Re-furbished Window Box

Ok, Here is the little tin garage at the farmhouse that's probably as old as the house (about 70 yrs).  This little garage window faces the back yard of the house and I've thought for a long time of putting in a flower bed along side and maybe a window box.

These lilies in the picture are sitting in their pots still but I planted them later in the flowerbed.  I had picked up a couple of old shutters at a garage sale and painted them blue, and had my son make me a flower box to put on this window.

Then he attached the shutter to the front of the box and I have filled it with pansies and ornamental cabbage for this fall/winter.  I think it turned out pretty cute. Pretty basic easy project but it's something I've been wanting for awhile. I planted some roses and plumbago along with the lilies in the late summer, so hopefully next spring/summer it will be lookin' good! I have just put rocks along the front of the bed and am debating leaving it that way. I sort of like rocks for an old-timey cottage theme. You know, when the flowerbed is all grown up and I put in annuals and make it look real cottage-y, I think I'll like the rocks. If not, I can change it. What do y'all think? 

I'm also wondering if I should paint the window frame white?  The wood on the tin garage probably was painted white at one time, but it has all faded. If I do the window frame, I'll have to paint all the wood up under the eaves and in the overhang, etc.  Should I or shouldn't I?

We also had a cement floor poured in the garage (when we built the tractor barn) to make it useable. It had 2 feet of pure-D East Texas white sand in there. Everything you stored  was full of sand or covered with sand. It's still not air-tight, but it's much more storage friendly. I need to set off a couple of bug-bombs to kill spiders that have lived in there for eons of time but at least we don't have to deal with sand. (and now, no snakes either!)

Not very attractive but functional and a good place to keep overflow or lawn equipment, etc.

Addressing the GOPHER count - Gopher season has officially slowed to a crawl here on Sand Flat Farm. Cold weather has sent most of them way underground to wait for spring.  Or they've all sent out a warning about the mean old lady that carries around half a dozen traps on her belt and whoops one out to shove it into a new mounded burrow.  Plus, they generally do most of their digging after hard rains which fills their holes up and they have to clean house.  We've not had any hard rains lately. I know I can't get rid of every single gopher on 78 acres, but if I can keep them out of the yard, I'll be happy.

We are, however, having some problems with their smaller cousins - moles - which make horizontal runs just under the surface.  It's dangerous to walk across the yard without stepping into one of these soft spots and twisting an ankle. Guess I'm gonna work on those next...

Well, thanks for looking at my little project today. Squeezed it in here right at the holidays. Actually a little before Thanksgiving, but just now getting around to showing you guys. Have a good one and keep your gown down!