Memorial Day Poem

Image by KConnors

On Memorial Day
Our thoughts turn to thankfulness
To those who gave their lives
Who fought with guns and knives

Who braved the unthinkable 
Endured the impossible 
Thinking not of their own life 
Not necessarily even the current strife

But valuing freedom, honor, 
Selfless service, loyalty, 
Duty, respect, 
Courage and integrity

Over the pain, 
Back breaking hard work, 
Mental strain, 
And grueling hours.

Each of you is a hero 
Strong and brave. 
You live on in our hearts 
Beyond the grave.

They say freedom isn't free 
You know that is true. 
Thank God for liberty. 
Thank God for you.

Poem written by me on May 31, 2010  

17 Great Loving Action Habits to Improve Your Marriage

Photo by jdurham

1. Pray for and with your spouse
2. Listen to your spouse with your full attention
3. Validate your spouse's feelings
4. Consider your spouse's point of view
5. Notice your spouse's good qualities
6. Thank your spouse for what he or she does for you
7. Serve your spouse in ways that are meaningful for him or her
8. Honor your spouse's boundaries
9. Spend lots of time with your spouse
10. Be honest and trustworthy with your spouse
11. Forgive your spouse
12. Reassure your spouse of your unconditional love for him or her
13. Give your spouse thoughtful gifts (can be free or inexpensive)
14. Write your spouse a love note (it doesn't have to be long)
15. Ask your spouse how you could be a better spouse and then do what he or she asks (as long as it doesn't disagree with your own morals or God's word) 
16. Treat your spouse like you used to before you were married. Odds are you were kinder, more polite and more agreeable in your dating phase (if that's not true for you then kudos to you)
17. Compliment your spouse often (item 5 will help with this one)

The first twelve loving action habits to improve your marriage were adapted from "Loving Your Spouse with a Whole Heart" by Whitney Hopler in the Crosswalk.com Live It e-newsletter dated May 10, 2012. Her article was "a report on the practical applications of Dr. Greg Smalley and Dr. Shawn Stoever's book, The Wholehearted Marriage: Fully Engaging Your Most Important Relationship, (Howard Books, 2009)."

The last five ways to value your spouse (loving action habits) were my own additions.
 

A New Way To Think About Productivity

Coneflower photo: Robert Louis Stevenson quote
Photograph by Phyllis Wheeler

I love this quote. It's a great reminder to step back from our busy lives and think about what actions we can take today that will make our lives and/or the world a better place tomorrow and in the years to come. It's also a great reminder to take time each day to focus on the big picture instead of the little details of daily living. Don't get me wrong; I enjoy crossing off items on my to do list as much as the next person. But I also make sure that every day there are things on my list that will have a positive influence on my most important values and long term goals (so daily I'm planting seeds that will hopefully bring a rich harvest in terms of my long term goals).

Even more important are the seeds we plant with our attitudes and interactions. Seeds like sharing a smile, helping others, learning to be more patient, volunteering and giving to charity can make the world a better place and while we may not personally see their harvests we can feel good about each little seed we plant.  

So my photograph with the quote by Robert Louis Stevenson ("Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.") is my little seed gift to you today. I truly hope it encourages or inspires you. May God bless you, dear reader!

Discussion (I'd love to hear from you!): What kind of actions are you taking today to make the world a better place tomorrow?

Rainy Day Flowers: This Week in My Maryland Garden

I took these flower photos in my Maryland garden during a break between rainstorms yesterday. As you can see our Stella d'Oro re-blooming day lilies are finally in bloom and there are plenty of buds promising more flowers to come.

 This is a scented geranium we bought in the herb section of a local garden center. We were pleasantly surprised to see these little pink flowers on it.

 Here are the red tipped wax begonias I mentioned in last week's garden post.

Our African daisy plant has been going strong since Ben purchased it back in March. 

Our echinacea (this one is a purple coneflower) is getting closer to blooming. Last year we had purple, white and yellow echinacea but the yellow and white seemed near death by the end of fall so we're not sure whether the ones growing in their spot will be yellow and white or seedlings from one of the original purple echinacea plants we'd planted in previous years.

I'm guessing this plant with the tiny blue flowers is a weed but it's in a spot I don't care about so I'm letting it be for now. Do you happen to know what it is? 

Hope you enjoyed this week's photo tour of my Maryland garden. Which was your favorite photo of the post? Feel free to comment below or email me at lovejoypeas@gmail.com. May God bless you and keep you!

National Garden Photographs

Photograph by Phyllis Wheeler

These photos are from a recent trip to the National Garden (part of the US Botanic Garden) on the Mall in Washington DC. You can see the top of the National Museum of the American Indian in the background of both the photo above and below.

Photograph by Phyllis Wheeler

 The rose garden is really beautiful and they incorporate some nice potted arrangements as well.

Photograph by Ben Wheeler

You can see the Capitol building in the left part of the background of this photo. In addition to the white wisteria growing up the concrete and metal arbor there is lilac wisteria further down the arbor and it smells wonderful.

Photograph by Ben Wheeler

Of all the rose pictures we took on this visit I like this one best. I'm thankful that my husband and I share a love of photography and that our nation has so many beautiful gardens to enjoy.

In case you're wondering, I am still doing the unplugged Sundays experiment.  It's been a bit challenging but rewarding too. I had planned to post a summary at the end but if you want me to post about it sooner let me know. Of course, I won't be on line tomorrow (it's Sunday) but I will be checking comments again on Monday.

What is your favorite garden? Have you ever done a technology fast? I love hearing from my readers! You can comment below or email me at lovejoypeas@gmail.com. May God bless you!

Herb Day At US Botanic Garden

After enjoying Garden Fest at the Smithsonian Castle we walked up to the US Botanic Gardens and were thrilled to find their Herb Day celebration. What a blessing to encounter two great events in one day! As you can see from the sign above there was a lot going on but there were even more activities than what was listed on the sign. There was also herbal tea making, herbal greeting card crafts, herbal fairy dust making (in the children's garden), interactive educational displays throughout the gardens and more.

Here's a rabbit (sculpture) hiding in a bed of lamb's ears.

A brightly colored bird house in the Children's Garden.

 I loved this herb garden poster.

And this herb poster caught my eye too. The US Botanic Garden is free (although donations are accepted) and has many different sections with an amazing variety of plants.

It was fun to celebrate herbs at the US Botanic Garden. At home, we grow a variety of herbs (not nearly as many as the US Botanic Garden though) and it's nice to just snip off the amount you need for dinner right before cooking. Do you grow or use herbs?

May God bless you!

Garden Fest Photos from the Smithsonian Gardens

Smithsonian Castle Garden: Photograph by Ben Wheeler

This weekend my beloved husband Ben and I went to the Smithsonian Castle's gardens and were pleasantly surprised to find their Garden Fest happening. They had activities for all ages, live music, dramatic readings, temporary tattoo stations, garden and lawn information stations, mural painting, tomato plant potting, outdoor yoga, a fun table with giant floral hats and butterfly wings for participants to try on and much more.

Garden Fest Actors: Photograph by Phyllis Wheeler

 In the above photograph you can see some of the actors performing a dramatic reading.

Garden Fest Butterfly Wing Table: Photograph by Phyllis Wheeler

If you click on the picture to enlarge it you'll see the guy in the yellow shirt removing a set of butterfly wings. Closer to the front you can see one of the giant floral hats.

Garden Fest Floral Hat: Photograph by Phyllis Wheeler

In the above photograph you can see a lady modeling one of the giant hats. You can also see some of the other butterfly and flower props on the table with the red tablecloth as well as some of the Smithsonian Castle's beautiful roses farther in the background.

Succulent Container Garden: Photograph by Phyllis Wheeler

This was both Ben's and my overall favorite entry in the container garden contest. Participants were allowed to vote on their favorites in six different categories (see photograph below).

Garden Fest Container Garden Contest: Photograph by Phyllis Wheeler

In the above picture you can see two more of the container gardens from the contest as well as the six categories in which Garden Fest participants could cast a vote.

We had a great time at the Smithsonian Castle's  Garden Fest and hope they'll host it again next year.