Two Out of Three Ain't Bad

What do you call it when you meet two thirds of a goal?  Can you actually cross it off your list?  Maybe I can strike it two thirds of the way through.  But anyway, that's neither here nor there.  Let me just get to the point.
There are some new friends living in my garden.  And, this time, I actually planted them all by myself.  Last night, Byron and I went to Lowe's to pick up some random things, and I convinced him to walk through the plant section.  He was pretty tired, so we didn't do a very thorough search through everything like I was kind of hoping for.  Actually, it wasn't so much a thorough search as a deal on perennials that I was searching for.  In the few minutes I browsed, I didn't find anything that jumped out at me, so we settled for two little annuals.  Byron picked them both out himself, too!
Let me introduce you to our first addition, geranium.  This one is going to bloom pink buds.  If you look at the second photo, you can just see them.

Our second addition is something I had never heard of.  It's called fentas.  It will also bloom pink buds.  I'm excited for this one, because it appears that the buds are going to be pretty dense.  I hope it turns out as pretty as the picture on the tag.

Don't spend too much time looking at these pictures or you will notice the weeds growing in the background.  I'll get to those, I promise.
Technically, I only have two new plants for my garden.  However, living inside my home is this lovely little lady.

I have been instructed to plant this in my garden as well, but I'm just a little hesitant, and here's why.  Our garden is on the West side of our house, and anything I plant there is going to get drenched in the afternoon and evening sun.  The tag on this little guy says that it does best in indirect sunlight.  So although I love it, I don't want it to meet its instant death in our garden.  I think I can plant it in a pot to sit on my front porch, which is covered, and as long as I water it like crazy, it should be fine.  That is my plan, but due to another upcoming porch project, this will have to wait a few more days.
Two new plants in our garden, to do exactly what Byron likes - add color!  The little garden will probably be a work in progress well into next year, but we are learning some things and it is really taking shape.  Before I sign off for the night, I'll share a couple of updated photos of the flowers we planted earlier this year.  A couple of the blooms on the coneflowers (middle picture) have already turned pink.

A Pregnancy Progress Report

With less than a month left in my pregnancy, I thought it was about time to give a little update on things.  I've passed the 36 week mark, and at this point, I'm counting down the days left until my due date.  I keep telling myself in my mind that I'll go past my due date, but I'm secretly hoping that I won't, so I don't know what good that actually does me.  I don't know for sure, because I don't weigh myself very regularly, and I can't believe I'm going to admit this to the world, but I've probably gained at least 40 pounds.  Darn ice cream.
Other than giving in to the temptation of ice cream, I don't really have any cravings.  I've started a new "thing", which is waking up at 5:00 or 5:30 every single day (including weekends!) regardless of what time I've gone to bed the night before.  I guess this is preparing me for motherhood.  My nights of sleep are also interrupted regularly.  The only thing that is a bit of an annoyance is that my ankles have swollen to a disgusting size.  I often wear booty socks to avoid the discomfort of the band on regular socks, but it usually results in my having muffin-top cankles.  You can thank me that there is no picture to go along with it.
But all complaining aside, I've really enjoyed my pregnancy.  It has gone fairly fast, although with the excitement and anxiety building with each day, I do feel like this last month is going slower and slower.  Truly, in just a matter of a few weeks, Byron and I will experience the most life changing moment that will ever happen to us.  And we can't wait!
Here are some pictures to show how I got to where I am now.

Boom, Roasted!

I've been absent.  The reason?  Well, there are two.   The first is that I took a weekend to head up to Detroit to celebrate my cousin's graduation from high school.  The other is that I've just been tired.  I'm 8 months pregnant.  What do you expect?
Well, I'm back, and I want to share a little bit of our gradutation party experience.  I've been to many different graduation parties in the past, but this one held an experience that definitely was a first for me.  Before I give you the big reveal, let me start by setting the scene of the party.

How I wish that was my backyard.  Had it not been chilly and drizzly, I would have jumped in that pool in a heartbeat. But unfortunately I am still a baby and afraid to be wet and cold.  But it looked beautiful nonetheless.  And here are all the women in the kitchen waiting for the festivities to begin.  (The guest of honor, Lulu, is in the maroon sweatshirt!)

But once the party started, here's what really stole the show - my Uncle Oscar roasted an entire hog.

There's the graduate again, this time in green.

What an appropriate t-shirt choice, Oscar!

Let me just say, this pig was yummy!  Here's one boy who definitely enjoyed it.

Unfortunately, this budding photographer did a terrible job of documenting the affair.  In fact, I think I only made it into one photograph.

And don't worry, none of the alcohol at the party was consumed by me.

I do just have to give a shout out to this girl.

She took one for the team by getting thrown into the pool not once, but twice, by a certain husband of mine.  Thanks for not hating us, Lanes!

We had such a good time visiting with family and friends.  The lesson I learned here is that I need to work on the 'documenting of important events'.  I can't believe I escaped missing pictures of so many fabulous people!  At least I have the memories.

#26

I'm going to call this one officially done.  Mostly because we hit a couple of snags before the finish (mostly our real jobs requiring OT), but also because I feel if I dragged it out any longer it would get awfully repetitive.  The official goal was "plant flowers in front of the porch", and although there is room for a few more, ladies and gentlemen, we have flowers.

I am so proud of both Byron and myself for our work on this project.  Byron did ALL of the heavy lifting and manual labor.  I am also proud that between the two of us we didn't want to kill each other in the process.  We just both wanted this project to look perfect, and sometimes our way of communicating with each other takes a few unnecessary winds. Usually, and this time is no exception, we end up in a good place.

We also had help from my mom with this project, since my current condition doesn't exactly make bending down one of my strengths.  We got several plants for free from a coworker of hers and she donated some of the extras that she purchased and didn't need, as well as dug the holes, planted them, and helped me to place them.  I am also expecting some flowers from a coworker of mine, so I should only have to buy 3-5 things for myself, maybe even less.  I do have plans to add tulip bulbs in the fall, because what kind of good little Dutch girl would I be if I didn't plant tulips?

Truly, we still just have to glue the top layer of brick down, fill in a few more plants, and learn how to enjoy the view, but since those remaining items don't really change what people see as they walk or drive by, we are done.  Now comes the challenge of developing my green thumb!

June Goals

Breaking down a large to do list into smaller chunks always makes one feel like progress is more attainable.  Right? Well, I think so anyway.  I've decided to jump on the band wagon of publishing some of my monthly goals, with the intent to check in next month not only to see how I did, but also to publish new goals for next month.  (Here are some of my role models.)  If I never return to do that, I've officially fallen OFF said band wagon.
Without further ado, here are my goals for June.
1.  Take the dog (and myself) on at least 15 walks.
2.  Hem the bedroom curtains.
3.  Finish the nursery curtains.
4.  Line the nursery dresser drawers with fun paper.
5.  Plant at least 3 more things in the front flower bed.
6.  Visit the sculpture garden and the Art Festival with Byron.
7.  Read 50 pages in "Through Painted Deserts" (I try to be a reader, really I do!)
8.  Make a clothing drop at Goodwill.
9.  Find a pretty pillow case to use at the hospital.
Nothing too aggressive, and nothing that costs a lot of money, either.  I have been meaning to get to most of these things anyway, so I hope this will provide the extra motivation to get them done and checked off my list.  Here I go!