Good Things for March

Spring is finally here. I can tell. Even though it's still cool in the mornings and when I go to bed, the days are mild and warm and my plants are starting to grow. This week it's been misty and gray but generally the sun has been shining. I have about a dozen daffodils in the front flower beds now. We recently cleared some entirely-overgrown Lantana from one of them and found a bunch of lovely daffodils starting to grow - the perfect emblem of Spring.

Here are a few of my favorite things for Spring


1. Gardening - You can't beat the warm air and sunshine ... and the feeling of dirt in your hands! Not to mention the fulfillment of having grown your own food. This Spring, I planted several herbs and vegetables. I'm sadly not having a lot of luck with some of the herbs (like dill - it is so delicate and just stops growing when the sproutlings are still little whisps) but my basil and rosemary seem to be growing well. I've planted 2 varieties of grape-type tomatoes, okras, cucumbers, strawberries, bell peppers, lavender, balsam (I did not know what this was! If you don't either, check out the link) ... we'll see if I have any results! I'm really excited about the cucumbers and okras since I have pickling 'supplies' and would like to try my hand at homemade.




Forget-Me-Not's from last year and (back) a few lemon seeds.



Seven little cucumber plants!

2. Bright colors - I am always a fan of color, all year long. But I think Spring and Summer are just begging for happy colors everywhere:

• Kitchen (cheerful mixing bowls and colored glass) 
• Dining table (bold floral and colorful dishes and serveware - obviously fresh flowers make the perfect, simple decoration, too) 
• Living room (throw pillows, candles)
• Bedroom (change out the heavy bedding for a bright, light quilt)



Turquoise enamel colander, $25 (Overstock.com)





Zak!Designs Confetti bowl set, $29.00 (Amazon.com)

 



'Catcher' Reamer, $8.00 (Amazon.com)



Yellow floral quilt set (3-pieces), $60.00 (Overstock.com)



Michael Kors Platinum Nairobi Coverlet Set, $78.00 (Overstock.com)




Gray and coral toss pillow, $42.00 (Urbanoutfitters.com)

3. Shimmer & Tulle - I like things with a bit of sparkle and shine. It makes any old day feel like a special occasion. A tulle skirt can really dress up a look and feels a tiny bit 'formal' and feminine ... great paired with a crisp white shirt or a blazer.





Silver Shimmer Tank, $25.00 (Bodycentral.com)



Gold Shimmer Platform Pump, $50.00 (JCPenney.com)



Similar, $48.00 (YesStyle.com) or $29.00 (Forever21.com)
Find the original photo here - Lookbook user 'Modern Vintage .'



Norah Headband (and similar), $16.00 (etsy.com)

Thanks for reading!


What are some of your favorite things for Spring??






What a beautiful day!!

It's been really cold (in Texan terms) for over a week now - wonderful, jacket-worthy weather. But today I went outside expecting the same and found that it is a perfect, mild day. I turned the heat off and opened my kitchen windows to the light breeze and the rustling leaves. Smiley was snuffling about in the ground cover and Kevin spotted Samantha again, but only for a minute. I went out to water all our plants and got my arm wet: it helps if the hose is connected to the spigot before turning it on full blast! I tried to take a picture of Kevin in the natural light but he decided instead I should be wrestled into the ground; I'd forgotten how fun it is to roll around in the leaves.

My plants are still doing really well, though I think my Morning Glories have bloomed their last for the year. They are yellow and wilty now. My Forget Me Nots are pretty, though still not a single bloom, and my Basil is, of course, still hearty. My jalapeno and avocado seeds have sprouted. I think it's almost time for them to come inside -- I think we're going to make a spot for all of them in the garage, though I'm worried about the lack of sunshine.

There is more and more color to all the trees and plants. I've noticed another bush at the side of the yard is yellow now - it was still green just last week. And of course the crepe myrtle is stunning. I can see the tops of the trees in our neighbor's yards and across the street and they have turned as well. Such a pretty array of Fall colors.

Kevin pruned one of our plants while I caught Smiley eying the yard through the glass door - I think he wants to come outside again.

They didn't come out after all. I think something startled them back inside.

My roses bloomed again, too. I think these are about the largest roses I've seen on this plant; flawless and fragrant. Something about flowers like this make me want to pick them and put them in a vase. Although my intention would be to enjoy their beauty while it lasted, it seems more shameful and selfish than anything.

Contendedness ... and Morning Glories again.

This morning (well, actually it was noon) I sat in my backyard eating an atrociously late breakfast and enjoying the mild air and the birds and bright green of everything. Sometimes I think I might enjoy sleeping outside and waking up to that - there's something primordially therapeutic about Nature.

Last night I fell asleep on the couch and was awakened by a hug; Kevin had seen me asleep and came over to wake me so I could go to bed. Instead of saying "Natalie, it's time to go to bed" or shaking me or something, he instead sat by me on the couch and hugged me. I woke up with a flood or warmth all through my body. That's what Nature is like.

It got me thinking about being comfortable. And thinking about my house. I realized Kevin and I have lived in our house less than 5 months. We are by no means 'moved in' or 'settled', but that first unfamiliar rush and feeling of being in a new place and new walls and colors and the light coming in at different angles through all the windows...It's already slipping away. It doesn't take long, I thought, to lose that first love, that buzz of excitement over something new and ... exciting. It doesn't mean it is not exciting anymore: when I think about it, I'm still very excited and very very pleased to be in this home with my husband. But it doesn't feel quite so exhilarating anymore. 

Got me wondering, too, how people can hop from relationship to relationship probably just looking for that feeling of newness again - something different - just to know it will be gone soon and they'll be off to the next better thing. Is it really better to feel that heady buzz or to simply be happy where you are and with whom you are? What's better? Truly, we can never be fully happy or constantly happy.

I'm not so sure that buzz is as good or as exciting and thrilling as I thought when I was younger. As a kid, you let movies and other people and your unstoppable imagination tell you what life is all about and it's thrilling - only for the fact you haven't actually experienced it yet. So ... maybe it's not that these new experiences are exciting, it's simply that they have been previously un-experienced and are therefore new and maybe just a little overwhelming.

I am happy in my house. It's not glamorous or even as nice as my friend's houses or that person's house across town. But it's my house that I share it with my family and I love it. It's beautiful to me. And even after 5 months - though it's not quite so exciting waking up and thinking every morning 'Wow, this is my house!' - it still is and I still love being here.

I've been married for nearly 6 years and I wouldn't think of dropping my relationship just because that first rush and blush and flurry are long gone. I adore my spouse and there is nothing and no one who can replace him - not even that intoxication of new attraction. I don't comprehend people who don't allow themselves to be content with the things they have (yes, allow; I believe it's within ourselves, not the circumstances around us, to be content). Of course, I want new and different things, too but ... isn't there a line to be drawn? Can't you want new things, like a throw pillow or Christmas ornament or bed sheets, without also feeling like you have to completely rework your life? Don't question those good and wonderful things - those big things that really matter.

All that to say, I'm thinking about contentedness and constancy and realizing how rare they both are. I'm realizing how vital it is to appreciate the small things - something I have observed for many many years in a select few people and I appreciate them so much for that example - and not sweat so much over your house or your husband or wife who isn't perfect. Love them. Love life. Be content. Everything will eventually let you down, at least a little, but that doesn't mean you can throw it away.

In the backyard today I discovered a profusion of flowers and good things. I had to walk around in the lush grass and photograph some of it. The other day Kevin discovered a few stunning Spider Lilies which I had never seen before and am thrilled they are in my backyard! I had honestly forgotten about them til I turned the corner of by the patio and found them in all their glory. My herbs and other flowers are doing well, too, though my Morning Glories haven't bloomed since the first time. Here are a few photos from my backyard stroll. =)

My beautiful rose bush has bloomed again. I love the rich coral-orange color of the blooms. The smell is so sweet!

A new rose.

A little rosebud starting to bloom.

And here are the red Spider Lilies! I'm especially excited for these. The petals around the center were actually shimmering -- I don't think I've ever seen that before in a flower. It is so beautiful and unique. The little stems shooting out had pollen collected at the tips. The flower pictured below had a tiny spider web woven between the stems (you can see it at the right of the photo).

Spider Lily closeup. The photo doesn't do it justice.

Here is a lovely purple flower Kevin discovered. Never seen this one in the yard before either. It started growing in a corner where we have lots of green plants so I wouldn't be surprised if there are more new flowers to come.

Can you see the bug??

 

 

 

 

 

Here is our mushroom birdhouse. I think it's darling. It's hanging in the Crepe Myrtle at the opposite side of the yard. The Crepe Myrtle has been pruned so it looks more like a tree. It's adorable! The perfect place for a little bird family to live. Though I think we'll have to wait til next Spring for any birds to take up residence.

We have a few huge Rose of Sharon along one side of the fence. Here is one of the blooms. They die off pretty quickly but then re-bloom quickly again so it's almost always colorful.

I think this variety is called Double Purple?

So I think my dead Coriander from the Summer decided to start growing again? It looks like I have about four of these starting to sprout up around my Basil...I honestly can't remember if this is what the Coriander looked like when it started growing in July, but we'll see once it gets a little bigger.

My Morning Glories bloomed!!

This morning I wasn't feeling so well. That I-think-I'm-coming-down-with-something feeling that makes me want to stay in bed all morning. But staying in bed has a way of making me feel even worse really, so I got up and made a pot of coffee instead.

Preface: yesterday evening, we flung all our windows open to the glorious cool air and Kevin proclaimed it would be the perfect night to sleep with them open. I completely agreed and drank in the crispness as I snuggled deeper under my sheets and felt the occasional gust of Fall air against my nose.

So this morning as I scuffed around my kitchen, the air was still cool through the kitchen windows (have I mentioned how I love my kitchen windows?) and the sun beat in and my coffee brewed. I looked out into my bright yard and at my tiny little garden on the patio and realized with glee that my shy Morning Glories had finally bloomed! Yay! At last! I had to grab my camera and snap a shot of them before they clammed up again.

And with that I decided to photograph my other plants, too.

I haven't done a garden update in quite some time. When we were out of town this summer, some of my herbs died; when we got back I replanted them but then the Blue Jays ate the seeds so I gave up on any other herb but my Basil which apparently is immortal ... until about a week ago when I planted a few new herbs which are to remain at my kitchen window until they are a little bigger and perhaps not quite so attractive to hungry birds.

Here are my 3 kitchen herbs: Thyme, Rosemary and Dill. I think the Dill is the one that's growing tall already, the middle of the three pots pictured. (In a moment entirely lacking in organization, I somehow got the three little pots mixed up so I'll just have to wait and see what they turn into!) The other two are a little slower, though I can see now the tiniest green shoots just peeking out from the soil. 

It is so fascinating to me, watching plants grow. It's so fulfilling seeing little seeds dropped in soil with some water and sun turn into full grown plants that I can use in my kitchen or appreciate for their beauty. I think I have a little hint of understanding now why people love gardening so much. What a beautiful pastime.

I'm hoping the Rosemary proves as hearty as I believe it to be so I can have a big shrub of it eventually. Kevin and I were biking around the neighborhood yesterday afternoon and before I even saw it, I smelled Rosemary and Lavender; sure enough, someone had a huge, beautiful bed of both growing in their yard. If for no other reason, I would love a Rosemary bush just to smell the heady aroma wafting through my yard.

Here are the last remaining Basil plants (above). There are about six now (including a couple I moved to my windowsill) and in the foreground, one lonely -- but fastidious -- Parsley left over from the summer. I realized I had so much Basil there was no way I could use it all. I planted a lot to start with, then thinned and thinned over the months as they grew larger and needed more sun and space. I admitted to myself at last that I wasn't actually a grocer and it was best to just give away some so it wouldn't go to waste. Three neighbors, one co-worker, one cousin and ten (!) Basil plants later, I am happy with the amount of Basil left in my yard. I have read you can dry Basil very easily which I plan on doing as we head into the cold months. You can also freeze pesto, so I really ought to make a couple batches; some of the leaves are just begging to be picked.

One of the seeds that miraculously survived the Blue Jays are my Forget-Me-Nots (above). As I replanted my herbs, I decided some flowers wouldn't hurt, which is when I planted the Forget-Me-Nots and the Morning Glories. The Forget-Me-Nots haven't bloomed yet, but the leaves are pretty and soft.

And here are two new endeavors (above). Whenever I use something in the kitchen, I must use the seeds and try to grow it in my yard! It's likely too late for either of these to get very far, but I have planted Jalapeno (top) and Avocado (bottom) seeds.

What I'd really love is a lemon tree, but that's for next Spring.