Beautiful Despite the Limitations

We've pulled together a whole host of fun stories for you this week on Spill the Beans! An Easter recap complete with my "dress up day." (Ryan's favorite.)

Take a listen here!

I've been so excited about the arrival of spring, because all my favorite trees have been flowering in their respective white and pink blossoms, and of course, the air is getting warmer, which is amazing beyond words.

Over the weekend, Ryan and I went to the store to get flowers for our landscaping, but we were a tad on the early side. The greenhouse was still filled with tulips and hyacinths. We'll have to go back later to get the complete landscaping gear, but last night I went out into the yard with my little trowel and bucket of dirt to plant the few things we had gotten.

A smattering of plants for the window box (which to be fair, is really a railing box, but since that's not a real term, we'll go with window box) and some petunias for the front of the little red wagon I converted into a planter last year.

I'm not a plant guru. In fact, when Ryan and I collapsed on the porch after our run last night, I looked in horror at the little yellow pansy plant our friend Ronda brought to us last week. I've been watering it (regularly, I thought), but it was all limp in its pot with the petals face-down on the table. I sprang out of my chair (as fast as my post-run jello-legs would spring) and watered it. For the rest of the evening, I kept one eye on that plant and watched with intense relief as the little stems slowly lifted to attention once again.

Yes, plants are not my thing. I love them, but I have to keep on a strict maintenance schedule to make sure I don't kill them.

But despite my limitations in knowing what looks good where, I love our little limited landscaping. I love the little red wagon, the various planter pots, and the giant ferns that remind me of palm trees. I love the small handful of statues and stones we've been gifted, because they represent stories of our life together and the people who have invested in us. This is what I love about our little spot of landscaping.

My sisters are great with flowers (like they're great with laundry and many other things that are not my strength). But I'm not going to let my limitations keep me from loving my pretty little plants. I'm going to keep going back to the store until I find enough things to fill the naked dirt of the planters, and I'm going to do my best to get regular drinks of water to each of them before they follow the pansy's lead and go petal-down in the dirt.

Maybe plants are not your thing either...or maybe you're afraid to try. Give it a shot! You just never know. You might not be hired as chief landscaper of a major corporation, but you can sit back and enjoy the beauty in front of you. I know I sure plan to!