Everything is Coming Up Grasses...

Spring is here and we're excited...can you tell?
We moved in to our house in N. Portland nearly two years ago and painting the interior of the home took precedence. Consequently the front and back landscaping of our home suffered and it wasn't until I walked across the street to speak with our neighbor that I realized just how disgraceful our home looked from a distance. Overgrown rhododendrons, a pathetic excuse for a daphne, a sunken lawn (due to gutter drainage issues), endless weeds for days; trust me, it was not a pretty picture.
"Oh my, that is REALLY bad. I had no idea. I'm so sorry you have to look at that every day," I apologize. Keith, the aforementioned neighbor, laughed and in his southern twang replied, "Ahh, it takes time. Ya'll just moved in, it'll come when it's ready."
Keith and Heather are a very nice couple who happen to own one of the most beautiful boxers I've ever seen. Frequently you can see them running along the bluff near our house, Jackson, only six months, skipping and prancing his way ahead of his owner.
His remark causes me to take a better look at their landscaping. A stunning pink dogwood sits in front of their home along with beautiful grasses, tulips, and a Japanese maple. Keith and Heather also happened to move in to their home only a few months before us so the "ya'll just moved in" line really lost its significance right then and there; they managed to get it together so why can't we?
Last week EV and I were diligent and made trips to several nurseries throughout the city and came home to build our garden. Then the rains came...and didn't stop. I felt defeated. We had just started growing greenthumbs and then the rain caused delay. So is the reality of Portland springtime- something we know all to well. So we went a week without working any further in the garden, staring at the beds from inside, rain trickling on the window, chanting, “please grow, please grow."
We spent the week in the rain fine-tuning our business plan, visiting more locations (and finding perhaps "the one" --hoooray!!!!), and meeting with agents and consultants. We became so busy we seemed to forget all about our progress and plans...until today. Imagine our joy when the sun came creeping through the blinds this morning. We leashed the dog, walked to the Flavourspot to eat waffles and chat with David, and returned home to our garden. Four hours later we have the following to be proud of:
1. A transplanted Japanese maple (NEVER AGAIN!!! Okay, maybe not never but at least not without professional help)
2. A transplanted rhodie
3. Lots of new plants including bird of paradise, mother-in-law's tongue, New Zealand cabbage palm, and Japanese blood grass
4. And the side bed along the house well on its way to being de-weeded
At the end of the day and with another lease proposal underway Ev and I are feeling quite accomplished. There is no doubt in our minds that we are planting new seeds left and right and now we'll just have to wait and see what takes root.


Postscript: To top off the glorious spring weather, we made sun-brewed ice tea with fresh mint from our garden. Ohh la la...