Blooming

They’re blooming!


It’s so exciting, my first azaleas. I planted them last year, and they made it through our cold winter to bloom on this lovely spring day.


I never thought I could grow azaleas in my high mountain desert garden. I came to love them when our oldest daughter moved to Seattle for graduate school. The first year she was there, we drove all around to see their amazing show, mounds of luscious, vibrant flowers everywhere. They thrive in the temperate weather and plentiful rains of the Northwest.


It seems that I’m not the only one who longed to grow azaleas in harsher climates. And human ingenuity rose to the challenge and developed the special hardy cultivar now gracing my backyard.


Your son or daughter may have no interest in creating a new azalea bush, but within each of us is a spark of creativity, that delightful human trait that fires us up to overcome the challenges and explore the mysteries of whatever field catches and holds our attention. 


Victoria Labalme, author of the bestselling book Risk Forward, likes to ask, “What interests you now?” It’s a question we should ask our kids this summer, oh, and then listen, really listen, to their answers and help them explore where that interest might take them.


Happy Failing Forward,

Anne 


PS Want to help your kids have less stress and more success at home and school? CLICK HERE to get a copy of our book, The Resiliency Toolkit: A Busy Parent’s Guide to Raising Happy, Confident, Successful Children.