gathering goodness

Just a short post to show off some of the beautiful double lilacs blooming right now.

On and off the bush, they are a beautiful site.

I thought I would make a little garland of them and hang from the fireplace.

Then I thought--oh heck---why not just cover the whole things in blooms!!!

  

My daughter and 'grands' are here this week and we have a lot of catching up to do.
I think it's going to be a GREAT week.
See you after they leave!

Heavenly Springtime smells in the house and garden.

This time of year is such a favorite time in this valley.
Although windy and wild with temperature changes, it's
beauty is like NO other!

Our Winters are so long and cold here that we all wait to see the first sign of green
on the edges of the roads letting us know that Spring is here and soon the trees
will start leafing out. Well, now the trees are covered in green leaves and
we have mowed our lawn 3 times so it is proof that it is indeed here again,
even though I have had to have
a fire in the wood stove several times including this morning!

A little more proof of this glorious time of year are the blooms below!

I have been taking photos every day of the many blooming trees and shrubs in the garden 

and will be sharing a bunch of them here.

I have so many, that my computer is probably groaning under the load of them. 

I will be showing many more lilacs in another post because they are still blooming profusely 

and I can't seem to stop getting the camera out to take their photo.

The double lilac above are so fragrant but I don't know the name of them.

The white ones below are called Avalanche and are my very favorite.

The smell is intoxicating!!!

I took these photos two days ago and you can see that things in the garden are still very immature.
The overnight temps have been so chilly that things have just started to really get going.
Most of the roses in the beds are just now getting many of their leaves, but it changes by the day so it
won't be long until they cover themselves and then put out buds.

 Snowdrift crab apple in bloom.

This tree is always covered in blooms and bees this time of year.

In the front of this photo is the Canada Red chokecherry in bloom with one of the Centurion 

crab apples (pink) behind it.

I can't believe how packed with blooms this tree is year after year.

Oh how I LOVE this crab apple!

The bunting in this photo is made from the beautiful new line of fabrics by Peony and Sage

called Nordic. I like how it looks amid the pink blossoms.

                            I don't think you could fit another blossom on those branches if you tried!                                                                               

The tree below is Brandywine crab apple.

When the buds first form they remind me big pink gumballs!

This bloom is so pretty in all stages.

This is how it looked yesterday. It's a little fuzzy because of the wind we had,

but I just had to share it here.

I still have so many lilac photos to post so I will be back in a few days.

I want to wish everyone a wonderful weekend.

Sending hugs....
June

Flowers in the house

I just can't get over how fast time passes the older I get.
I have neglected my poor little blog for so long and it has been total
laziness on my part.

I did have some photos of blooms from the garden that I wanted to share.
The grape hyacinths are still blooming and so are the many daffodils that
are scattered throughout the garden.

I love the deep purple hyacinths, but I love the pure white ones too.
The purple ones carpet the ground in one section of a large bed and look
so striking when you catch sight of them.
I don't have many white ones so maybe that is why I like them so much. 

The daffodils are almost done blooming, so I am cutting as many as I can and
bringing them into the house for their last hurrah.

 I decided to get a post published so that I can take some photos of the crabapple trees
that are blooming and actually try to get them posted soon.
The trees are just packed with blooms and the hum of the bees working in
them is almost scary :)
I would sure like to taste that honey!

I love how pretty the hyacinths look in my little iron urn and

wish that they had a longer vase life, but I guess that what photos are for!

  

   

 I just won the most beautiful giveaway!

I have a dear blogging friend named Riet who lives in the Netherlands.

I have followed her blog since I started my own and over this time she 

has become a  close friend that I am so grateful for.

Recently she had a giveaway to celebrate her birthday and to celebrate a new blog she 

just started called

My Life Quilting and Stitching Again.

Look at this GORGEOUS hand painted scarf!!!!

I am so excited to be the winner of such a lovely gift. 

 Here is a close up of the lovely card that she sent along with two 

of her hand crocheted coasters (which I LOVE!!!!)

Thank you so much dear Riet! I am going to love wearing this scarf!!!