I bought the supplies at Walmart for next to nothing.  Your flowers are under $5 bucks depending on which ones you choose and the floral tape was $1.97.  A 10 pack of Pens cost $1 and if you can find a container at your home, no cost there. If you can’t, I recommend those tall mugs that are around $5 bucks.  That’s under $15 if you have to buy a container, which is pretty good don’t you think?   I know you’ve seen them but have you made one?  If you have your own tips or ideas about pen bouquets, I’d love to hear them!

Disclosure: I am an official Walmart Mom. Follow me and my fellow Walmart Moms as we share our experiences and ideas! Walmart has provided me with compensation and gift card in return for my time & efforts to create this post. My participation in this program is voluntary and my opinions are my own, always have been, always will be.

My good friend Arianne recommended that I take my camera and find places to walk around and take photos. I thought I’d start in my yard. Sadly, my camera is still not working right at all so the pictures aren’t up to par. I do apologize.

I don’t have much of a green thumb so I’m appreciative of the flowers that grow in my yard, on their own. This beauty is pink and white and while the plant part is fairly ugly, the flower part is just lovely. We can see it while sitting on our porch and when the sun is setting, it just glows.

I’m obsessed with old wagons, stagecoaches and wagon wheels so when I saw these wagon wheels at Kmart, on sale, I snatched them up right up. Now that I have them, I have no clue what I want to do with them so they sit there pretty by the porch. Got any ideas?

Finally, my BIL is borrowing my man’s teepee so he decided to set it up and make sure it all looked good before sending it off. Little man had a blast in it and kept peeking out every so often.

These are used often by cowboys who go out on the wagon or even to spend the night somewhere.  The poles are 10ft in size, just to give you an idea of how big it is.

I’m so happy I took a few days off from blogging.  I’m feeling so much more refreshed and motivated.  I encourage you all to do it.  Take a blogging break, get outside, spend time with the family and do something fun that you love to do that doesn’t involve sitting at the computer.

I’ve never made a bouquet but I have to say, it was probably one of the most fun “crafting” experiences I’ve had next to quilting.  I found that I was able to play around with the flowers a bit and every single time I adjusted something, I had a completely new look.   It was so much fun and my little man was able to help me, giving it a true mother’s day experience.

I decided to add my own personal flavor to the arrangement but still using the supplies  and there’s nothing better to use ’round here for a vase than a cowboy boot.  Not just any cowboy boot, my middle son’s boot!   After I followed the recipe, I put the entire mug inside the cowboy boot.  It made me smile.  The colors are so vibrant and they matched the stitching in the boot! I think it fits my personality, my lifestyle, my cowboys.  My husband noticed immediately when he walked into the door and both my older boys touched the petals to see if they were real.  They really liked them.

I can see now why so many people love fresh flowers.  The colors lift you up and make you smile and what a treat is to be able to look over when you’re having a hectic day and see such beauty. You can’t help but to grin and perk up a bit.  Isn’t it funny how something so simple can make you feel so good.

What do Mother’s Day Flowers mean to you? Maybe you keep them year around…..would love to know how you feel about fresh flowers!

P.S.  You can bet my mom will get fresh flowers.  Happy early Mother’s Day mom and to the rest of you who are moms and/or have moms!

The Ingredients, the Recipe

Buy some flowers – I prefer fresh but you can definitely get fake.  Walmart has both, especially during Mother’s Day.  Buy a mug, bucket, or something to put the flowers in.  You’ll need some floral foam whether you’re buying fake or real flowers.

Putting the Flowers together

Fresh Flowers arranged in the mug

Mug of flowers in the boot

Fresh Flower Arrangement, Cowboy Style

Patio sets were the first thing we looked at.  Gotta have somewhere to sit right?   Walmart had tons to choose.  We browsed all the different styles online but decided to head to the store and see if sitting on them would help make out decision.

There were 6 sets on the floor for us to try out.  I started at one end, working my way to the other.  I sat in each one even putting my feet up on the table, in relaxation mode because I knew that’s what my husband would do.  They were all fine and comfortable but when I got to the last one, I knew it was mine. I sat there for minute thinking that is was perfect, both in color/style and having enough seats for us.  I also remembered it online and remembered that it had coordinating pieces to it so if I wanted to add something, I could. I decided on the Better Homes and Gardens Garden View 5-pc Dining Set.  I loved it and it had great reviews to boot.  Now I just needed a couple of accent pieces.

After browsing around for a bit and remembering what I had saw online, I found the matching outdoor patio rug by Better Homes and Gardens.  I didn’t need the umbrella because our whole thing is covered but I thought a few flowers and a new pit would nice.  We like to cook with mesquite around here and we also like, what we call, a bullsh$#t fire so we looked for a fire pit and grill also.

I bought a hanging basket with flowers that matched my patio set and a pretty green plant for the table.  We found a fire pit that we liked elsewhere, however, Walmart did have a VERY nice one!  We also bought some lattice to put by the patio set, just to block a little of the wind, rain and debris.  I plan on buying some sort of climbing plant for the other side but haven’t gotten that far.

We cleaned everything up, put everything together and set it all up.  We now have a comfortable outdoor living space where we can sit as a family and enjoy the beautiful days and watch little man run around like wild Indian.

Check out our before and after……………………….

And now the after!  I’d say the Better Homes and Gardens Patio set made quite a difference, wouldn’t you?

This patio makeover was made possible through the Walmart’s ElevenMoms program. Thanks!

Could this be part of Monday’s recipe?

Anna’s Flower

Cold, wet, and happy:)

Fire in the Sky

These are my weekly photos that I’m submitting to Sarcastic Mom’s “Weekly Winners” meme.  Join in and share some of your favorite weekly photos!

I’m tired so I’m just gonna post some pics and let you converse among yourselves.  If you haven’t been checking out my food blog, then you’re missing out on some great prizes!  Alrighty folks, I’m outta here. 

Oh, I would like to know if you think the pictures are TOO big or not?  Do you like the old size or the new size?

The only flower I could find in the pasture………

Stormy weather approaching….slowly getting dark…..

OOOOOOOOOOOO, AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH

How often do you send flowers? We try to send them to weddings that we can’t attend, as well as, funerals-out of respect.  It’s such a nice gesture and it should be done more often for those ‘just-because’ moments.  Is anyone willing to give my man a lesson in this? 

So men, tack on some flowers to that gift you didn’t get your woman this Christmas;)

The first time I met Laren, we were at a cuttin’.  She was taking pictures of the cuttin’ itself and I was watching my man take part in it.  We clicked right off the bat.  You know sometimes you come across people that do these exciting things, like travelling or photographing bigwigs, and they get above the clouds. Not Laren. She could have been visiting with many other more important people that day and yet she stuck around and visited with this tired ol’ mom.  We actually had a lot in common and knew people from the same town I grew up in.  Somtimes it’s a such a small world.

So not only does she take beautiful pictures, she’s also a wonderful person.  I’m glad to know her and hope many more get to see her the way I do.