My Winter 2026 Bucket List: Am I Back?

 

Happy Tuesday, friends.  I've already kind of messed up on this A - Z Blogging Challenge.  Forgot that we don't have to post on Sundays.  I shared this post about the blessings of Easter on Sunday but took the day off yesterday from writing posts.  Will try to remember to not post this Sunday and to use that day to get ahead for the following week.

We left off on this ABC challenge with the letter E for Easter. In addition to publishing that post, I put together my March Rewind post and a The World Through My Lens photo challenge post. I've been busy!! By my calculations, we are ready for letter F.  And F is for flowers.

A Little Background

In case you missed my intro to the A - Z Blogging Challenge, you can find it here.  The founder of the series is Arlee Bird who blogs at Tossing it Out.  This year the project is being hosted by J Lenni Dorner at JLenniDorner.com.  

I am writing about glimmers or little blessings or miracles in my life.  Doing so is encouraging me to look for glimmers and to be more aware of the little things that bring a smile to my face every day.  

F is for Flowers

God and Mother Nature really have outdone Themselves when it comes to flowers.  So many varieties, so many colors, shapes, sizes - even fragrances!! 

And here I am in a desert where I struggle to grow anything more than an abundance of dandelions.  But, oh, baby, I can really grow those!!  Have decided that in some ways, flowers like beauty (in general) are in the eye of the beholder.  We have cultivated some pretty cute flowering weeds in our yard.  Purple, white and of course, the traditional yellow for dandelions.  What's to say our weeds aren't really just wildflowers!!

Because I struggle so to grow flowers, I often live vicariously through the green thumbs of the employees at Lowe's.  Every time we go to Lowe's, I spend many minutes tiptoeing through the their tulips...and roses, and bougainvillea, zinnia, snapdragons, pansies and petunias.

Thank you, Lowe's for being my botanical garden!!

Special Recognition

A couple of flowers deserve some special recognition.  Top of the list would be the humble snapdragon.  When my sister's son, Andrew, was battling Wilm's Tumor at the age of 3, we would do about anything to try to lift his spirits, make him laugh, add some fun to his days.  I am not sure if it was Valerie or me who first made snapdragons talk.  It tickled Andrew every time we would squeeze those little buds and make them speak.  And what did they say?  "I love you," of course.  They remind me that love can help us through all trials in our lives.

  

In my freshman year of college at Southwestern at Memphis (now Rhodes College), I pledged Delta Delta Delta sorority.  Our flower is the pansy for the reason that each pansy is just a little different and yet they are all the same.  So pansies are special, too.  Look at that dear little face.  How could you not love that bloom?  Pansies remind me of that we are all individuals and yet we are all so very alike.  

Special recognition also goes out to our California poppies that I have shared ad nauseum over the last few weeks.  They come up 'volunteer' as my mother would say all over the foothills of the Franklin Mountains.  But not every year.  In fact, this year, we had the annual Poppy Fest and there was nary a blossom.  Then a week later the slopes came alive with yellow flowers.  It is so uplifting to discover the poppies have popped again for another year.  

My Make-Believe Garden

If I could grow flowers in my yard, I wouldn't want an orderly garden with all my ducks or blooms in a row.  I would want a very haphazard wildflower garden with flowers of varying heights and colors and shapes and sizes.  Flowers a buzz with bees and butterflies.  Arranged as Mother Nature would see fit and dancing in the breeze.  Something like this.

But because that doesn't seem possible with the combination of my brown thumbs and the El Paso arid climate, I have to settle for this little flower arrangement I created for my porch.

It makes me smile.  Even if it isn't the real deal.  And it will live forever.  Couldn't kill it if I tried!!

Every spring morning, after quiet time, PC and I go out in our yard and admire our - dandelions!!  And cacti and magnolia tree and the few other things that we haven't managed to over love by watering too much.  It is a sweet way to start our day.

"The kiss of the sun for pardon, the song of the birds for mirth, one is nearer God's heart in a garden than anywhere else on earth." – Dorothy Frances Gurney

Your Turn

Do you have an enviably green thumb?  How does your garden grow?  Would love to know more.  Please share in a comment below.  Do you have a suggestion of a flower I could try that would be virtually indestructible? 

We enjoyed a long hike with friends today and now I am ready for bed.  Thank you for spending a few minutes of your day here with me.

Hugs and kisses,