A Crabby Attitude

I spent a lot of time researching for the perfect fence to border our little home. When I saw this pretty little picket fence in a catalog I knew this was the one I wanted. It was perfect. I wanted something that was open and airy, a fence that wouldn't make us feel caged in. I knew vinyl would be the perfect choice for our salty air since it doesn't rust or rot. Ha. It wasn't until all the support posts were cemented in that we discovered that the fencing was attached with NAILS. Yes, the kind that rust. :) You can't see the rust because the nails are attached on the other side. At least THAT is a good thing, eh? Home ownership has taught us a lot of things. One of the most important: Strong fences makes good neighbors. Not only does strong fencing keep out ferocious dogs who want to eat our cute little poms, it also keeps out crab grass. Yes, crab grass!
When we put down a beautiful carpet of weed-less grass back in '02 we were told that our neighbors crab grass would not infiltrate thru our fence line. I think I knew that wasn't true but I wanted to believe that our beautiful lawn would stay pure. For the first four or five years we were able to keep up with the stray crab infiltrators (mostly due to my parents fortitude and green thumbs.) I am not even sure when we lost the fight-but we certainly did. BIG TIME!

Also, no one told us how the black rubber wheels from the lawn mover will make permanent black stains on the fence and that the weed whacker will also whack huge holes in the fence. We have used up all of our spare pickets. We had over 30 extra and thought they would last a lifetime. *smirk*
We have learned a lot from owning our first home. Foremost, we have learned that we need to wield our desires to mesh with Mother Nature, not fight against her. We can choose to honor her or she will compel us to honor her. I don't like fighting. The woman definitely has my respect!! In our next home we will make sure we have a strong fence. Probably one made from rock with a deep underground footing to ensure that we have a fighting chance against neighborly infiltrators.
Truthfully, I don't know why I ever disliked crab grass in the first place. It chokes out most types of weeds. It grows thick and lush. It stays green even when we don't have a lot of rain. It's very cushioney. And Te'a seems to love it. It's her own personal jungle where she rules as Queen of the Lions.
Gratitude Journal:Keenan: I loved playing with my friends today.Valu: Grateful that I have time to finish my book tonight. I am really enjoying the Peter Pan series written by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. I am not a big fairytale lover. But, these books are hard-to-put-down.Mom: Grateful that Valu loves reading. I am so glad that he caught the reading bug.Dad: Grateful to be able to come home and play with my boys and push my wife's buttons. I love getting reactions from her. She is so cute when she gets frustrated.