Everything's coming up Roses :)

I love roses. Not the "bring me a bouquet of red roses" type of rose infatuation - I love rose bushes and all the different varieties and smells that they each have - even the names are fun. In case you haven't guessed - my rosebushes in my yard are in bloom :) I planted the new ones over a month ago and they have FINALLY bloomed. Jackson & Perkins rocks - that's where I bought them. I am so happy with them, that I am half toying with the idea of totally ripping up the yard along the front walkway to make room for more bushes and order them this weekend. It's so much easier to mail order roses. I love the nursery that I go to, but they get them from the same company, and charge me $20 per rose. J & P's range in price, but I can get six hedge/shrub roses for about $50 instead of $80 - plus, I can get what I want. The four I just planted were 2 of the Disneyland rose (hybrid tea I think), Peace (grandiflora) and John F. Kennedy (which hasn't bloomed - but I think it's a hybrid tea). The Peace smells INCREDIBLE. Unfortunately, I didn't get to it in time and the bloom was already starting to fall apart, but I was able cut one of the Disneyland roses and bring it inside today for my little flower vase that I got from my grandmother. It smells pretty good too. My little mini rose - Hot Tamale (see, aren't the names fun?) - is starting to bloom again, and my two hurricane surviving rose bushes have been in bloom all year :) I'm starting to think nothing can kill those two! I don't know what variety they are - I got them at my school for $5 each and just stuck them in the ground to see what would happen - they survived being uprooted and flooded by the 3 hurricanes last year, so I'm fairly confident they are going to pull through again this year.
I absolutely love working in my yard. I've got more plants to pull up and re-plant this weekend, and also some new stuff to go in. It's just relaxing. And it's not so hot just yet that working outside is unbearable - it unfortunately will be soon however - ugh. This is one of the many reasons that I have considered moving to Georgia - the weather is still hot in the summer, but it stays milder longer and it cools down sooner in the fall. Florida has two seasons - hot and warm. It sucks.
My gardenias are also blooming - I can just smell them when I am in the backyard around my tree. I didn't think those would survive either - I got 4 of them for $8 at my school again and they were pretty much sticks without a lot of foliage on them when I put them in the ground. Now, they are taller and green as green can be and very healthy - lots and lots of fertilizer and water will do wonders for plants!
I'm actually pretty terrible when it comes to landscaping and growing stuff - my dad is much better at it - but he's had more practice and he gives me lots of tips - so I'm slowly improving at it. Next year, I will have much more time to devote to my plants - which means my house will look even more appealing when I come home to it everyday :)