Flower Power

I got my weekly grocery shopping done Friday afternoon so that I could spend Saturday morning shopping for flowers. The weather is beautiful this weekend - sunny and 70, and I was hoping the garden center near my house finally had all their 6 packs of annuals in.

First I stopped at Walmart, because while there to get my groceries on Friday, I took a walk through the garden center to see what they had for flowers. No 6-packs, BUT they did have some stone garden benches like I have been wanting. For $60!! I priced them elsewhere at $200-300  and gave up on the idea to have a stone garden bench as the replacement bench out in our fire pit. I wasn't paying that much. But $60?! I had to touch it to make sure it was really concrete/stone and not resin.  I had over $90 in Walmart Savings Catcher $ and decided to cash in to use on the bench. I also bought some potting soil and Miracle Grow plant food and a couple of plants on clearance - the total came to almost exactly what my gift certificate amount was.

Then I headed over to the garden center of another store and they had all their flowers in now. It was still pretty early in the morning, so hardly anyone was there shopping yet (my kind of shopping). I loaded up my cart!

If I had to shop alone, without my sweet buddy DD, then at least I was surrounded by all this beauty. I also needed peat moss, which I could not find, nor did I have room for anyway on my cart, so upon checkout I asked if they had some and found out it was out farther in the center in these huge "blocks". I paid for one and after I got all my flowers loaded I drove over to their pick up area and a nice guy loaded it in the car for me.

DH helped me unload everything and then he got to work setting the stone bench so it was level. I love it!

I put all the flowers in the whiskey barrel planters and the window boxes. Also put some out in my new wishing well DH made me, as well as an old wheelbarrow we use as a planter. I also filled up the new coco-lined baskets I bought for the arbors and DH got those hung.

Last weekend, while shopping with DD I picked up this cute bicycle planter and I got some flower pots added to that

After all that we headed down in back underneath the huge fir trees and spread the peat moss and then spread all the creeping thyme seeds around. I am not holding my breath that these will grow, but for $7 it was worth a shot. I think DH spread the peat moss too thick and I wasn't getting anywhere trying to tell him I thought it needed to be spread thin and kind of mixed in with the existing dirt. If they don't grow I will just have to buy the individual plants at $3 each, but it was worth a try to avoid doing that.

This guy was ready for a nap by then, and so was I, so he and I headed into the house for a late afternoon snooze (and my back needed a rest by then, too)

I bought too many petunias, so I think I'm going to go to Ross today and see what they have left in their garden pots (since I want cheap) and hopefully find a couple of matching pots I can put out on either side of the back french doors. We do also need to buy another perennial plant to replace one that died out in our driveway island.

Other than DH complaining about everything under the sun (the usual) I had a wonderful day and it makes my heart happy to have flowers and color around. I enjoy my morning time in the summers watering everything.  I find it relaxing.