mrazikmommy's Blog

Ok baby news first just to get it out of the way.. i'm super excited about it but i try to stick to gardening news on garden guides and save family news for myspace. Ok i had my U/S i'm having a boy! Benjamin Thomas is the name we picked out. we've had the boy name decided since i found out i was having a girl the first time around. SO YEA!!! I'm getting bigger and bigger every day--sied effects of having life grown inside you. i'm dealing with it way better this time around.. guess its cuz i know what to expect. and even though i know i should take it slightly easy, i AM NOT putting myself on permanent bed rest...i'm trying to stay active and get out and about every day. i feel GREAT! my ONE little thing i have going on is the back pain... i'm have it all my life though. but i did start Physical Therapy to help me manage the pain. so far so good!!

OK garden news now!! Biggest news i think is that my garden actually LOOKS like a garden now! hee hee!!! i have SEVERAL plants in my shade garden and quite a bit in my little sunny spot as well. I decided that this year i would focus on the back yard as it was a LOT easier with my daughter--who thinks its funny to scare the crap out of mommy and run into the street when i turn my back for a second! i did manage to go out and buy some cypress mulch (dyed red) and spread that out front. i also planted 2 rose bushes. not high end ones, i bought them at menards for like $5/each they're hybrid tea roses... verigated pink and yellow... one thing i have about roses.. i HATE hot house roses... the deep red ones. i think they are ordinary and as common as dandylions. i appologise if this offends anyone, it's just my opinion. i prefer something verigated with 2 colors. ANYWAY. i hope they live if not i wont be too dissappointed. i did notice some new growth so i guess they're establishing themselves. i dont think they'll bloom this year but you never know. if they do GREAT and if not i wont mind.

OK the shade garden... so my Mother In Law (MIL) gave me a BUNCH of plants on april 26th (this is what i was writing about when everything got deleted) she has a WIDE variety of shade plants in her woods that she dug up for me.. and has more if i need it,, but after saturday i dont think i will (i'll get back to that in a min) My MIL gave me some lily of the valley.. pretty.. 2 types of hostas... one normal just green, but LOTS of it, and one verigated.. green and white, but only a little bit. but hostas will spread out so i'm not too worried. and then she gave me this one plant that neither of us know what it is --it kind of looks like a weed to me... i didn't like it though. it looks like rag weed but instead of yellow flowers they're a more green color.

My MIL also donated 21 plants for me to take to a perennial exchange that took place this past saturday. it was a DRIVE, as i live a hour and 15 mins from my MIL and the exchange started at 9am... i had to wake up at 7.. EARLY FOR ME, and i was still a little late. but there was a GREAT turn out and i was able to get a lot of plants! i was shocked a little,. there were LARGE plants or large bundles of plants that only required ONE ticket. i ended up having left over tickets and in the end gave them to the lady at the front and said if anyone is short PLEASE let them have them!

yesterday was spent planting the plants that i got. i got some more lily of the valley, violets, forget me not, verigated hosta, snow on the mountain, white wooddrift, some sort of poppy (i think), a money plant, a large thing od old fashioned day lilies-orange (for the sun garden), OOOO and this botanical elephants ear.. not NORMAL elephants ear this one has a bland flower it grows on risobmes (sp???) she told me to cut the leaves off as they wouldn't perk back up but that they'd grow back... i think next year. it'll be a BIG plant in my shade spot.. but i'm fine with that.

the only thing i think i want to do now is lay in some stepping stones to make a path, and if i could find a VERY LOW GROWING ground cover for the shade i think it would look GREAT if it grew up around the stones and made a path. it would have to be a sturdy plant though as it would most likely be stepped on a lot. and then i have a wrought iron chair that i want to put in a corner. the path will lead to the chair, and if i could get a little more trellis to go up against the deck and close off the little open spot that would be nice. does any one know of a shade loving vine? i thought it would look good if the trellis had a vine covering it. which reminds me.. i have to take a picture of it.. but i have 2 plants growing that i dont know what they are. one is a vine with a small purple flower on it.. the leaves remind me of ivy because they're shiny and a deep green, and the other plant is also a shiny green leafed plant but more of a yellow green color.

p.s. will be posting pics so look for them !! if not today DEF tomorrow!!

one last quick thing. my birthday went GREAT. Hubby got me a camcorder and daughter got me a garden cart for moms day. my mom sent me $$ to get a new digital camera!! went to red lobster... YUMMMMM. and turned beet red when the waitress came over and sang happy birthday to me--they dont usually do that , i know. which is why i was totally NOT expecting it. all in all i had a GREAT WONDERFUL mother's day/birthday (they're 2 days apart)