year. At least I had company while I worked, these girls decided to take their free ranging my way. I'm sure in a year I'll be taking pictures of those flowers and putting them here on the blog. Here's to waiting patiently!

Bug Love! (Part One)

Sooooo, I caught these two in the act on one of the sunflowers in my garden and had to share. In a strange sort of way, it's kind of romantic...if there were a sunflower big enough I'd probably do the same, tee-hee!

Come Take A Walk With Me

I'm enjoying a day off, I've planted my birthday wisteria in my newly-completed-husband-constructed-s-son-stained-cedar planter (I've got a picture to show tomorrow or the next day, whenever I get around to it). I've [finally] finished planting my tomato plants and burried the hole-punched containers that I will use to give those tomatoes the deep watering experience they so love. There are still other outdoor/yardwork type tasks to tackle, but in the last few days it got hot outside and not having climatized to the heat just yet, I'd gotton sweaty enough for one morning by the time I was done with those few chores. I did manage to eat about 10 sun-warmed strawberries that had been warmed by the sun while standing in the garden - this is one of the benefits of no chemical spray gardening, all I had to do was brush a bit of sandy dirt off a few of the berries (most hung above the dirt). I have to say that I enjoyed those berries more than any others we've already picked this year, they are delicious fresh off the vine and warmed by the sun!
I did think it would be fun to take my camera along for a tour of the flowers that are currently blossoming in my garden...won't you join me?

This is the third year I've had blooms from this gorgeous peony, and this year the plant is bigger than ever!

I love the way they look as they are beginning to open up.

This bloom found it's way into a vase that I brought inside, it will bring cheer to my bedside stand for the next week or so.

This overgrown planting of sweet peas could use some pruning, but I haven't the heart, I kind of like the wild look it has. So for now it will continue to flourish. These sweet peas are not very fragrant because they are perrineals which unlike annuals, do not have a strong scent. The nice thing about them though is that they come back on their own each year, there's no need for me to replant. They too have grown bigger, faster this year than they did in the past two summers. The flowers tend to "self-arrange" nicely when they are put into a vase.

This little bloom-in-the-making is on a dahlia plant that I've had in this spot for three years now, it too is bigger and more full of blooms than ever.

Perrineals really are a wonderful idea, one investment followed by years of enjoyment.

These almost not quite real looking blooms are on one of the fushia baskets that hang from the pergola at the entrance to my vegetable garden. Fushias are my new favorite plant this year, the varieties of color blow me away!

I'm not normally a fan of calla lillies, to be honest, they remind me of funerals. Actually, let me amend that statement, white calla lillies remind me of funerals. BUT, the pink/purple variety that is growing in nicely in the beds by the entrance to "The Pod" greenhouse doesn't make me think of funerals or death. I actually find this variety of calla lilly to be cheerful and delicate all at once.

White calla lillies: not so much! Calla lillies with color: yes, please!

Thanks for joining me on my little flower walk, the summer garden really is the most beautiful!

Projects Around the House and Garden

Here's a quick look at a couple of the projects that I've been busy with recently...
I [finally] got the raised flower beds around "The Pod", painted, installed, lined with weed fabric, filled with dirt and planted - big yay! I planted calla lillies, daisies, peonies that I'd started in the greenhouse, and sunflowers (3 different kinds) from seed.Another project that I sort of inspired though did not contribute to work-wise (yet) was a new staircase that leads to the deck on the back of our house. The deck is just off of our master bedroom. I've talked before about what a special place this deck is to me, I love the view from that space, it's one of my favorite features of our house. The staircase makes the view more accessible and useable. I always wanted it to be a more useable space for everyone, this did it.

Another (big) project we've had going on is peaking out of the right side of the picture above. It deserves it's own post, so more on that later. June has been a busy but fantastic month so far, I hope that's true for you also (the fantastic part, not the busy stuff).

California Popies

It makes me smile when my orange California Poppies start blooming. I didn't even really like them all that much when I was living in California, but leaving "home" can make a person long for the familiar things of that place. I planted this patch of poppies my first spring in Washington when I was feeling a bit homesick. They come back every year stronger and stronger. I was told all of the time growing up that it was illegal to pick the Golden State flower, so being a good little California girl, I never did. This explains why it was only last year that I learned that if you want to keep poppies in a vase of water, you have to burn the end of each stem with a match or lighter when you pick it. I wonder how many other transplants to the Pacific Northwest from California have learned that lesson once they moved? I couldn't possibly be the only one, could I?

Fresh Cut Flower Friday - First June Blossom

I have talked for months and months about the flowers that I have been intentionally growing so I can cut them and bring them inside in vases. Well, this beautiful iris is my first. It hadn't been cut yet when this picture was taken, but you can bet that it is now in a bud vase on my bedside stand! Happy Friday, have a great weekend!

Fresh Cut Flower Friday

Happy Friday! I finally got around to taking some pictures of what I've been up to out in the garden and wouldn't you know it, I've been too busy to get them uploaded. I suppose that means I'll just have to try to pop in here over the weekend to share. Until then my show and tell are the lovely fresh cut alliums on display in my favorite vase in my entry nook. Man that wall would look great with some paint on it...there's always another project right?! Have a fantastic weekend!

Happy May Day!

I can't believe it is May already! This year is going by so quickly, spring has been beautiful and summer is just around the corner - Wow!

Bleeding Heart

We've got a big project happening on our property right now. It is going to involve tearing up some ground on the north side of our house. This is something that has had me thinking lately about what I'd like to do in those areas, as far as plantings go, once the dust settles and everything is back in place. Because it is north facing, there isn't much direct sunlight during the day at any point in the year. Also, I don't want to do anything too high maintenance, the less work the better. So I've been thinking about shade loving perrenials. In particular, I've recently been drawn to bleeding heart plants. They are so very elegant. I was very excited to find the gorgeous plant above last weekend when I happened into a local nursery...it's gorgeous and just what I wanted. Another bonus, it was half the price of bleeding heart plants of the same size that I have seen elsewhere. Perfect! It's going to be at least a month or two until I can put it in the ground...but I'm looking forward to seeing it bloom year after year!

Calendula: Weird Seeds

A packet of calendula seeds was mine for free recently because I purchased a couple of other Thompson and Morgan seed packets. I probably never would have picked it out normally, but I'm up for trying to grow new things. It's especially fun given that there is more than enough space to spread out.

The seeds struck me as interesting...they look more like a dried up little insect than a seed. We'll see soon how it turns out, everything is germinating very quickly in the greenhouse these days. The temperature and humidity are apparently doing the trick.

No Tiptoeing This Year...

...but at least I got to see the tulip fields. The sight is pretty stunning.
Beyond the tulips just being beautiful, there's also something that is just amazing about such a large quantity of bright color, in such deep brilliance, with blue skies and puffy white clouds as a back drop.
Usually when I see stunning landscapes, the main color is green...

...but these tulip fields, with their gorgeous colors blow me away. It's almost too much for the eyes.

I'm not the only one who feels this way...the traffic around the tulip fields

at this time of year can be horrendous, especially on a sunny weekend day.

The new job that I've taken a couple of days a week is right on the tulip tourist route,

so during my commute, I had no choice but to stop and "smell the tulips" so to speak.

It was mildly annoying to have my commute time double, but really,

there are worse things in life than driving through tulip country!