Sleeping December Garden

 The only photos I took in the "garden" this month are sunsets out the back door! It's really unusual to have absolutely nothing growing outside in December, usually I can find a snapdragon, or a pansy, or the lamium in bloom. This year, nothing. I should have known that we'd have an early winter when the autumn colors arrived two weeks early. It's discouraging, but that just means that I'll have to start my winter survival plan pronto. 

But we do have Christmas to cheer us up in December! We had a white Christmas this year, which I generally enjoy. But when it arrives with a blizzard and a polar vortex, it isn't as much fun. We had to postpone our holiday travels due to the bad weather. So we stayed home, and made the best of the day. It's very cozy to stay home for the holidays, and I did enjoy making and eating our favorite foods. And even if no one saw them but us, I always do enjoy putting up my Christmas decorations. 

I did drive around to see light displays, but nothing really looked as good as the local shopping center of Easton. 

Generally, I enjoy the holiday display at Franklin Park Conservatory, but this year, I waited until it was nearly Christmas. Big mistake! The displays were lovely, but it was so crowded that you couldn't really catch photos without other people crowding in. It was even so crowded that I felt the need to wear my mask outside. Next year, I'll go early. Sure was pretty, but these were the only spots I could catch without others crowding into the photo. 

Remember me mentioning my winter survival plan? One of the first steps is to buy myself cheerful bouquets of flowers. I'll try to take care of that this week. Another strategy is to ogle seed catalogs, but so far, only two have arrived. But I've been drooling over them already! 

It's been quite cloudy, but I did catch a few sunsets out the back door. It's funny to think how few photos I took this month compared to October when the fall colors were at their peak! But that's just how winter goes.Thanks for stopping by my nest for December. Hopefully I'll have some pretty snow photos to share in January. We did get snow, but it's been so bitter cold that I haven't left the house in 5 days. I like pretty snowfalls, but I do have my limits. See you back here next month! 

November in the Nest

Welcome to my November Nest on this cold and rainy day! I thought I might plant my tulip bulbs today, but the weather didn't cooperate, so looks like I'll work on indoor projects instead. Yes, you read that right, I haven't planted my tulips yet, and it's December tomorrow. I sure hope we get a little warm weather so I can get that job out of the way. I don't plant bulbs until a hard freeze takes out all my annual flowers, since I plant my bulbs in those same spots. And this year, the hard freeze came late, which is odd because the fall colors arrived extra early. All is bare now, the trees are empty and the only flower I could find in bloom was a lone dandelion. But I caught these last pretty spots early in the month. 

My roses usually enjoy the cool fall weather, and often give me a last round of blooms well into the chilly days. I often have roses blooming even into December, but not this year. These photos are from November 7th. 

Abraham Darby

At Last

Fourth of July

Funny Face

Zepherine Drouhin

Sunny Knockout

On the day I captured all these flower pix, a deep freeze was threatening, so I went out to say goodbye to them, as I always do. I'm ever grateful for the last, ragged blooms, hanging on in the chilly weather of November. The zinnias were a mildewy mess by then, and yet they bloomed on. But even the snapdragons didn't survive the later deep freeze, and that's saying something. 

But we escaped the first snow by visiting my folks in Florida at that time. It really was chilly there too, I swear! But it was still warmer than Ohio. First we went to Sarasota and Siesta Key, with my usual stop at Selby Gardens. And of course we enjoyed lots of seafood, especially grouper. Yum! 

Our next stop was Leesburg, where the views are complete different, but equally beautiful. 

Here we are at the end of November, and it's time for me to decorate for Christmas. I like to start outdoors by refilling my summer planters with greenery, which I'll leave in place until March. I try not to make them look overly Christmasy, so they can stay in place awhile. These are the planters that don't get tucked away into the garage, so I like to keep them filled even over the winter. 

For now, there's not much left to see in the garden. You know how much I miss having flowers growing right outside my door. But I keep busy in other ways in the winter, and it won't be long until spring flowers start peeking out. Guess I'd better get those tulip bulbs planted if I want to see spring blooms! You can probably see that I repaired my penny ball, but this photo reminds me that I think I'll tuck it into the garage for the winter. I used to leave it out, but I think the adhesive holds up better if I give it a break from the bitter cold. 

And so it goes in my November Nest. Sunsets are seen out the back door now, but they're hard to catch with the return of frequent cloudy days. This is a good time of year to see sunsets down at the pond, so I'll have to remember to run down there next time one shows up. 

Thanks for stopping by my nest, as usual. In December, I'll show you my indoor holiday decor, and any other treats that I can find. Until then...