I spent most part of my Sunday doing yard work. We pay $30 a week for a gardener to come in, but still rake all the dead leaves and do all the trimming ourselves. One day of yard work and two trash can filled with leaves and branches later, my garden is looking somewhat refreshed.  I dug out all the leaves hidden in every corner and under every bush, pulled out spent plants, trimmed off some overgrown bushes, cut off suckers from trees, and spread several bags of compost over cleaned up areas. Gardening really isn't difficult, it just takes some patience. I have to say, I do enjoy doing the work by myself. It's very satisfying being in the outdoors and working with plants.

Just a few pictures of my fairy gardens in daylight:)

I had my gardener planted my Camellia Japonica in the front yard. When our walnut tree fell down a little over a year ago, it knocked down several small bushy trees. I had this bald spot that exposed the neighbor's driveway for a while, but I think now the Camellia tree will fill in the space nicely!

Last year around January I planted these small bushes in the corner of my front yard along with two pink carnations. 

Look how much the bushes have grown only after a year! The french lavender bush smells so good and it constantly has bees swarming around it. 

I'm learning to garden a little at a time. 

a little cheap outdoor shelf.

after one layer of spray paint... I figure anything looks good in lavender color. I'm going to let it sit and dry before I put on a second coat. Will be back!

I tried my hands at planting some flowers in the front yard today. Luckily my gardener was here to help me loosen up the soil before I started, otherwise it would have taken me hours to dig up the dirt. I like the result! Now I hope they will live and won't start dying on me.

I have a raised bed garden at the back of my house, it's the perfect place for a vegetable garden. I bought baby plants for watermelon, green pepper, squash, and tomatoes and asked my gardener to plant them in today. I'm really getting hooked on gardening, my favorite time of day has been the mornings watering my plants and trimming the roses. I am really lucky to have this little outdoor space!