Flower to the power...

When the hubs and I were first getting to know each other, I sent him a list entitled "5 Things You Should Know About Me." I figured, if things worked out, he'd be exposed to these oddities of mine anyway - why not see if they made him bolt for the hills right from the start?

I was frank about my affinity for shoe shopping, up front about my need to (loudly and at decibels that threaten glass) comment on others' driving skills, and was quite forthright (if not a little boastful) with regard to my ability after consuming cranberry juice to outbelch any sailor foolish enough to challenge me. What I neglected to disclose to the dearest, future hubs was my excessive addiction to flowers. All of them.

We are now in Year 2 of the grand, three year gardening plan. Each year produces a healthy list of new bloomers that "must, must, must" be added to our wasteland of a backyard. A certain nursery sends emails that I am their #1 <insert your city here> customer (hey, I'll take blantent, non-sincere flattery anytime).

Warm weather and more-rain-than-is-typical has had us in the garden every weekend (hence, the dearth of blog posts). Delightfully, we are now seeing some Year 1 results and are deep into random Year 2 projects:

This weathered window frame is a sister accent to the blue window box featured in the last post. Scouting around at an antique shop yielded the frame and the darling petite hanging urn. I promptly spray painted it with flat white paint and now it acts a perfect foil to the bright yellow (formerly black) window frame.

A cascading Vinca vine fits perfectly in the shallow urn.

The flowers planted two weeks ago in the blue window box (featured in a previous post) are thriving more than ever! See the complete post here.

 A resounding success from Year 1: Snow in Summer borders the paver steps.

These pops of color petunias are some of my favorites. An iron plant pot ring lets you hang them directly from a fence, post or wall.

Arizona Sun Gaillardia is living up to its name even only having been planted about a month ago.

So what could be better than flowers? Shoes with flowers, of course. I had to have these pretties as soon as I saw them. Now, I'll just take a bit of the garden with me. ;)

Seychelles Joan Espadrille

Off to play in more dirt!