Happy Earth Day

I have always been a big fan of my birthday.  Who isn't?  I've enjoyed using this day as a good excuse to try new things and often times get my friends to do it with me because, well they have to.  It's my birthday.  When I turned 18 I used it to do all the things you are only allowed to do when you are 18 - I bought a lotto ticket, cigarettes and went to an adult store.  All of these are very lack luster and honestly I can't remember the last time I played the lotto or smoked a cigarette and adult stores are more disturbing and uncomfortable than awesome - but regardless, it was cool because now 'I could.'  When I turned 19 I went sky diving.  21 - well, I'm sure you can figure out what I did to celebrate turning 21.  Let's just say the words 'jager bomb' has not left my lips since that night.  But there is one really cool thing about my birthday - it falls on a holiday.  I'm not a Christmas baby nor do I compete with costume parties for Halloween, but rather share my birthday with Mother Nature.  That's right, Earth Day is my Birthday.

Besides just telling people that fun fact, I've never done anything to celebrate this fun combo.  That is where this 30 before 30 challenge arrived from.  I have always wanted to give back a little to this beautiful earth we live on during my birthday but have never done anything about it.  It is hard to want to do a highway clean-up when my special day falls at the end of April, in Florida where the beach is always more enticing.  'Maybe next year' became my motto.  (I stole that from the Cubs.)  Well, this year was actually going to be different dang it!  This year, I am going to plant a tree as a way to say thanks for all the beauty I get to enjoy every time I step outside.

To accomplish this Logan and I made a trip to Lowes to pick out our tree.  At first I was thinking about doing a citrus tree.  I love to cook, so how neat would it be if I could just go pick fresh fruit out of my back yard?  Then I saw these beautiful gardenia trees.  I was instantly brought back to my childhood.  We had these growing on the side of the house, and I have the best memories of my mom going and cutting the gardenia flowers and putting them in bowls of water all over the house.  Spring in the Zakany home smelt awesome.  I knew I needed to plant one of my own so I can recreate that fond memory.

We picked a spot on the side of the house in front of the office window and went to work.  Here is the finished product.  Let's just hope my black thumb doesn't kill it and next spring I can look out of our office to beautiful white buds everywhere.