December in the Nest

Now we come to the time of year where Robin's Nest moves mostly indoors for the winter. Technically, it's been mild so far, and if I had known we'd have so much weather above freezing, I may have planted a few more pansies and such. But the small bit of snow and frosty nights we had early on wiped out the garden for the season. I miss it, but a winter rest is very nice indeed. 

Easton Town Center

But who has time to miss the garden once the Christmas season arrives? First on the agenda is to decorate my outdoor planters and window boxes. After removing the red touches after Christmas, I'll leave the greens in place until March when spring bulbs begin popping up. The greens keep me from having to look at bare planters all winter, plus it keeps the soil from splashing out. 

Next it's time to decorate inside the house. Even if no one visits that year, I always enjoy putting out my holiday decor. We sometimes do skip putting up a tree if the kids and grandkids don't come for a holiday visit. This year however,  they did come, so a small, real tree was acquired and decorated. 

We are firm believers in being vaccinated for Covid, and since our children and grandchildren are fully vaccinated, we are able to gather safely in our family group of nine. I may have been a little frantic trying to prepare for everyone's arrival, but I loved every second of it. Presents were wrapped, stockings were stuffed, decorations put up, and food prepared. Then they arrived, and it became beloved chaos! What fun we had, with memories stored up. 

Since our family Christmas was held the weekend before the actual holiday, Christmas seemed to be over after they left. We returned the house to order, and breathed happy sighs at a successful gathering. In actuality, it wasn't yet Christmas! We enjoyed a quiet Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at home by preparing favorite foods, watching movies, and being absolutely cozy. I would have liked some Christmas snow, but instead, we grilled steaks on a warm and rainy day. 

Because I was running late on finishing up my gift afghans, we didn't find time to enjoy holiday light displays until after the kids returned home. We enjoyed a safe date night seeing outdoor lights at Easton Town Center, and the Columbus Commons.

Easton Town Center

Easton Town Center

Easton Town Center

Columbus Commons

Columbus Commons

With all the winter warmth, you might think I would go outdoors to work in the yard, but it's been consistently rainy and damp. I did go out to see if anything else was new, and found little. The Major Wheeler honeysuckle has not stopped putting out random blooms, there's a single scabiosa flower, some dried roses, and a few pansies cling on. I didn't expect to find lamium flowers, but I had forgotten that they often peek out during bouts of mild winter weather. Bulb sprouts are popping up, but I'm sure January will bring more true winter weather. Snow won't hurt that bulb foliage. 

Once the garden stops creating work for the winter, I get back to my crochet hooks. Now that I have gifted all the blankets I made this year, I've included them here. I made a Ohio State blanket for my daughter's boyfriend, and my Michigan loving heart didn't explode.  I also completed blankets for all three grandchildren, right at the last minute. They loved them, and dragged them around the house all weekend. It really warmed this Mimi's heart. Also included here are gift afghans for my aunt and a friend. I may soon run out of friends and family to gift afghans to, so perhaps I'll start making lap blankets to donate to senior homes. Crocheting blankets is enjoyable for me because their rectangular shape means that I don't have to think very hard about the pattern, and can stitch mindlessly. 

Grandson's blanket

Middle Granddaughter's blanket

Youngest Granddaughter's blanket

Buckeye blanket for my boyfriend-in-law

Gift for my Aunt's 90th birthday

Goodbye gift for my friend Susan

It's been an interesting year, that's for sure. My flowers had an excellent year, but the veggies weren't nearly as prolific as some years. Here are a few highlights of flower favorites this year. Just searching for these pictures in my files made me wistful for their return. 

Redbud with tulips and candytuft in background

Antoinette tulips

Batik iris

Princess Victoria poppies

At Last roses

Mix of Polish Spirit and Jackmanii Superba clematis

Salmon themed container for part shade

Duchess of Albany clematis

Endless Summer hydrangea

Cut and Come Again zinnias

Lemon Queen sunflowers

Firelight hydrangeas

Oklahoma Salmon zinnias

Beloved monarchs

Heavenly Blue morning glory

I'll close as usual with sunsets, some out the windows, and some by the pond. I hope this current cloudy spell comes to an end soon, there hasn't been a sunset in ages! 

Thanks as usual for stopping by my Nest, it's much appreciated. I'm already missing my garden flowers, so I believe January will have to include kitchen bouquets. There's only so long I can go without flowers!