Garden Pugs!

This past weekend we got an early taste of fall. The weather was just beautiful, sunny, not too hot, not too cold, with a small breeze. Not only were we having the perfect fall weather, I was also having one of my best days yet, so after going to church and eating breakfast, it was into the garden for me. The flower beds had been seriously neglected, as the extreme heat combined with my morning/noon/night sickness did not make for a happy gardener. The pugs also enjoyed the weather and kept me company. I spent the first couple hours weeding and the last couple hours transplanting a few things and putting in a new hydrangea.

Gizmo enjoyed spending most of his time in the sun. As the sun changed position in the sky, so did Gizmo.

General was his normal busy body self. He wouldn't sit still for very long, moving between the porch and the flower beds.

This is the beautiful hydrangea I planted, or what I call "Alcatraz's hydrangea." My friends that I visited at the lake a month ago gave us this plant to congratulate us on Alcatraz. (Martha knew I much prefer flowers with roots versus the kind that come in a vase) For those of you who don't know, we are calling the baby Alcatraz (Geoffrey's brother Jerry named him/her, because it is a "strong" name) until we know what the little one's gender is. The plant is really special and I'll be making sure it gets all the TLC it needs to thrive and grow for years to come. And who knows, maybe little Alcatraz will love to garden as I do and take over the hydrangea care.
I also separated some lambs ear that had grown out of control. Last August, mom sent me home with a VERY small piece of lambs ear from her garden. And yes, it really does feel soft like a lamb's ear. The piece was made up of about 4 small leaves, and was planted in the heat of the summer, and I must admit I didn't do a great job watering it. I must have planted it in a magic spot, as this is how it looked a year later:
It was spilling onto the sidewalk and was just too big for the front, so I dug the whole thing up and broke it into 6 smaller plants. I'm guessing that next year I'll be separating even more of the lambs ear!

Here's a shot of the front steps. In addition to breaking up the lambs ear, I also separated the crocosmia (the green spikey looking stuff) so that it was growing behind the lambs ear and on both sides of the sidewalk. You can also see where the hydrangea was planted.

I intend on planting some pansies in front of the monkey grass, along the front border of the bed. I also transplanted the day lilies that had been down by the mailbox, to the front bed, behind the azaleas. I replaced the day lilies with some sedum, which I'm hoping the deer won't find as tasty as they did the lilies.
After all that gardening it was time for a rest. And rest I did. Although I felt great yesterday, it was also a reminder that I am indeed pregnant and don't have the energy I did 4 months ago. I was exhausted...as in I couldn't get off the couch and had no energy. Note to self (and those pregnant or trying to become pregnant) "You are not superwoman when you are growing a little baby inside of you and must act as such. Frequent breaks are necessary and prolonged manual labor is highly frowned upon, regardless of how much you enjoy it." I think I'll have to set a stopwatch the next time I garden and only go for hour or less spurts.

I wasn't the only one tired from all the gardening...apparently watching me garden was hard work as well.
General decided I was a good bed, while Gizmo took advantage of my body heat. Crazy little pugs. I keep telling them that soon my belly will be poking out and a few months after that they'll be a little one taking up almost all my time. Somehow I don't think they understand, nor do they really care.

Have a great week everyone! I hope that wherever you are, you are also getting a nice taste of your regions fall.