Looking Forward to Spring

Although I miss seeing snow in the winter, as I lamented about here, there are some wonderful perks to living in hot Central Texas. My favorite perk is the extensive season for gardening.
When I was little, my mom begged me to help her with yard work. I would help, albeit stubbornly. I didn't like planting flowers, digging holes, or spreading mulch. Gardening was boring.
That attitude flipped quickly when Johnny and I bought our first home. All of a sudden I wanted flowers everywhere! For the first time ever, I wanted a vegetable garden and roses and trees and wheelbarrows and trowels and shovels. My first Christmas presents from Johnny were mostly gardening themed.
There was (and still is) something magical about planting a seed and watching it develop into something great.
Flash forward five years later, and I still love to garden. We have vegetables growing in the backyard right now - in January! We have peas and carrots and broccoli outside ready to eat. Yea for central Texas weather!

Because there's no snow outside to melt, I have started planning for my Spring garden already. 

Anywho. . . I'm ordering new seeds for the flower beds today.
This is what I'll be sowing outside for our new butterfly garden:
The Joker Sunflower Seeds the Joker sunflower

Zoom View for Superted Hybrid Sunflower Seeds the superted hybrid sunflower

Zoom View for Blue Stokess Aster Seeds the blue stoke's aster

Bee Buddies Wildflower Mix the bee buddies wildflower mix

And once I see the plants in store, I'll add some milkweed and lavender to the butterfly garden.


My front yard is a bit trickier to plan for. We have a beautiful bay window across the front living room, but outside, the flower bed is harder to "make beautiful." Only one half of the flower bed gets sun, so I am unable to plant the same type of flower all the way across the bed. This year, I'm going to try planting impatiens in the shady end of the flower bed. Hopefully they will add some color to that lonely area, and hopefully they actually grow! I'm not sure yet what I'll plant on the sunnier side, but I do love those early Spring snapdragons, so they will probably be the winners.

Gardening has so many benefits for my soul:
I can get my hands dirty and work up a healthy sweat, all for a goal I don't get immediate rewards for. The hard work still must be linked to patience as the seeds and plants develop. Gardening helps me develop perspective and patience.

Gardening allows me to create something beautiful in my surroundings. A garden can be peaceful to walk through, and sitting near flowers helps me relax and listen to the birds and nurture gratitude for this wonderful world I can enjoy. I know I feel God's love when I have quiet time in a garden. I'm grateful for those moments.

Growing a vegetable garden helps us eat healthy, and our kids love veggies. Read more about that here.

And finally, gardening is an adventure every year. I can rearrange plants, colors, or textures in the garden. It's a chance to renew and create - again! What a wonderful reminder that life can always start over new and fresh when we are motivated to make a change.


So, what are you growing in your garden come Springtime?


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