Busy days keep us occupied, body and mind.

We all look forward to the weekends if we have Monday through Friday jobs. So why does it seem the two days of the weekend speed by so fast, but I cannot account for where the time went?

This past Saturday was overcast, and it kept looking like it would rain. I used to hear people say that rain was God's tears. And although God surely has much to cry over in these times, I prefer to think of it as God using a big watering can to give us refreshing and life-giving water. My husband and I worked in the yard for a couple of hours Saturday morning, then we went to Home Depot to get a few things when he discovered he had two Home Depot gift cards burning a hole in his wallet. Okay, it was I who suggested we go, but they were in his wallet.

I went to Home Depot primarily to get flowers. I love flowers. I did not always like them. In fact, I recall once rejecting flowers that a boyfriend gave me in college, telling him I would have preferred a case of beer! I think it was time for us to part ways anyhow. Providentially, the flowers were forget-me-nots. And I haven't.

My mother was always the flower person. She had houseplants and she had yard plants as we grew up. Sometimes it was tempting when mowing the lawn to just accidentally cut some of the Easter flowers down. But Mom would always make us wait. Then, when she  finally gave the word, whoever was mowing that day got to wreak havoc on what remained of the daffodils lining the driveway.

I never paid much attention to the beauty of daffodils until I bought my house in 2004. I began to see how flowers and plants can really add something to the decor. When I sold my house in 2006, it was a little better for the wear, with a few more shrubs than when I had purchased it. But I was not motivated to do much when I lived alone.

It wasn't until I met my husband that I really developed a love for the greenery and the beauty of plants and flowers. Luckily, we share that same passion. Our house has a big open back room full of windows, and it begs for the presence of plants to soak up the sun's brilliant rays that bathe the room for hours a day. That room has become my makeshift greenhouse.

Partial view of the greenhouse

The observant eye will notice that there are poinsettias in our collection. Some of them are from Christmas 2010 and some from 2011. There was one from 2009, but I finally got rid of it on Saturday as it gave up the ghost and had no more leaves. I just don't like to see them thrown out just because the festivities of the holidays are behind us.

I moved some of the plants that I brought in last Fall back outside to the deck this past weekend. I think they will start to thrive, provided the temperature stays above freezing. It has been getting warmer and warmer in the DC area this Spring, so I am hoping that we get a nice long period of mild weather and temperatures. Some years it seems we go right from parkas to tank tops, with little time to adjust and enjoy the transition.

We have gotten the bird condo area cleaned up and ready to receive new arrivals.

Our next big project that till take a full day (if not two) is to clean out the fish pond. It has been 3 years since the last Spring cleaning, and the goldfish inhabitants are getting a little antsy. With the help of our new circulating pump, we can shoot the water out of the pond, which will be much more efficient than dipping and hauling a 5-gallon bucket like we did the last time.

I am also starting to see the miniature patio area sprouting hostas and other perennials. We built it last year from bricks that were buried in our then-overgrown backyard that we cleaned out and spruced up.

And there is always the front yard, which is all that most visitors see. We have worked hard to get it into shape, and now are waiting of he County to re-stock the free mulch pile up the street so that we can lay the foundation for our beautiful garden area.

God has been good to us, allowing us the time and energy and resources to make His creation a little more pleasant to behold. I just hope and pray that this year He is not quite as generous with the little pesky mosquitoes! That's one item of His creation that I would gladly forego, for the sake of enjoying our secluded little kingdom!

Stay tune throughout the Spring and Summer as I update the progress on our kingdom!