Monday, March 06, 2006

Of Spring and Decorating

Spring is right around the corner! Yay! I had to turn on the AC in my car today it was so warm. All the garden centers have put away the fire wood and chimaneas. Now they are abloom with colorful annuals, flowering shrubs and hanging baskets, just waiting to find a home. I admire them from afar because I know there will be another frost or two before spring actually arrives. I always wait until the end of April or first of May to put in my annuals, just to be on the safe side. I will go ahead and buy a few hanging baskets to spruce up the back porch, though. I wish I could just snap my fingers and have a beautifully landscaped back yard instead of the barren weed patch that is there now. I have had two beautiful back yards in previous homes, all planted by yours truly. Both of those yards would fit into this back yard that I have now! I even painted a mural on my storage shed in my last yard. It had a picket fence with daisies and ivy trailing on it, wisteria vine and a pink climbing rose on either side of the door. On the door I painted a wooden arch with more ivy, a hanging basket of asparagus fern, a bird house, a topiary and an herb garden growing in a wooden box. Across the top of the door I wrote: 'She Who Loves a Garden...' from a Mary Englebreight book. I painted little vines with tiny white flowers on the letters. I even painted a Monarch butterfly flitting amongst the flowers. I had milkweed growing nearby and always had Monarchs laying their eggs on it. Later I would see a huge green and black striped caterpillar eating every leaf in sight. Once I found a crysallis hanging from a nearby plant, but missed seeing the butterfly actually hatch. I loved that yard!

I have a lot to do in the next few weeks to get the house ready for 'the kids' visit. My daughter and her family are coming for a visit during their spring break the last week of March. I still need to furnish one of the bedrooms. I am buying a white trundle day bed from a friend to put in it. I want the room to be a 'girls room'. This will also by my office/computer room, so I don't want it too frilly...more bright and fun! The rest of the house is OK, still no window treatments in the family room or kitchen. I just haven't been in the mood to deal with all that, what with all the drama going on in the 'domestic situation'. It seems to be settling down a bit, so it looks like I will be staying around for a while. I might as well do a little more decorating. The house will at least 'show' well if it ever needs to be put on the market. In the meantime, I can enjoy it. Besides, I am, therefore I decorate!


Well, little Elvis is pooped. He had his puppy class this evening and had quite a work out, but he is learning all his commands and making friends with the other pups. The wild and crazy chocolate lab came back, darn it. He shreiked and slung slobber the entire time. The other pups had a hard time concentrating because he is such a distraction. I wonder if it would do any good to call the instructor and complain, er discuss my concerns.

Night ya'll!

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