Raised Vegetable Planter and Poison Ivy

For several years I have been trying to find a good spot to plant vegetables. Unfortunately most of the sun that our property gets is where someone put the pool. So, other than a small area near the pool house, there is nowhere that really gets enough sun for a good vegetable garden.

The base (legs) are made with pine and the box is cedar.

The last two years I have planted this small area with tomatoes and peppers. The plants do great but they never grow many vegetables and they never get really big. 

Apparently the cedar will not rot from the moisture or dirt. We did not even stain it!

Last year, I saw this cool wood planter at one of the local home improvement stores and my husband bought the wood to build one for Mother's Day. Well life happened and the wood sat in the garage for that year. But this year? Yup, this year my husband spent the weekend of Mother's Day building my planter. It turned out great and I am so excited!

Tomatoes, green peppers, and beans oh my!

Oh but, yeah, I have poison ivy and it's only May. Sigh.

Linking up at:

Amaze Me Monday  
Feathered Nest Friday
Grace at Home 

Lessons Learned from the Garden

Each spring, as I am trying to banish the ravages of winter from my landscaping and gardens. I am reminded how hearty the weeds are and how invasive. Whether the weather is cold, we are in a drought, or if it is hot and humid, weeds adapt and often thrive! More importantly, they keep on growing and pushing through to wreak havoc in my gardens.

Marshal Garden Tour 2016

As I work in my flower beds, pulling the weeds and tilling the soil, I am often hit with the analogy of the weeds. Weeds are much like the 'bad' in life. They take constant work to keep them from overtaking my garden and they easily thrive in the worst of times. It takes constant energy and effort to keep the weeds from taking control.

Marshall Garden Tour 2016

Like the weeds, it is easy to let the negative creep in. A constant battle with Satan to banish the negative and keep focused on the good. But just like the weeds, if we persevere in keeping the negative from creeping into our minds, soon we will see the world with a different perspective. In our gardens, if we persist in pulling the weeds to allow the beautiful plants to grow, soon our gardens will flourish and the beauty will outshine the ugly.

Side yard garden

Yes, it takes time. It takes care. But it is worth all the effort. The Bible says 'in all things be content.' I believe that the road to contentment is to persistently work at pushing the bad and negative out and allowing the gratitude and gratefulness to flow in.

Time to get back in the garden! Enjoy your weekend.

Linking up to:

Feathered Nest Friday

Grace at Home 246

Those Darn Weeds

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Welcome to my garden!

You know what I'm talking about. We all have them and we all hate them!

Those little (or big) pesky weeds that keep popping in all the wrong places and causing you lots of pain and heartache.

My Little Garden Angel

Garden Edging

Not much different than the weeds of life, weeds take work to keep them away. If you don't regularly weed your gardens, soon the weeds will take over and destroy the beauty of your flowers.

Garden Globe from last year

Spring Blooms

The weeds of our life are really no different. But the easy way to control those pesky weeds and keep them out of your garden? Pull them right out after a good rain. The ground is soft and moist and you can grab those pesky weeds and pull them out, roots and all!

Sometimes that is the best time to get those weeds out of our life is afte a good rain.

Guest hosting today at

Welcome to another great weekend with us ladies! We love see all your links. But please remember to visit a few other links and share some love and meet some new friends!!

Spring Is in Full Bloom!

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Everyone is always welcome!

Spring is in full swing and teetering on the edge of summer. I love this time of year! My gardens are coming up and looking amazing! I love this because I know in another month, everything will be dried and brown and I will be watering my gardens every other day just to keep them surviving!

Garden fence with rustic charm.

$3. bird house and an old pole.

But so far, they are looking gorgeous and I had to share a little bit.

Old windows picked up in someone's garbage. Yeah, I have no pride!

Some birds stay here all winter, even in the sub zero temps!

Home for many bird visitors.

More spring perennials

Pretty in purple.

Hostas and herbs, mums and lamb's ear all make up this side garden.

I easily mix sun loving and shade loving perennials without hardly any problems.

I am a perennial gardener who love to junk garden by using what I have or items I pick up in a garage sale or somebody's trash. Natural items like tree stumps and rocks play a big part as well. One of my favorite past times is to take the boys out rock hunting in the Spring! Well, like I said it is one of my favorite things to do, they seem to think it's work?

An old gate found in a storage area at our former church.

I love using broken statuaries and chips of brick and other assorted 'misfits'.

Hiding in the back is my cement angel, found at a garage sale for around $10.

Peonies looking great this year.

Iris' are blooming late this year.

Tree stumps and broken angels.

Don't even ask what this flower is!

Linking up this week to:

Savvy Southern Style

Green Willow Pond 

Ivy and Elephants 

DIY by Design

We Are That Family
Style Sisters

City Farmhouse

Tarnished Royalty

Home Stories A to Z The Blissful Bee Love of Family & Home The Shabby Creek Cottage No Minimalist Here  Posed Perfection

The Vintage Farmhouse

Imparting Grace Between Naps On The Porch Glamorous and Affordable Life  The 36th Avenue 

Quick and Easy Guide to Stepping Stones...One Year Later

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Many of you may remember my Quick and Easy Guide to Stepping Stones from last summer. If not, you can read more about that here.

While most of you liked the idea and planned to try it, there were a few realists out there who doubted how well they would hold up through the winter. Just between you and me, I was a little nervous myself. In fact, I was nervous enough that I did not continue making the stones last 
summer. I wanted to see for myself if they would hold up during the winter.



Same view.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that they look fantastic! So much so, in fact, that I plan to add some new stones this Spring! The grass, not so much.

Linking up to:
WOW at Savvy Southern Style
What We Accomplished at Green Willow Pond
What's It Wednesday at Ivy and Elephants
Swing Into Spring at DIY by Design
We Are That Family for Works For Me Wed.
Style Sisters for Centerpiece Wed.

City Farmhouse for Inspiration Exchange Wed.
Wake Up Wednesday

Summers Got a Hold on Me...Countdown to Graduation

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Summer is in full swing and so is our Graduation Open House prep. Whew, this is a whole new road I'm travelling trying to pull off a classy graduation open house on a budget. Lucky for me, I have two more graduations following this one so the others will be a piece of cake.

Rock and a clearance statue make a nice grouping

Needless to say, we are frantically working around the house to spruce it up and get it ready to 'present' to our friends and family next week. This is no small feat for me as I tend to be a bit anal and when we are hosting events like this I am wanting to replace and tweak everything!

This lovely was stashed in an upper attic area of our
former church. It was given to me in payment for painting
and designing the children's theatre stage sets

First and foremost we have been focusing outside as this is where we will host the celebration. Basic clean up was started mid-May by opening the pool, power washing the patio/pool area.

You can rearrange garden ornaments just like you
would rearrange furniture in your house and
get a whole new look.

Then I have been working on the landscaping, adding more plants and ornaments, mulching, and weeding. A great way to expand your perrenials is by plant swapping. Usually after 2-3 years most perennials will start having babies and procreating. This allow you to either transplant to another area to fill in or exchange with a fellow gardener. Either way, it's a win-win situation!

Rustic garden decor makes old, cruddy fence
look like it belongs!

My big garden splurge was a birthday gift.
A local resident makes these to order!

Oh yeah, for Open Houses and more...pray continually

Bedazzle Me Monday

 Treasure Hunt Thursday from My Front Porch to Yours

Grace at Home Party from Imparting Grace

Show Off Your Stuff at Fire Flies and Jelly Beans

Link Party Thursday at Somewhat Simple