Treasure Box Wednesday: The Best Things in Life Are Free


This is my absolute favorite time of year. The world has gone bright with blooms, showcasing some of the treasures in life you just can't buy.

Well, okay, yes, sometimes you have to buy them to plant them. But not always! Like these little fellows in my neighbor's yard...


I don't know what they are (anyone know? Greg?), but I love how they've just nestled themselves in her grass and then run rampant. The reason she hasn't mowed the grass yet is because of an attachment to these free-roaming little purple and white lovelies...


And who can blame her? When nature puts on a display like this, forcing it into submission just seems wrong somehow.


And here are some more rogue flowers. Little violas that have infiltrated the neighborhood, and have embedded themselves wherever there's dirt and a drink of water-- even between the cracks in my driveway...


I just can't move myself to root them out. It's so cheery to come home to a driveway populated with little purple blossoms. :) As you're probably already getting the impression, I try to roll with nature's whims a bit; I like to think we're both happier that way.

The backyard has also given forth a pretty amazing display of mossy phlox. Here they are after some morning rain, dripping down my back wall onto the plaster seat. I wish they stayed this vibrant all summer long.


Also, the bleeding heart this year has gotten large, and is loaded with hearts. No Victorian garden is complete without one!



And lastly, here you can see the front yard, filled to bursting with more mossy phlox-- and the infamous mosaiced stepping stones.


Well, I hope you enjoyed this somewhat different Treasure Box Wednesday. I think it's nice to take a step back and appreciate all the natural beauty around us now and then. It's not all about the thrift store. (Though that's fun, too!)

Oh- for those who have children of your own, or who just remember being a kid, I thought you might enjoy a post this week on my humor blog entitled, "Stealth Mom and the Mayonnaise Infiltration of 82."

  • If you've ever tried to make your kid eat something he or she didn't like-- or if you were that kid (pick me, pick me!)-- I believe you'll be able to identify. Click here to check it out.
  • Also, if you didn't get a chance to see Sunday's post on the Cottage Living forum's spring swap, you might find something of interest by clicking here.
May there be an excellent day ahead of you!

21 comments:

Anonymous said...

Magnificent post! I had just posted a piece about a neighbour's garden that has run wild with bluebells and I went to do my rounds of fav. blogs and found this treat. Fabulous pictures, thanks. Both pieces have sent my spirits soaring! Cheers...Pam

Jenn Thorson said...

Ah, Pam, I will have to pop by to see it! I think we're all in a springy mood right now and the flowers just make everything seem so much brighter and better. I'll have to take some pics of the phlox when they're not wet. They just don't seem real.

Michelle said...

I agree with you ~ this is the best time of year! I love all the garden photographs.

Michelle

Carrie said...

I enjoyed this post. It really expresses the loveliness of early spring. Thanks for the great photos.
Carrie

Jenn Thorson said...

Michelle and Carrie- Thanks to you both for stopping by. And I'm happy you got a bit of a smile from the photos, too. After a grim winter, spring is just such a marvelous relief. It's been a lovely spring so far.

Anonymous said...

Those flowers in the lawn are grape hyacinth. I wouldn't mow either if I were her or you. I even let the dandelions bloom first before I'll mow them down. Nope loose and going with the flow is pretty common at my house. :)

Jenn Thorson said...

Chyna- Ah-- interesting, I have a slightly different variety of grape hyacinth in my own yard, but wasn't connecting the two. Cool! The dandelions at my house get less respect. I have some that I need to remove this weekend, in fact, weather permitting. My yard needs some attention. (You gals only saw the pretty parts. That's the beauty of photography!!)

Handi Dandi Mandi said...

What lovely photos, such great colors! I remember when i lived in the city, pansies would randomly grow between the cracks in the sidewalk, i wasn't exactly sure how the made it there but i loved that they were.

Lidian said...

Beautiful - just beautiful...lavender is my favorite color.

Anonymous said...

I love bleeding hearts! wow did you take all those photots yourself?

Jenn Thorson said...

Ah, Mandi- it's excellent to see little bits of cheery nature tucked in between the industrial cracks of the city streets. It's just that little reminder that nature's more powerful than the daily grind.... Or maybe I just need a vacation. :)

Lidian- you, too? Lavender-- both the color and the scent of the herb-- really soothes my demeanor for some reason.

Hi, Nicole!-- Yup, I did take the photoes. It's more my spiffy camera and the hard-to-mess-up flowers than it is anything to do with me. I have this great setting on the camera made for close-up flower photography. It sort of what it was that sold me on the camera! Thanks for the nice visit.

Miss Shirl said...

Very pretty. I love bleeding hearts.

Anonymous said...

Those flower are beautiful Thrift, really! I started to plant a flower my self, it didn't blooming yet, but i wish it'll look as beautiful as you got here, especially the bleeding heart one (AH wish i could plant that here)... i'm planting the "forget me not" flower, easy huh? hehe, what can i say, i'm an amateur...
~^_^~

Jenn Thorson said...

Shirley and Trisna- Thanks for popping by! Yup, the bleeding hearts are a real fav of mine, too.

Good luck with your forget me not flower, Trisna. Here's hoping it goes beautifully!!

~* ♥ Fallen Angel ♥ *~ said...

Thank you for sharing a part of your beautiful spring with us! :)

Rebecca Ramsey said...

What gorgeous bleeding hearts--and all the rest!
I enjoyed the stroll!
Becky

Niesz Vintage Home said...

Your flowers are so pretty! I just love the bleeding hearts.

Last year, a late freeze zapped all of our spring bloomers (bleeding hearts, lilac, wisteria, magnolia). But this year they're FULL of blooms.

I've enjoyed browsing through your lovely blog.

Kimberly :)

Deb said...

Hi Jenn....your bleeding hearts are just beautiful! I'm like you about the little violas...they are such a nice little surprise that I allow them to live wherever they find a foothold....thanks for posting pics of all you lovelies...I don't know the flowers in your neighbor's yard either but there were some of the purple ones in the yard at my cottage shop a couple of weeks ago.

Hugs,
Debbie

Jenn Thorson said...

Fallen Angel- thank YOU for stopping by! It's my pleasure.

Rebecca and Kimberly- glad you enjoyed the little garden tour! I had no idea there were so many bleeding heart fans out there! And Kimberly- yep, we had the same frost last year and all sorts of things got pre-empted in mid-bloom-- the cherry blossoms, the azalea, the bleeding hearts... it was gutting. This year was a huge improvement.

Debbie-- ah, you're a softie like me-- these flowers have us so manipulated-- they get to just do whatever they want because they're so pretty. :) Hope you're doing well and that your new magazine holders you were working on are a huge hit.

Anonymous said...

I think your neighbor's beautiful blue and white lawn flowers are a type of salvia http://landscaping.about.com/od/flowerseed/p/victoria_blue.htm
not grape hyacinth, because grape hyacinth has globular blossoms, like little bells. http://landscaping.about.com/library/bl_grape_hyacinth.htm

Both are gorgeous! And your blog is always a treat!

Jenn Thorson said...

Another "Jennwith2enns"? My goodness, we could start a movement! :)

Thanks for stopping by, Jenn, and for the info. I will check out the links-- you very well may be right!

Would you believe about two days after I posted, the guy who mows my neighbors lawn came and mowed--- except left a giant cheery patch of these little flowers... mowed right around them. It makes me smile to see.