New Landscaping!

A few months ago Wayne and I talked about getting new landscaping done in the backyard. Although the backyard wasn't horrible, it just seemed so boring and simple. We had several estimates, and finally decided on a company that we really liked. They removed the old stone edging, and put in new stone. They enlarged the bed to go further out in the yard in front of the big tree so that we could move the bench there and have stepping stones in front of the bench. We also extended the bed in front of the deck. And they filled it with perennials, flowering shrubs, two trees (holly and podocarpus), and boxwoods as the perimeter. Everything can grow on its own and doesn't necessarily need to be trimmed. That way, we'll have a more "natural" look. 

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

In this corner, we have a holy tree which will continue to grow tall, 3 salvia plants,  feather grass, abelia plants, and several other perinnials

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

This is the podocarpus tree. To the right of it is 3 Waters Spirea, 3 Indian Hawthornes, and to the left is 3 Abelia plants (lime green), daisies, Chinese Fringe Flowers (dark purple), and two giant Liriope on either side of the bench. There are also a few other perennials but I can't remember their names :)

For the rocky area to the left of the pool, I planted some things in pots and arranged them to fill up the space. Eventually, we will probably landscape this area too, but for now I'm trying to make it look decent with potted plants...

BEFORE

AFTER

These geraniums are by the back door

And this is the pot in the middle of the deck. I just added several different things to it: Sun Patients in the middle and rose moss (the colored flowers) and sweet potato vine around the side.

Thank you Wayne! Mommy is very happy :)

School Easter Party

I almost forgot to post these! Here is Nathan at his school Easter party with all of his friends. 

Graham, Blake, and Nathan

Roman, on the left, is the 4th boy in the class. These four boys are such good friends, and very "boyish" which means  ROWDY! They love to wrestle, play Power Rangers and Super Heroes on the playground, and spin on the tire swing as fast as they can!

Top row: Blake, Emma, Mrs. Luigs
Bottom row: Nathan, Graham, Jordan, Klara, Julianna, Caroline B., Roman, Caroline S.

Happy Easter!

Finally, Easter morning is here! Nathan woke up first and couldn't wait to see what was in his basket. His basket is on the left. He got Candy Land, several CARS 2 cars, and lots of his favorite candy. Charlotte woke up soon after Nathan and was so happy when she saw her basket. The Easter Bunny brought her 2 babies! And even Pearce got a little toy in his basket. 

Time to get dressed for church. A lot of times, Nathan gets frustrated with me with the amount of pictures I like to take. But on Easter morning, he and Charlotte loved posing! It was like they both knew how cute they looked and were proud of themselves! Mommy and Daddy sure were proud of them! I was going to wash off Nathan's dinosaur tattoo the night before but he begged me to let him keep it on. It still looked perfect so I told him if it started to come off in the morning, we'd wash it, but if it still looked nice, he could keep it on. As soon as he woke up Sunday morning...well, after looking at all that was in his basket, he ran into the bathroom to see if his dinosaur was still on. And it was! It still looked brand new, so we let him keep it on :)

We met Grandmother and Mama and Papa at church and then dropped off Nathan, Charlotte, and even Baby Pearce in the nursery and then we all sat together for the service. It was a wonderful message, as usual. Afterwards, everyone headed to my house for a lunch of Honey Baked ham, potato casserole, broccoli salad, fruit and fruit dip, and huge rolls! I thought Thanksgiving and Christmas were the only holidays where you overeat!