Getting Back to Serenity

I have been very busy this past month and I have neglected my gardens and I have neglected myself. In spite of my neglect, my garden continues to flurish. God blessed up with some beautiful rain showers after almost a month of hot dry weather. The flowers have demonstrated their gratitude by blooming virously. I do love flowers. They demonstrate everyday to me that I too can flurish if I just continue to put down my roots and take in nurishment.......

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Unlikely Annuals

These dianthis grew volunteer from plants that I had last year. As you can see, they dominate the front of the flower garden.

Am I planted in the right spot??

This little hosta was planted in my front flower bed last year. It did not do very well. It got too much sun and not enough water. In the early spring, it was doing well, but as the summer progressed and the weather became hotter and drier; it started to wither and turn brown around the edges. Last fall I transplanted it to the garden on the north side of the house. this spring, it was later in coming up than my other hosta in the back yard garden. I am hopping that it was later only because where it is planted doesn't get as much sunshine. I am hoping that it will thrive and that I have found the right combination of soil, water, and sun.

Sometimes, I look at my personal life and there are areas that are not thriving. I have to look at these areas and see what is missing in my life that is not allowing that part of me to thrive. When I discover what the problem is, I need to take steps to correct it if I truly want to thrive. Just like with my plants, it may take a radical change. I need to decide, am I ready to go through the stress of the required change or do I choose to stay where I am and continue to be a puny plant when I have the potential to be a thriving healthy plant?? The choice is mine. My results and my health will be a result of the choice that I make. What about you? Are you thriving where you are planted? Do you need a change? Maybe nothing radical - maybe just some extra water or fertilizer??

Growing in unlikely places

This is a picture of my iris bed on the north side of the house. When we first moved into this house, this area was barren. It was covered in heavy bark mulch. Because it doesn't get a lot of sun, I wasn't sure what would grow here.

I had brought a lot of iris bulbs with me and knew that if they were going to have any chance of survival, they need to be at lest in the ground. The front side yard that now has flowers and rose bushes was filled with bushes and bark mulch. There was little room for much else.

In desperation, I decided to plant the iris on the north side of the house. I figured that I could transplant them the following year, but at least it would get them in the ground. As I started to dig? I mean cut my way through the layers of landscape cloth and plastic that covered the ground; I became even more doubtful that the bulbs would survive. There really wasn't any "soil" there - only layers of grass clippings. Each layer was covered by another layer of landscape cloth or plastic and more mulch. I planted the bulbs, but I did not have much hope that they would survive.

Imagine my surprise, when the bulbs started to sprout the next spring. We had a lot of yard work to do before I could transplant them. There were bushes to be removed and a sprinkler system to be installed. These projects were not completed until mid-summer. By then, the iris were flourishing. Now I have a beautiful iris bed in a once barren area of the yard.

Sometimes, I find the same to be true in my personal life. I find myself being drawn into circumstances where I have to do something that I would not ordinarily do. I am pulled out of my comfort zone. It is in these times that I have to reach deep within myself and find the true inner strength that dwells in all of us. It is a time when I grow the most. It not usually a comfortable time, but when I make it through, I realize that it was just what I needed to push me to the next level. What about you, are you willing to grow, even in unlikely situations? Are you willing to look for the reason you are where you are? Come ---- stretch and grow with me. Explore who you are. Explore your strengths. Bloom where you are planted. Lets celebrate our growth.

Iris surprise

This is a picture of my latest iris surprise. I say surprise because I didn't know I had one plant this color, now I find I have not one but, three plants like this. The photo does not truly do it justice. It is a deep purplish blue. The lower petals are almost black. I tried several times today to get a better photo, but we have a light breeze blowing. It was hard to catch the flower when the wind was not blowing.

My iris garden is special to me and my husband. Most of the bulbs came from either my Mom or his Mom. Both have passed on, so this is a living memorial to them both. Every year it seems like we discover a new color we didn't know we had.

The flowers have survived many transplantings in the past few years. The ones from my Mom started in Iowa. I got the bulbs right after Mom died. They had been planted in a drainage ditch. The tops had been mown so often that the bulbs had shriveled into hard, dry, withered pieces. I was not even sure they would grow. I was living in Illinois at the time. I planted the bulbs in my front yard. The next spring, they were joined by bulbs from my husband's Mom. We drove to Wisconsin, dug them up, and planted them in the front yard in Illinois. Now we have them at our home in Colorado.

Beauty in function

One of my gardens is right outside my office window. Every morning, after the sprinklers have watered the gardens, this is the site that greets me. The day lily leaves are designed to catch the droplets of water. The water is then either directed down into the center of the plant or it drips off the leaves, giving the roots surrounding the plant a sustained drink of water.

The sun, glints off the water droplets, like shimmering diamonds. Their beauty is almost mesmerizing. It is amazing the beauty that nature incorporates into functionality. The two words seem to almost exclude each other: beauty, function. Nature is teaching us: we can have "both."

So many times in my life I have given up on the creative side of myself in favor of function or need. I am learning that I don't have to choose. I can have both. I can choose to honor and even nuture the creative, beautiful side of myself. That side of me is just as vital as the functional, practical side of myself. If I do not choose to nuture the creative side of myself, then the functional side of me will not have the drive and passion to keep going. I need both, because both are a vital part of what defines who I am. It helps define my abundant life.

What about you? Is there a part of yourself that you have been neglecting or even pretending did not exsist? Take some time out today. Celebrate all of you.

This iris is a new addition to my garden this year. When we got it, we thought it was a deep blue, but when it bloomed this year, it is a deep velvety purple. My husband thinks the acidity in the soil caused the blooms to change color. I have never heard of that with iris, have you?? I know that hydrangeas change their color depending on the acidity of the soil. I hope you are enjoying sharing my garden with me.

Roses

I love roses. My favorite rose is the tea rose. The other roses are pretty, but to me the most beautiful is the tea rose. Last year, I planted two rose bushes. it was late in the spring and we did not have the irrigation system installed until late spring. Only one of my bushes survived.

This spring, I planted four more bushes. Each bush is a different color. I can hardly wait til they start blooming........Oh, yeah......they have to grow first.

Sometimes I get impatient with myself just like I get impatient for the flowers to bloom. I know that for the flowers to bloom, they need the correct soil conditions, the right amount of water and sun, and the right amount of fertilizer. They have to be nurtured and cared for. I need to ask myself...."I am I giving myself enough of what I need??" How can I expect myself to grow and thrive if I am not taking care of my own needs?

What areas of my life are lacking nurture: physical, emotional, social, financial, or spiritual?? What can I do to begin to meet my own needs? What about you? What are you missing to have an abundant fulfilling life? Take time to think about the answers to these questions. You deserve an abundant live.

A Little Whimsey

This little guy sits on the ledge above my waterfall. I have to smile every time I see him. He looks all set to jump into the stream and the frog looks like he is saying, "you want me to do what??

My little gnome reminds me to take time to play and to not take myself too seriously. There are days when the workaholic in me needs those reminders. There always seems to be something that needs to be done or someone who wants something.

Do you ever wish you could clone yourself? Some days I do. Then one of me could be off playing all the time and the other could be working. But, knowing me.......they would probably both end up working full time.

So... given I can't clone myself. I choose to take some time everyday to just walk around my gardens or just sit and listen to the waterfall. I find the sound on a waterfall to be so relaxing.... almost hypnotic. I know that there will always be things that are left undone, but the most important will get done and the rest can wait. I have to focus on what is important to me and my family... the rest can be delegated or left undone.

Tulips

I am not sure where these tulips came from. I plants two kinds of tulips last fall and neither one of them were this beautiful reddish-orange color. They bloomed later then my other tulips, so they really stand out. Especially since they are surrounded by yellow iris. Have you ever noticed how the blooms almost fully close each night and then re-open with the sun the next day? I think flowers are almost magical.

Spring Rains

It rained here last night. The air is cool and clean. the flowers are all saying, "what a refreshing change!" The past few days have been very warm and dry.

Yesterday evening I planted 4 new rose bushes. I am glad I got them planted ahead of the rain. The next few days are supposed to be cool and rainy. What timing. The roses were looking a little stressed before I planted them. They had been setting out in the hot sun in the parking lot of the store. I am sure they were grateful to get their toes into the cool moist soil of the garden. the fertilizer I gave them will help ease their transition and lessen the transplant shock.

As I look out onto my garden this morning, I realize that my soul is feeling a little stressed. School is out, the kids are home. This means less personal time for myself. I need to nurture my spirit. I think I will take more walks this summer and spend my evenings in the garden. The beauty of the flowers and the sounds of the birds always quiets my mind and soothes my spirit. What do you do to nurture yourself?

Pansies

Pansies are an example of a flower that survives inspite of hardship and in the face of many odds. Last year I planted these flowers. I did not have my sprinkler system set up right and we had a hot dry summer here in Colorado. The pansies died before the summer was over.........But this spring, they came back bigger and better than ever. Pansies are supposed to be annuals. They are not supposed to survive over the winter. Well, as you can see - these not only survived - they are thriving.

It makes me wonder......what part of me would thrive if only given the right circumstances. Am I nuturing myself??

Multi-colored Iris

I love the muticolored Iris. These are my iris that are two toned purple and mauve. My mom had many different colors. I wish I could find some like she had.

This morning, the bronze iris is in full bloom. I love the varied shades of color and the velvety texture of the petals. This afternoon, I am going to buy some roses and bedding plants for the garden. I enjoy seeing the new plants as they take root in the furtile soil and thrive. I have to ask myself, Am I thriving? What do I need in my life to thrive even more?

Opening buds

Yesterday as I was walking in the garden, my bronze iris was a tight bud, just starting to open in the afternoon sun.

My front yard garden

The iris are in full bloom.

My Garden My Sanctuary

Welcome to my garden. It is the place I go to "get away from it all." To me, nothing compares to a stroll around my gardens. Stopping to smell a fragrant flower or to marvel over a bud just getting ready to burst open. My garden allows me to escape from any cares or worries I have. It is a quiet place to contemplate and dream. Nothing shouts hope as clearly as flowers breaking through the barren ground in the spring. Even a late spring snow is not enough to discourage the flowers. They know that the warm spring rains and the bright sunshine are inevitable. They push through the ground in spite of possible adverse weather. I learn so much from watching and working with my flowers. I to choose to grow in spite of possible "adverse conditions" or "perceived roadblocks." Join me here for the journey. I look forward to sharing my garden with you.