In bloom

Hello! This is my first house post in quite some time. J and I are still in recovery mode from all the activity this summer. Traveling has been fun, but also exhausting. Especially with my continued sleep problems. I was actually supposed to go to Orlando this past week for a conference. In fact, we were supposed to be flying back today. However, all this travel caught up with me and I just couldn't go. I think we were both pretty relieved to be honest. The conference would have been good, but I have been on edge for so long that I really needed to be home. I honestly do not understand how people can travel all the time and be okay.

We didn't have much going on this weekend, so it was pretty open. Saturday, I felt well enough to do some gardening. So, instead of going to Home Depot, we ended up going to our local gardening center. It was slightly more expensive, but way better quality and I could take my time looking at the options for our yard. J waited patiently by the fans.

I was most interested in getting some new perennials for our front flower bed, but I also wanted to grab some impatiens since they historically do so well in our partially-shaded front. After walking around for 15 minutes looking for them, I finally say to J, "Do you see any impatiens? I can't find them anywhere." At which point, we both looked straight in front of us at this sign and had a good laugh. I guess no impatiens this year! In a way, it forced me to look at some other plants, which is always fun.

 Our front bushes were getting out of control and the pansies we had planted in the spring had completely disappeared.

Our hydrangea was flourishing though. It has really grown quite a bit, which is pretty awesome. The blooms were so pretty when we got back from Europe, but I forgot to take a picture (typical). 

The bushes in the back seemed to take on a life of their own and had hosted a full on invasion of the yard and house. It's hard to see here, but they must have grown 1-2 feet on all sides.

The first thing I tackled was some trimming of the bushes. This is the after shot. The bushes in the back are not taking over quite so much of the yard. I left the hydrangea alone. I think I want to give it at least another year before I start trimming her down. I did clip a few of the blooms. More on that later.

J helped me dig holes for the new plants (12 in all!). The soil was super wet. We have had so much rain, and our soaker hose has been working too well. I ended up removing the soaker hose. I will go back to the sprinkler if our yard is looking dry, but it was really way too moist. The red is a New Guinea Impatien (annual), the second one is Summer Wave (perennial), and the one in the back is a Blue Ridge Creeping Phlox (perennial), which should (fingers crossed) bloom in the spring. The Phlox will spread ground, so I am curious how that will turn out in time.

On the other side, I planted Sedum ("Autumn Fire") in the front (perennial). It should bloom in August/September. Next to it (closest to the walkway) is the Balloon Flower (perennial). Both of them need a little more sun, so I planted them in our sunny spots. I planted another annual, petunias. So, we'll see how they all turn out. The perennials cover the spring, summer and fall blooming times, so I am hoping that we will have flowers 3 seasons of the year. The goal is to add some variety to our front flowerbed without having to plant new annuals all the time.

I'm excited to see the plant mature over time and see which do well and which don't. I'll keep you updated.

 Balloon flower (front) and petunias.

I clipped a few of the hydrangeas and brought them inside. Aren't they pretty? I am hoping to dry them out and use them a little longer. I actually really like the bottom of the mason jar being filled with the wine corks. Looks pretty cool.

 In the kitchen.

It was good to get my hands dirty a bit and work in the yard. It felt ordinary and wonderful. And I now feel rather sore.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!