Friday, May 23, 2008

Life Comes at Us Fast!

Life as a way of intimating art and this week, I am reminded of the commercial slogan "Life comes at us fast!"

We get so busy with our plans, and Life simply rushes past us at an amazing speed. Then one day, BAM! Everything comes to a swift halt while a detour reroutes our attention and actions.

I'm experiencing one of those weeks. We were floored to find out this week that Mom needs open heart surgery (triple bypass at minimum, possibly a quintuple). Especially since the nuclear stress tests she had to approve her for surgeries in '06 and '07 gave her a very healthy report and she went through two major surgeries! Her cardiac physician explained this did NOT happen overnight. Since we lost Dad in '86 WHEN he had his heart attack, we were blessed to discover her condition prior to an attack.

The cardiac surgeon met with me Monday; Mom is at a higher risk of having complications with her kidneys post surgery and possibly having a stroke during/after surgery. She is in good spirits, her faith is strong, and many are praying for her and the surgical/ICU/nursing staffs who will care for her. If you feel moved to include her in your prayers, we would appreciate that.

This week has been a bit tough, having to halt some pretty big plans, and simply choose to make family my priority while I watch a couple of dreams slip by -- but I always seek the silver lining in the dark cloud and this is what God has shown me so far:

- It's better to learn this way than the alternative.

- God's plans are not our own. But we can trust that His plans are infinitely better than our own.

- Let this be a wake-up call to refocus attention on my own health as I'm a firm believer in what we do today impacts the quality of life we'll experience later.

- People care and are willing to pray-- we have so many friends and family members lifting prayers for us and extending the prayer network by taking the prayer needs to their respective prayer groups . Wow! That's a lot of prayers.

We leave for surgery in just about 2 hours as we must check in by 5:15am; surgery starts at 7:00am and will last several hours before they take her to ICU. I plan to perfect the art of sleeping in an uncomfortable chair in a public space, resting in complete trust that God Himself will be guiding the surgeon's hands in caring for my Mom.

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I'll spend most of my time over the next few weeks at the hospital and seeing Mom through surgery and my blog will fall silent during this time. Back soon with more natural beauty photo posts! There are some great shots just waiting to be snapped near the hospital!

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Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Tuesday Blooms ~ Sentimental Blue

It's always exciting to see a perennial return, especially one that was new last year! Today was the first day for our Platycodon Grandiflora to display her glory; she is also known as Balloon Flower and her color is Sentimental Blue. Our three Balloon flowers are full of blooms, so more beauty awaits!

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Sunday, May 18, 2008

Our Newest Babies

Gardening is such an interesting sport -- tending, fertilizing, working to keep the critters (bad bugs, rabbits, squirrels, and birds!) at bay, and checking morning and afternoon to discover new changes. It's funny how it brings out a nurturing side; and like any proud Mom, I'm posting the following photos to show-off our newest babies!

Greenbeans reaching skyward near neighboring Radishes


Roma Tomatoes!


Oh yeah! The Jalapeños are showing great promise! We L*O*V*E Jalapeños!

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Friday, May 16, 2008

Simply Glorious! New Garden Bloom Photos!

Our landscape blooms are simply glorious this week! New additions include our Lilies, more magnolia blosoms, and F I N A L L Y I found my first Gardenia bloom. Ahhh! The fragrance! The new Gerber Daisy is actually more of a melon color than the photo suggests. All extremely lovely!











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Thursday, May 15, 2008

Enjoy the Beauty

Enjoy the beauty of blooms and outdoor living designs from all across the US!


Find more photos like this on Landscape Bliss

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Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Tuesday Blooms ~ May 13, 2008

A few new blooms this past week brought beautiful Magnolia Blossoms and Purple Iris' accents to our landscape!







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Thursday, May 08, 2008

Backstage!

Recently as I was tending my flower gardens, I found myself studying the intricate details of the flowers. I was awe-struck by the detail: the soft delicate, almost velvety touch of some blooms, the color and texture changes of their seed heads, the way the stems attach to the bloom. Have you ever taken a few moments to really look at the intricate beauty of a flower? It's really quite amazing as they are are so incredibly created, and like a snowflake, I've yet to see two identical flowers!

And as I studied the flowers and plants, I saw a correlation in how they are dressed in glory to provide such a gala event in my landscape and the same attention to detail in costume and set design of a stage performance. So, I went backstage to snap a few shots of my flowers as they performed their own brand of symphony. I hope you enjoy this special and unique performance!





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Tuesday, May 06, 2008

Tuesday Blooms ~ May 6

With Mother's Day just days away, this week's Tuesday Blooms is dedicated to Mom's everywhere! When we think of Mom's we generally think of "love" -- and no better flower bloom to visually portray love than a rose!

This rose beauty seems to soak in the sun's warm rays and reflect them back out.


I love the color and size of this rose (compare the bloom to the size of my hand!); she is layers of delicate beauty! (Traces of the recent hail storm damage can be seen on the wooden fence behind this rose.)


Our unique lavendar rose bush.


Twin beauties make their own bouquet!


I love this time of year when the sun sets late in the evening; this part of the yard receives the afternoon and evening sun and I like the way that is captured with the light and shadows in this shot.

Happy Mother's Day and Happy Tuesday Blooms! And be reminded to stop and admire the natural beauty all around! It's an invaluable gift we have!



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