Some unexpected Christmas pink

Finding pink was the furthest thing from my mind as I wandered the outdoor nursery section at Target yesterday. I know it's hard to believe coming from someone who loves to wax on about the virtues of pink, but I was actually looking for red flowers to adorn my front porch as part of my Christmas decorations. And that's when I saw them: the pink poinsettias.

Without thinking twice, I reached out and grabbed a pot and put it in my cart. And another. That's me. Buy first, think later. OK, that's the old me, pre-recession. Now, I think hard, think some more and usually don't buy much, but this was different.

Aren't the pink poinsettias just beautiful? Just think, pink Christmas year-round. What could be more divine? I usually stick to the traditional reds and greens inside our home for Christmas but have been wanting to add some pink to the seasonal decorating.



Just to clarify, these are fuschia colored poinsettias, not faded red poinsettias. The label said they were a new variety, but I would frankly be surprised if these were the first ever bright pink poinsettias in history. Or maybe that's just the pink fanatic in me talking as if I couldn't imagine anyone else not seeing the beauty in pink!

In defense of my impulsive buy, we do have plenty of bare patches in our back yard in desperate need of color. Unfortunately, I don't have a green thumb. One attempt resulted in a flower that my husband and son mistakenly pulled out during a wild afternoon of weed-pulling. Another time, I actually begged my husband to pull out a flower I planted because it looked like a weed.

But I'm an optimist, so it's back to my trusty little spade.



And this time, I had my two trusty employees, er, helpers to dig holes.




I adore my son's cute little brow furrowed in concentration as he digs in with all his might. This alone is reason enough for me to double my efforts to keep this plant flowering for years to come.



My daughter abandoned the digging for some dinosaur play in the yard, but this part she liked, which is great because this is the part I'm not very good at.

Here's to many more pink Christmases to come!