Bleeding Hearts

This lovely little plant popped up in our front garden a month ago. At first the green leaves that pushed up through the rocks resembled a weed, and I considered yanking it.  We moved into this house in the fall, so every new bit of green that sprouts is a mystery.  Considering that our family is prone to making the wrong judgement call when it comes to making the pull-or-save decision, I decided to wait this one out. 

It turned out to be the beginnings of a Bleeding Heart plant, whose progress I was able to excitedly monitor from my office window.  James thought I was a little too excited, if I'm being honest, but a couple of weeks ago all the ladies came out to play!


When I was growing up, we had several of these plants in every house we lived in.  My mom would gleefully take every opportunity to pull off a flower and show us the lady in the bathtub hiding inside, which I loved.  As an adult, I now see the flowers more like those two-way images, where you alternate between the young lady and the old lady, never able to see both at the same time. 

Remember this creepy cool image?

I've already dazzled my girls a few times this spring with my plant "magic".  I am sure the trick will lose its allure soon, but in the meantime, I'm the coolest mom going. 



Look at the whimsical little girl in her pink wig!



A single lady in her bathtub