Monday, July 26, 2010

Lilac Dreams

Let me start by saying I don't have a green thumb. I have the black thumb of plagued death that can kill even the sturdiest breed of plants and flowers, just by coming within a couple feet. I have planned, dug, raked and planted.

Geraniums, dead.
Daisys, dead.
Pansies, dead.

Some green plant I bought at a local garden center that the salesmen promised would outlive my gardening pitfalls, dead.

All of the flowers my mom, promised me were easy to keep alive, dead.

My mom, whom I'm beginning to think adopted me, has a green thumb that almost certainly glows in the dark. She can take those plants, you know the ones, the ones for "sale" at the local home improvement store, put in the back of the garden department, on their last leg, just inches away from a ride to the trash compactor and make them spring to life by just looking at them.

I dream of beautiful gardens, especially as I look enviously across the street. At a garden that appears to have been taken from a fairy tale. It looks like it should contain, bunny rabbits playing, birds chirping and flying over head and Snow White sitting in front on the beautiful green lawn with deer perched by her side.  Its perfect and whimsical. It's shaped beautifully with it's high planted greenery in the back and flowing beautiful flowers of all colors in the front, perfectly bordered by rocks and butterflies fluttering everywhere. As I look at it dreamily, it sings to me and snickers, in a "I'm a garden at a house with no kids" way.

The type of garden that should be illegal on a street with kids.


And then I look over at my yard, not bad but boring. The nice porch in the front bordered by even cut bushes. That's it.

When we first moved in I had dreams of bordering my yard, along the nice white picket fence in the back with beautiful flowers of all heights, colors and breeds. So I dug, weeded and planted. And when the kids begged to help, attracted to my fresh soil like a pig yurning to roll in the mud, I mistakingly gave in, and like kids do, they took over. My son dug a construction site for his trucks to play, train tracks for Thomas and a crash 'em up smash 'em up hill for his monster trucks. And my daughter, who proved to be my best helper at first, turned her trick hand a couple hours later. While taking a lunch break, she deviously approached me with her hands behind her back, never a good sign and declared, she had a surprise for me, a bouquet of nicely picked flowers from the garden, we had just planted hours before.

I once had beautiful hanging baskets, but my husband claims they only hung to life because he watered them daily, an important task I forgot. I got distracted what can I say. 

Besides, it's hard to start projects around the house with my crazy crew.

Repainting the kitchen: Hand prints every where, kids begging to help and "artwork"sprawled across the walls a couple hours later.

Installing solar lights near the front walk: The stakes in the ground become the newest attention grabber for my son, who treats the delicate glass lights like orange cones, weaving in and out, destroying them slowly one by one.

Installing new shelving: My daughter's pleading requests to help my husband with the task, leads him to become distracted and ended in him having a minor concussion, not sure it was from the shelf that dropped on his head or Sophia.

And finally, planting a new a garden: The flower petals become picked and destroyed by my daughter. And the new dirt attracts my son like white on rice, whose construction site role playing uproots the new plants before they even have a chance.

So for now, as I sit here on my porch and dream, I'll be across the street hiding my green dreams, in that whimsical garden with Snow White, while my 3 children who should have been her lost dwarfs, Smiley, Snappy and Slappy, take control over my kingdom.

9 comments:

  1. Hi There! I'm stopping bye to say hello from Monday's FMYH. I hope you can stop by and visit. Have a great Monday!

    http://humboldtcherry.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ha! I also have a black thumb! I have even killed bamboo, oh and the hanging tomato plant grower thingy. I love for big busy plants and flowers, but it just never happens. Maybe when I retire and have more time (and actually remember to water my plants)!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm not doing terribly badly with my garden, though for whatever reason the yellow beets keep kicking the bucket. I can manage to keep almost everything else alive except those dang yellow beets! I need your mom's phone number ;-)

    Stopping by from SITS!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Plants + Me = War

    Really, I've given up already and we don't even have a yard for another two weeks.

    ReplyDelete
  5. My flowers have actually turned out pretty good this year, guess it's all of the wonderful rain that we have gotten.
    I am a new follower from Making Friends Monday, so glad to have found your blog. Hope you have a wonderful day!

    Eloise
    Mommy2TwoGirls
    http://mommy2twogirls.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  6. My mom keeps planting flowers in my garden and I keep killing them! You'd think she'd get the hint! So while she is away, I am planting more mulch and stone!

    ReplyDelete
  7. My flowers are all dying because I keep forgetting to water them!
    Returning your follow from MFM
    .
    Pam @ Moms Mutterings

    ReplyDelete
  8. I have a black thumb, too. I think next summer we're just giving up, tearing the garden out, putting in brick paving and making it a sitting area. No telling how much money I've wasted on flowers I killed only weeks later!

    ReplyDelete
  9. If I can do it, you can do it. It may take a couple more years, but I have faith you, too, will be able to manage some beautiful plants and have a lovely yard. We live in an "older" neighborhood-meaning old houses and old neighbors who are retired and have nothing better to do than spend every waking moment tending to their beautiful yards. I know they probably hate us b/c we're THE one yard on the block whose weeds are more abundant than actual grass (which is NOT cut on a regular basis), whose curb has piles of decaying pine needles and whose flower beds have no flowers but instead piles of brittle leaves from the magnolia tree, whose bushes are not neatly trimmed. I have had success with a couple of pots of petunias in the backyard. I planted some zinnia seeds a couple of months back and got my first blossom today. I plan to post the pics on an upcoming blog. It really was encouraging to see the seeds go to seedlings to plants to an actual flower. Takes patience though. -EW

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for stopping by! I love comments!