Red Blooded.. Green Thumbed.

Here is something that many do not know about me: I love flowers.  I love flower beds and gardens.  My mother and aunt are great flower gardeners, and I learned a lot from them.  The first flower bed I ever made was after my head injury.  Part of my rehabilitation was that I needed to stimulate my mind in physical ways.  Being active was a very important part of my recovery, so me and my mother created a flower bed.  Originally I wanted a water garden, but that turned out to be too much trouble at the time, hence the flower bed.  I really enjoyed tending to the flowers and I kept at it over the next few summers. 

Last summer when we moved into our new house, we really didn't have the time (or money) to make decorative changes to the house.  We were busy trying to get furniture and basic appliances.  This summer we have a little more money, and have all the furniture and appliances we need. My wife decided that our house needed some color, so she added beautiful curtains to all the upstairs windows. And I decided that our yard needs more love this summer, so I had it sprayed for weeds and will fertilize it soon, and made my first flower bed as a home owner.
Here are a few pictures of what I've done so far.  The front row has Marigolds and Primroses, the second row is Lobelia and Dusty Millers.  What you can't see are three lily bulbs that are buried behind the second row.  I also plan on lining the back with tulips. 

I have even have bigger plans for making a bigger flower bed on the other side of the porch. That bed I have rose bushes and shrubs in mind.  I'm up for suggestions.