Ok so the experts say that we have actually experienced an average winter this year, but let’s be honest…too long, too dreary, too slippery and all too weird!!  It’s the end of March so let’s just move on and make room for SPRING…..

WHERE TO START ?

- IMAGINE THE POSSIBILITES.   Use magazines, books and flyers for pictures of plant materials and designs that appeal to you to restyle your existing colour displays and to create impact.  Make sure to select plant material well suited for your conditions.

- START WITH A PLAN.   Set a budget; discuss your options with a professional who offers integrated services along with knowledge and experience.  Many times a garden plan can be included with their services.   Benefit from their cost effective suggestions that will enhance your gardens while staying on budget.

-  FEED the EARTH and TUNE UP.  Use compost to feed your garden earth, you can’t change the type of soil conditions you have but you can enrich it.  If you have an irrigation system, check clocks, main lines, sprinkler heads, flow directions and make any necessary repairs.  Consider drought tolerant perennials.

-  ENHANCE WITH NEW PLANTS.  Once you have planted your new choices, give them time to soak up the rain and warm temperatures in order to establish healthy root systems.  Add more perennials that bloom all season which will provide long term flowering cycles or plants that change colours throughout the summer and fall.

-  BE NOTICEABLE.  Design containers with full-bodied, vivid displays that set your arrangement apart from the cookie cutter offerings.  Mix annuals with perennials and use different vessels to show off your creativity.

-  KEEP IT HEALTHY, NEAT and GREEN.  Remove weeds, over seed grassy areas, mulch around trees, shrubs and garden beds and recycle grass clippings back onto the grass.

About me…My name is Christina Henry and my alias is DIRT DIVA.  I am a certified horticultural technician providing varied landscaping services planning, planting, maintaining and restyling.  If you would like more information on my services or to contact me, please feel free to visit my website at www.dirtdiva.ca .

I’d like to thank CELESTE COLE of CONNECTIONS NETWORK for the invitation to write this article and Valleycrest Landscape Companies’ Landscape Checklist which was my launching point.   ….. SEE YOU IN THE GARDEN !

What would you do differently when you realize your goal?
Where would you travel?
Where would you live?
What would you wear?
What things would you own?
What kind of vehicle would you drive?
What would you do for work?…Or would you work?
Who would you help?

Step 2—Sort and Cut. Go through your pile of pictures and select the ones that impact you the most emotionally. Cut the extraneous material away from the image.

Step 3—Arrange and glue. Start arranging your pictures creatively on your board. Don’t worry about being artistic—that’s not the point. The point is that your board should resonate with your emotions. Arrange your pictures in a way that gives you an emotional connection to your vision board. After you are satisfied with the arrangement, glue all your pictures in place. Additionally, you might want to add writing or drawing on your vision board if you feel that it would better resonate with your emotions

Thanks to all that came out – the energy of these groups never disappoint.  Coffee and Tea were brought into the comfortable atmosphere of the funky living room and the conversation began.  All in attendance received creative solutions and/or support to a diverse group of subjects.

Looking forward to May’s meeting!

Jane Blaufus did a great job of making us ‘think’, such a wealth of information and inspiration.

A great message about taking care of ‘business’ so the ones we love don’t have to deal with more than the matters at hand in a critical time!  Thank you Jane!

Special “Thanks” to those of you who told your friends about our meeting and inviting them to come out to share in the experience.  I look forward to each of the meetings, such a great night out, the food again was delicious and the Company stellar!

Your feedback was terrific and I thank each and every one of you for your comments and suggestions, verbally and via the evaluations.  If you have any additional questions or comments, please feel free to contact me.

Couple of announcements at the dinner I was asked to pass on some other events – to have your information shared, please send an email with the details.

Company of Women: click here to go to website

From Bedpans to the Board Room   Date: February 21, 2012, 5:00 – 9:00 pm

CONNECTIONS NETWORK:  www.connectionsnetwork.ca
Date: February 22, 2012         day 1-3    or   evening 7-9

LOST AND FOUND:
Something about Mary – we have your supply of Kleenex!
A Coiled note book.

Looking forward to seeing you and experiencing another enjoyable evening next month!

Please check it out as well as our other upcoming meetings at
http://www.companyofwomen.ca/Niagara_Region_Events.16.xec

A relationship-building maven, Celeste is a certified facilitator and the founder of Connections Network Inc., a Burlington-based, women-centric organization designed to help entrepreneurs grow their business in an open and non-judgemental setting.

Through her work as a certified True Colous and Personality Dimensions, she has led corporate workshops for a bevy of high-profile clients, including Bell and West 49.

“While working in these settings, I would encounter people who I couldn’t help – but I knew of someone who could,” Celeste says. “I started Connections Network Inc. as a way to bring these individuals together.”

Celeste’s meet-ups stand in stark contrast to typical networking meetings, which can be impersonal and ineffective. “I provide members with a safe place to bounce around ideas,” she says. “Egos are checked at the door, and the synergy in these groups is uncanny.”

Driven by her desire to help make people’s dreams come true, Celeste founded her business on the belief that women should be promoting other women.

“I don’t think there’s room for competition – only cooperation,” she says. “There’s no such thing as a bad idea. I promise that if you attend one of my meetings, you’ll walk away having formed at least one newfriendship.”

We are thrilled to have Donna Messer, queen of networking, as our speaker and Donna will be getting 2012 off to a great start, showing us the best way to get connected with each other. Note, if you register before January 5, you will qualify for the lower rate.

We are sad to inform you that Pat Milland, after much deliberation,  has decided to step down as chapter leader for the Niagara Region.  She is wanting to dedicate more time and energy into her own business but promises she will not be a stranger, so we are not losing her altogether.

Celeste Cole, a long time member of Company of Women and fairly new resident to Stoney Creek, has kindly agreed to step in and co-ordinate the Niagara Chapter.  Celeste is no stranger to running women’s groups and I know once you have met her, you will be caught up in her warmth, enthusiasm and ongoing belief in the power of women, especially when we support one another.

Thank you for your feedback on what you want for the chapter, and we are looking at how we can best serve you in 2012.

I look forward to seeing you on January 11 and wish you and your family a safe and happy holiday season.