*UPDATED*: Flowers.

*UPDATE* I mist-typed and said it was a hydrangea bush in the sad south flower bed, but it was HIBISCUS. Also, added more/better pictures of the lilacs.

I wrote my mother a long email yesterday and told her of all of the plants that I've been nurturing this year. Last year grubs got the best of some of my favorites (and of course they were all expensive!): my butterfly bush, hydrangea, a Red Hot Poker, and a lilac bush, and that's just to name a few. We planted three lilac bushes last year and one and a half survived the holocaust, but one did not. 

In fact, the email was so detailed that I think I'll just copy and paste it.

All images can be clicked on to enlarge.

Several weeks ago I bought some plant bulbs and seeds because they were on sale/clearance and of course are a million times cheaper than the grown plants themselves. I finally got around to planting them last week and I've been religious about watering them every day. Cross your fingers for me! I planted a peony, spread some poppy seeds around, 4 lilies of the valley (or is it lily of the valleys?), a Red Hot Poker, a day lily, and a clematis for the ugly wire fence our neighbors have.

Again,  Click on picture to enlarge.
I posted this picture last week of our house but didn't explain the flower planting. I have little markers to tell me where I planted what because my memory is so bad.

About two months ago we bought full-sized pots of three plants, one being some kind of a lily that grows three colors - red, yellow and another color I haven't seen yet (read on), and I don't remember the name of it, an Astra Pink Balloon Flower, and a Hydrangea. They all died in the heat wave a few weeks back. Shriveled up and looked awful. Even though Adam thought it was useless, I decided to give it a try and water them a whole bunch every day. Guess what!? They've revived! The lily plant has the red and yellow flowers and there's a big pre-bloom thing for the other color! I think it's pink. The hydrangea has exploded into life and will soon have blooms. I'm so excited! 

It's like a phoenix, rising from the ashes.

Only a few blooms on this one, but there's green so I'm happy.

Adam swore this thing was dead, dead, dead. 

Last year we bought some small lilac bushes. We thought they all died over the winter because my butterfly bush also died, we think from grubs. Adam bought me a new butterfly bush this year, although a lot smaller since we ended up wasting the money last year. Anyway, two of the three lilac bushes came back and one is huge and even has flowers on it! Like, a bunch of flowers! It's not even lilac season (right?) but they're all over! It makes me so happy.

A year or two ago I planted some regular deep red lily bulbs (my favorite) and they finally came up this year and are beautiful. I have one hollyhock left over from when Adam killed all of them. It's growing outwards really nice but it's not tall or blooming yet. The bleeding heart bush Adam's mother pulls out every year that always comes back is blooming beautifully as expected. 

This shot is on the side of our property, the garage on the left is ours, and technically this land I planted in isn't ours, but we couldn't stand looking at the weeds on this side of the fence because the neighbors never take care of their lawn. They haven't complained, and I think they like that they don't have to take care of it. Excuse the mess of weeds I didn't pick up before taking the pic.

I'm hoping to pretty up this ugly fence with the clematis.

8-14 Lilac Bush 1.

8-14 Lilac Bush 1 Flowers.

Lilac Bush 2.
You can see the twigs on the right that never came back to life. I don't have the heart to rip it out yet.

Butterfly Bush.

This is the flower bed on the north side of our backyard. I've tried a few things with it, and last year it was a hollyhocks forest. Adam may or may not have dumped a huge amount of soil on top of the bed right as they were coming in this year, and may or may not have killed all but one of them.  Look at the progression this year:

5-15 - pre-killing, see the hollyhocks sprouts.

5-15 Lilies.
I couldn't figure out what these were. I planted these bulbs two years ago and I thought they just died and I'd have to plant more or something else. 

6-26 Lilies, bigger hollyhocks leaves.

6-26 Bleeding Heart.

2013-8-14 - no blooms as of right now, but there are some about to come out. Only one hollyhocks left.

One tiny, little heart today.

So many flowers and they remind me of you. I've been weeding the flower beds and I hate it but I'm glad you taught me the value of working hard. 

This is the flower bed on the south side of our back yard. I haven't done much to it. I planted a beautiful, expensive hibiscus bush in the corner last year that the grubs ate. Those tall things might even be weeds but this is how much I care about this bed right now: *holds up hand in the shape of a zero*.

I'm also painting the mud room that we had fixed a few months ago. I'm sure you remember when our ceiling leaked, we had to tear the ceiling out, had to get the roof replaced in that area (flat roof), and then we had to get a new ceiling and wall put up. I have to prime the ceiling and the wall that was replaced and the baseboards (which are new as well). I finally did the first coat of the baseboard yesterday. It's pitch black like most of the rest of the house. Should I have started with the ceiling?

Coat one of baseboards I did yesterday evening.

Ceiling from a weird angle by the floor

I've been scrapbooking my skydiving pictures. I decided to do an 8x8 album instead of a thin 12x12, and it's a challenge! I thought smaller would be easier!  

I went to my psychiatrist today to talk to her about possibly becoming a foster parent. She stressed over and over that it's really hard and that you have to be very emotionally strong. Majority of the time kids are placed back with their parents. They are all troubled and my doctor said that some will curse and scream at you for no reason and you have to be able to take that. She was leery of me doing it, which I am as well. She suggested that we try "respit" fostering, meaning that we take a child for little while if the foster parents need a break, are going on vacation, etc. That way we can get a small idea of what it would be like. She also referred me to a non-profit organization called Catholic Charities of Green Bay. They have an adoption division. It does cost money but she said that their fees would be less than other agencies because they're non-profit. She's going to send me a packet in the mail. I think adoption is upwards of $5k to $10k. If we can ever save that money up, that might be the way to go. It just sucks that we have to go through an agency. I wish that we could find a birth mother without having to use an agency. 

Teddy's parents are in town from Florida this week. We are all going to Deb & Teddy's tomorrow for family night/dinner/etc and I'm bringing dessert - cookies. Mini Chip Snowball cookies. 

(http://www.verybestbaking.com/recipes/29549/mini-chip-snowball-cookies/detail.aspx) 

They are delish and you should make them sometime. They melt in your mouth. EVERYONE that has tried one LOVES them, raves about them, and asks me for the recipe. Even people I don't even know ask me for the recipe. I got it from a Nestle cookbook that Patsy gave us for a wedding gift way back when (ha!).

The pictures are obviously what I added for the post. My mother requested them of the flowers. I think she got a little MORE than what she asked for, but that's what you get when you get me.

I worked too much yesterday when I scrapbooked, painted the baseboards and made cookies. For any normal person that's no big deal, since the cookies took all of 10 minutes, as did the baseboards... but for my body, it's completely NOT ok. I couldn't move this morning, and as a result I'm missing an entire day of work. My pain has steadily gotten better over the past few months and I haven't even realized it until today. Pain scale is at a 6 right now with meds, and in the past I would at least be at an 8 with meds. I don't know how I functioned at all. Someone must've been helping me and answering my prayers.

And one more picture for good measure. I don't know if you remember my vegetable garden from last year, but Adam said he was going to grow it this year. Want to see how it turned out?

Those are the largest weeds I think I've ever seen.  The big leaves on the bottom are actual plants, probably a zucchini plant, maybe a cucumber, maybe a pumpkin. Maybe.

Au Revoir!