Hello sweet friends. How was your weekend? Ours was filled with yard work so today I am sore. My achy muscles and crotchety back remind me I’m getting old so sitting down to write this is a nice respite, that’s for sure. The Mister and I had this weekend work on the calendar but it’s not something we look forward to. I’m always saying let’s pay someone to clean out the beds and he says no, I’m not paying someone to do my yard. When he says “my” yard, he means “our” yard meaning I’m included in this terrible task.
The Front Yard and Porchette Refresh
In all honesty, I think he should be responsible for the outdoors because I’m in charge of the indoors. But we share and I think we sort of suck at it but when Saturday rolled around, I got up, put my shabby clothes on and started pulling the weeds from the front beds.
Oh mylanta. How in the world can we have so many little trees and long thorny vines and clumps of who-knows-what growing so tall after only one year?!
After about an hour, I noticed the Mister across the street chatting with the neighbors. Chatting for like 30 minutes! You’d think I’d stand up straight (that would have felt good), walk over and say hi too but I didn’t. It actually made me work faster. Why? So when he finally moseyed on back home I could say, with a big fat grin on my face, ring the bell, it’s quittin’ time for me! Then he could finish the other 2 hours worth of back breaking weed pulling. 😉 Seriously, that’s what I did.
During my break time, he decided we should go to Lowe’s and get some bushes for the bed under this little tree we have on the other side of the drive way. Fine, we’ll go to Lowe’s during MY break only to get back home with bushes so WE can start digging holes (insert rolling eyes).
He did clear out all of the weeds in that bed and plant the bushes. Hooray for that! But while we were still at Lowe’s, we got more monkey grass for the small bed in front and a couple of bushes to sit next to the urns. I usually add flowers there but the whole part shade, part sun, full sun thing is giving me fits. Basically, every annual dies before it’s time. At least I’m consistent. LOL
We still have a ways to go. The tree on the far side of the yard is still dropping tree pooky so we can’t add the mulch to the beds yet. I do love the look with that dark black mulch. And we still need to paint the fountain, paint the light fixtures, trim more bushes and repair some landscape lighting but it’s getting there.
During the afternoon, the driveway is covered with a canopy of shade from our trees and the neighbors trees too. It’s so nice and makes all that hard work worth it. We often sit out here in the evenings and into the night hanging out with our neighbors laughing and discussing the worlds problems and how we can fix it if they’d just ask.
Well that’s our front yard and porchette refresh. I really do think the new door color has made this a happier looking house. Seems more in keeping with the facade too.
I know our neighbors will appreciate it and the HOA can keep their letter of disappointment. We are ready for some sittin’ and sippin’ around here.
It has happened to us with flowers . We stick with what works. Can be boring but Begonias work best. NJ summers are odd. Last year clouds and rain. Most go from to hot but July is incredibly humid and plants can be a problem. Our summers aren’t consistent.
At least you got help with the weeds.
Cindy
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It’s just further witness that I’m a plant murderer.
Cindy your home and landscaping is beautiful. Honestly, I can relate to what you just wrote. My husband in the talker in our family which leaves me to be the worker.
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Yes! I’m the worker and he’s the talker. LOL. He knows he talks more than a woman. He’s heard that plenty and not just from me. But without him, I’d get bored around here and we’d never go out with friends so there’s that.
Cindy, I love your front yard and landscaping. I always thought of your house as out in the country -I guess that’s the other one. I was laughing because I’ve been there, done that. Now I understand your “porchette”. Let’s sit outside and had a drink together in the shade of your beautiful yard.
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This is the house in Highland Village. The farmhouse/country photos you see sometimes is the house in Navasota. It’s about 3-1/2 hours south of here. Thank you for the compliment and I’d love for you to come by and sip and sit with me sometime!
WOW…. Absolutely Beautiful!!!! but … can I say… I was about to fall off my chair laughing!!! Please say that your husband appreciates your wit ??? lololol…. I too have been doing much of the same things… The cashiers at Lowes Garden Center and I become fast friends this time of year !! lolol….Did the HOA not appreciate your gorgeous front door ??? 🙂 … Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful front yard!!
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Thank you Terri. Yep, Lowe’s is my friend lately too. The bushes were a fantastic deal. Instead of $8 a piece they were 3 for $12! We love Lowe’s. As for my wit/sarcasm, gratefully the Mister gets me. Gets me and puts up with my testiness. I never asked the HOA if I could paint the front door. That’s me standing up and balking the system but I knew we were about to get a letter about the weeds. They were as high as my knee! Glad you liked it. I remembered I’d never really shown anyone the yard. Just the porchette. Have a great day!
Hey there, Cindy.
Greetings from Virginia, land of rolling hills and mountains. I recently found your blog. I have to say, your home is absolutely STUNNING! It’s so hard to pick my favorite room because I love them all. 🙂 🙂 You surely have an eye for details and make decorating look so effortless. So glad to have found you. You are truly an inspiration.
Have a wonderful and blessed day, new friend.
Deb 🙂
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Wow Deb, thank you! Your sweet compliment just made my month and I’m so glad you are here! Some days I never know if I truly inspire anyone so thank you bunches for taking the time to comment. The Mister and I were in VA last year during July. It’s beautiful there. We plan to come back and visit in the fall when we get a chance. How did you find me? 🙂
Your yard and house is gorgeous. I hear you. I do the inside and outside except raking and mowing. We hire that out and it’s the best! Red leaf begonias for the shade/sun situation?
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Thank you Katie! I put begonias in the little bed up front this year. Fingers crossed they make it. Any ideas what to put up by the urns? We’ve planted several annuals but they all burn up. I think it’s because it’s full sun and the tiny bed is surrounded by concrete. I went with an Indian Hawthorne bush. I think that’s what we added years ago under the windows and they seem to be fine. We’ll see. I’d really like a flowering annual instead of just green stuff everywhere but I seriously have a dark brown thumb.
You have a beautiful home and yes it is a lot of work and 90% seems to fall on us women, my husband mows the yard, we have a creek that runs the front of our property which is pretty but a lot of work, so guess who gets to weed eat it???, me…,we do hire it done about every 6 weeks but I can’t stand it so I do it in between….I pull all the weeds and plant anything flowering, he never helps and God forbid if I ask him to pull weeds, oh well our place is pretty but it takes a lot of work,,,,feel your pain…
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Wow Rhonda, I’d love a creek that ran in front of the property but would NEVER and I mean NEVER be able to weed eat it. I’m terrified of snakes. Have you ever seen one down there? Heavens I hope not. And 90% sounds about right – LOL. Hope you have a great week.
Hard work does pay off it all looks so lovely and i can see why you would enjoy it in the evenings. I have been doing the same and everything hurts,so i can sympathize with you. Have a great week in your lovely yard.
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Thank you Marlene. Hard work does pay off in the end but procrastination pays off right now. That was something my son wrote on a poster for a project in school. His teacher wasn’t amused. He takes after his father. LOL!
Just lovely, Cindy! So peaceful, too!
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Thank you Julie. It is definitely a peaceful place to be in the spring and fall. Not so much in the summer! H. O. T.
Everything comes together so well. Beautiful facade, Cindy. I agree about the door change effecting the entire look. Very uplifting!
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Thank you Mom. Uplifting is a good word for it. It’s like only paying $12.00 for a facelift! :0
The front of your house is so pretty, Cindy. I don’t remember seeing anything besides the porchette before. 🙂
I’m glad you got out and got your black thumb in the dirt! Fingers crossed for that monkey grass.
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You are right Stacey, I don’t remember ever posting the front of the house except the porchette before. Thank you for the sweet compliment. I have my fingers and toes crossed for this monkey grass!!!
Cindy I love that you call your small porch a Porchette! I have a porchette too, but I think yours is bigger than mine. I’ve decided that from here on our mine shall be called the mini porchette. Your drive would be the perfect place to sit, have a drink and visit. I’m in! Your yard is beautiful! P.S. We are kindred spirits as far as the HOA goes…. lol
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LOL Tammy! It is a porchette. The only thing we can really do on it is stand and wait for packages. And if it’s raining, we pretty much still get wet. If you are ever in my neck of the woods, stop on by. I’ll make the sweet tea. Or at least go by some from Chicken Express. 😉
I love your front door. Do you mind telling me the paint color?
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Thank you Irene. It’s a satin finish and the paint is called Quietude by Sherwin Williams. I love it more each day.
I am late catching up with this post but I am so pleased that I did not just delete it. Your house and garden look gorgeous!! I laughed and laughed when I read your dramas!! This story sounded so familiar! When we retired my husband did the vegetable gardening in a raised bed. Must say he did a good job of it but thought I was was hopeless doing the rest of the garden but did he help?? No! Now it is all mine and I am afraid I am too busy doing other things so I have the best crop of weeds in the country.
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LOL Nancy. I feel ya! Thank you so very much for stopping by and not deleting 😂. I love reading comments!
Beautiful front yard Cindy! My hubs is the talker too! Is that a little fountain with the black pot?
laura
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It is a fountain. That’s one of the first things we made when we moved in and started clearing out the terrible terrible landscaping. Any time a kid comes over that’s the first thing they are drawn to. They typically want to wash their hands or drink it! All I can say is God made dirt, dirt don’t hurt. LOL!