*another* garden update!

Just wanted to show you how my plants are coming along. I spent four days with the fam in Chicago (more about that to follow!) and while I was gone, some things decided to pop up. So exciting to watch everything grow and change. I love it. :)

Well hello radishes!

I can't wait to try one!

Well, they're not blue, but they sure are pretty.

This bloom has a touch of blue… I'll keep trying!

Lovely lace caps.

Happy petunias. :)

Ooooohhh. So cool.

Garden tour

I haven't updated my garden pics lately because I've been waiting for everything to look *perfect*. Well, I realized we would all turn old and gray before my garden ever looks perfect! Besides, where's the fun in perfection? I am loving all the things I am learning about gardening — from edibles to groundcovers and perennials to annuals. There have certainly been mistakes. I've watched more than a few things die at my concerned but inexperienced hands. However, I have also watched many thing survive and even thrive! There's something about seeing the evidence of things growing that makes my heart swell with hope for life in general. So here's an update of some of my beautiful (albeit imperfect) plant life!


The front garden: The three plants in front are oakleaf hydrangeas. They get gorgeous fall color and big cone-shaped white flowers (see bottom left: fall color image mine, blooming image not mine). Then behind that are two spring blossom evergreens (RIP #3). They get pretty red berries and white flowers in early spring (above: image mine). Last night I planted two 'acapulco orange' agastache plants. Look how amazing that color is (above: image not mine)! They'll get to be almost three feet tall and will poke through the fence to welcome us home. They also smell like minty lemon. Mmmm. :) Oh, and the little guy in the front corner is the only one we kept from the previous owners. I think he likes the way we take care of him. :)

Front porch pots: A sweet little boxwood and some other fillers (petunias and I don't remember what else!) We're looking for some cheap-o patio chairs so we can sit outside at night and enjoy our plants while we watch the sun go down. :)

Lacecap hydrangeas: The one on the left was smooshed by our roofer. It's being held up by garden stakes, but you would never know! They're really thriving and are FULL of buds! Can't wait till they bloom!

Mophead hydrangea: This one got the worst of it from the roof debris. BUT, it looks absolutely adorable in the pot and it's beginning to bloom as well! Yay!

Herb garden: Top (L to R): Peppermint, parsley, sage, marigolds. Bottom (L to R): Three cilantro plants, and two dead basil plants. :) They will be replaced by kale (in the tray there) and slow-to-bolt spinach seeds so hopefully we'll have spinach throughout the summer. (Oh, and I planted some basil and rosemary indoors in the window sill where they will be warm and happy!)

Veggie garden: Top (L to R): Beets, spinach, red leaf lettuce, butter-crunch lettuce. Bottom (L to R): Cippolini italian onions, red onions, radishes, carrots. We've been harvesting the lettuces and they keep growing away! So fun!

Can't wait to have visitors so we can share our harvest! ;) Hugs!

I heart running

photo by Seán Venn	via PhotoRee

Well, usually I heart running. I think the reason I have always loved running is because it's such a perfect analogy of life…

Sometimes it's great and you feel amazing. Sometimes it's hard and hurts like hell. Sometimes you quit. Sometimes your endurance surprises you. There are inclines — some steep and intimidating; some gradual, but still challenging. There are declines too — a chance to catch your breath, and yet carelessness here can lead to injury-causing mistakes. On some runs, you know your path. You know when it will be hard and when it will be easy and how fast you should be able to go. When you finish you are generally indifferent (eh, just average) or elated (usually followed by checking out your abs in the mirror). Then there are new runs. You've mapped it out, yet google fails to prepare you for the challenges of the road, so every hurdle you meet is a surprise.

I had one of those new runs today. The first part I knew — and I knew it was flat. I was flying and feeling good! However, I also knew the last part of the run would be a pretty significant downhill, which means, of course, that somewhere there is an uphill. About 1.5 miles in I take a left turn and there she is. It's such a beautiful, quiet street — yeah, if you're sitting on your front porch with a glass of wine! Which I am not. I, instead, am passing by each of those chic, cozy porches, panting like a dog in southern Texas. And I should note, this isn't one of those short, steep inclines where you sprint up it like a charging bull. This is one of those long, gradual, grindy (as the hubster calls it) hills. So here I am a couple blocks in and feeling NOT good. So I stop to fix my hair (no, it could not wait another second). And off I go again. My next turn is at 40th. I pass 38th (not sure if numbered blocks are good or bad in this case). I pass 39th. I'm so close!! I turn left on 40th and — it's uphill too. Awesome. Take the wind right on out of my sails, why don't you? I stop again — NO, not to fix my hair, just because I'm flippin' tired, alright? After a short recovery, I'm back on my way. A few more teeny uphills, some flat areas, mostly downhill. The last bit is long-ish and straight, the kind where you can see the finish line. I wanted to stop early and would have been totally justified in doing so (I had already met my mileage goal), but these are the moments when you conquer your mind. "BeckyJo," I say, "The chances that this will kill you are very slim. Suck it up biotch." (Excuse the language, I can't control my tongue when I'm tired, and I'm just being honest.)  And so I sucked it up and I finished strong. And you know what? I still didn't feel that great. I was tired and had a stomachache and my time kind of sucked. But you know what else? I'll keep doing it. In running and in life, you shoot for the high… it's always there somewhere. So suck it up biotches, alright? :)

Making peace with my thighs

That's actually the title of this book my mom bought me awhile back — just one moment in the long journey of a woman learning to accept her body. I have found that I am happiest when I am constantly challenged in my workouts, when I am feeling strong and powerful. That's when I find myself being amazed at what the human body (even MY human body!) is capable of. Darrick is currently on a training schedule for a half-ironman scheduled at the end of August. In order to spend more time together, I find myself doing some of his workouts with him… and LOVING it! I love that I was able to run 9 miles this past weekend. I love that today I could finish a 45 minute bike interval workout and still take the dog on a 3 mile run. I love the strength I feel in these legs!

BUT, the bummer part is that when most people train this way (like my husband), they get skinnier. I, however, am not most people. I tried on some dress pants this morning that I was wearing a few months ago. Today they were definitely uncomfortably tight in the thigh region. (Though I will say that maybe for the first time in my life I have a bump that may somewhat represent something similar to a butt! Look out J-Lo!) Okay, but seriously, instead of being bummed that as my legs get stronger, they may get a little bigger, I am simply going to focus on finding clothes (inexpensively!) that flatter my changing physic. Here's some of the stuff I love:

First things first: Wedges! To make legs look miles long. I LOVE these from anthropologie! And they are expensive, so yes, I will keep dreaming. :)

Sailor shorts (anthropologie).

Bermudas (gap).

Absolutely gorgeous maxi (gap). Show off toned shoulders and arms!

Pretty yet comfy skirt (gap).

A little longer to hide thighs and show off calves instead (gap).

So fun and summery! Long-ish skirt (h&m).