In all of this, there is always life

This beautiful scene is one I enjoyed on a walk with my two daughters over the Thanksgiving holiday. We took long walks to help combat the calories we were inhaling! Ha

Even though I enjoyed these walks immensely, it was disconcerting that all of nature seems to be turning gray and brown.

Until my heart leaped for joy over  this next little vignette!

Isn't is lovely?? aaahhhh... I love moss....

                             In heaven, I am going to walk barefoot through fields of moss....aahhhhhh...

On the way home from my visit with my oldest daughter, my middle daughter and I stopped in a little town called Lititiz. Home of the Wilbur chocolate factory....

  

                                              This chocolate "scene" is completely edible!
                                        We had fun at the factory but didn't eat or buy anything!
                                               I think we were still full from Thanksgiving, lol.


                            okay... and this is what we've been baking and delivering... cheesecakes!

A sampling of three: Caramel Apple, Italian with Oreo crust ( delivered with a cup of triple berry sauce),
                                   and  Chocolate-Raspberry with chocolate ganache.

                                                   I was glad to get them out of the house!

My top 10 plants for 2011

At some point, around this time of the year, my mind starts to review how the garden performed,
which plants did well and which ones had too many problems or were thuggish.
There are always pleasant surprises which made me infinitely happy and then there are plants that might have made me audibly groan, swearing to myself that I would rip them out!
( which I find incredibly hard, like editing ones closet!)

Here are my "Top Ten" for this year:

1.Agapanthus

                                                                           
2. Peony

   

                                                                          
3.Baptisa

                                                                        
4. Hosta

                                                                      

  5.  Salvia

     6. Knock Out roses 
                                                                                                                            

7.Hydrangea

 8. Lavender

9. Siberian Iris

10. Spirea

So, there ya have it. My top 10... which took me about 2 hours to select! lol.
I wanted to name most of my beloved plants.
But only these 10 really require very little maintenance, hold their own in less than perfect conditions and put on a great show!
Both the lavender and Baptisa are much more vibrant than my poor photography shows.

What were some of your favorites? I'd love to know!

Happy Thanksgiving !

          Poinsettias in a can! lol..how fun is this! A gift from my oldest daughter whom I am visiting in Penn.
                                           Pop the top, spread the packet of seeds and water!

While visiting for Thanksgiving, we also exchange Christmas presents. As my daughters unwrapped their gifts, they made "hats" from their present decorations. It turned into a competition, which pretty much everything these girls do, does! Love the sparkly sticker "beauty marks".

                                                   Do you love the light bulb accessory?

            There is so much I am thankful for...  my life in Christ, my children and my love of gardening!

                                                    May your Thanksgiving be blessed!