I spend a lot time imagining what it'll look like when everything's grown up, and I also take a ton of pictures, so when I get discouraged with seeing bare spaces I go back and look at the pictures from 2-3 weeks ago or even last year when the beds didn't exist and think how far things have come.

I also spend a ton of time looking up and researching plants I want, making wish lists and need lists and asking friends/co-workers/family if they have stuff to divide :)

What to do while you wait for things to bulk up? Sit back and enjoy the show!!
Happy Gardening ;-)
CMK

But I was so impatient, I kept adding perennials in all the bare spots. Now, I am having a 'leap' year and can't believe how everything has jumped up.

Hold that vision of your soon-to-be beautifully verdant cottage garden and before you know it, you will be reaping the rewards. Be sure to post photos, when you do!!
-Sprout

The annuals give me some color (I sow seeds, too) and the alyssum fills in the spaces and keeps the weeds down. In a perennial bed, the alyssum should reseed and be nice every year...great fragrance, too.

On the plus side, I've found a few plants tend to grow quickly:

hosta
lobelia vedriansis (sp?)
hydrangea Limelight

And others, sloooowly:

Japanese forest grass
hydrangea Lemon Wave

Of course, the shade doesn't help. I guess there are two ways of doing things: plant for how big the plants are going to be, or plant how it looks good now and then move it later. I chose 'A' and now I'm being impatient.

I have started some forget-me-not seeds and I read they're shade tolerant ground cover so it might not be too late to try those.

For some inspiration, even though this is in full sun, here's the garden this morning that 3 years ago at this time was grass hill...

~Andrea

So pretty! And my favorite colors! Luckily, a lot of purples bloom in shade. I will definitely add some more astilbe and jacob's ladder. I gave up on astilbe last year only to find that it cropped back up!

My yard started out like this in Dec

in early January it looked like this:

now it looks like this:

It's hard to see, but my roses, which mostly were bareroot sticks or tiny bands have gotten so so much bigger and some are blooming. The whooly thyme inbetween the pavers has gotten at least 3 times their original size... and I can't kill them... they're so tolerant. :)
my grass on the otherhand... I'm slowly figuring out how much water it needs compared to the lavender which I seem to be overwatering...

so... if you get too many different need plants at once, it might take a lot just to figure out how to water and keep them from dying huh?

I look forward to each single bloom on a plant and the growth, even though it's slow... and I just enjoy weeding and checking on the plants every day or so. It's also fun to read about all the plants and think ahead to what I might plant next year.

and like others, I'm seeding some alyssum and simple daisies and such.

When I get really bored, I start a new bed. :D