Any Gardeners?

I'm struggling with my eating.  Some days I'm spot on, others I flail.  I need to get more consistent.

We had the garage door replaced on the new house on Saturday.  Yesterday, the new A/C was put in.  Now I've got an HOA problem.  Apparently, former owners (a bank - it's a foreclosure) have an HOA violations (maybe 2?) where they didn't get the landscaping change approved years ago so now we have to deal with it.  Our options are to remove the privacy hedge and mulch bed and plant sod or apply for approval for these to be there.  We're going the approval route first and if they reject it, then we'll remove them.  The hedge is easy enough...it's done.  The mulch bed is dead.  Anything that's been planted there is dead and it looks like crap.  I was going to address this in the Spring when we were planning to resod the yard and plan flowers and all that.  My time table just got moved up.  So I'm scouring the internet trying to figure out what to do with this mulch bed I have.  It's pretty big.  I want pretty flowers but also want some ground cover.  Do any of you have any ideas?  I'm not opposed to planting in both fall and spring so annuals would be fine.  That's where the ground cover comes in...my thought is that the ground cover buys me a couple weeks when the flowers die off to replant.  Then I think perennials may be the way to go but what would look good?  I've never had a garden before so I just don't know where to start!  I was hoping to have more time to plan.

Buying a house is seriously stressful.  Between work, the kids, the kids' activities and this house, I'm feeling incredibly overwhelmed.  I'm trying to take deep breaths and keep it together but when the doorknob broke on the door from the house to the garage on Monday, I lost it!  We're going shopping for furniture and appliances this weekend to take advantage of the labor day sales.  I'm hoping I can get past these anxious feeling so I can enjoy it.

We struggled financially for so many years and now that we're finally in a great spot with no debt and now a home and everything, maybe I'm just uneasy about spending this kind of money or worried that every decision will be wrong.

I'm stress eating.  I know I am.  I'm eating my feelings and using food and wine to calm me.  I know that needs to stop.  It seems every time we fall off the healthy wagon, it's harder and harder to get back on.  Why can't we just stay on?  Why do we continuously fall?

I know this post is disjointed and rambly.  I just had to get it out there.  So I implore you...any advice on planting in North Florida in the Fall?