December Brings Change

When December comes to an end, many of us use that time to reflect on what's past, and what's ahead. You see, 2024 was a pretty dramatic year for us, and it's going to end with a bang when my husband retires on the 31st. Our plans are still uncertain, but regardless, we're looking forward to more time together. You see, my husband was a heavy business traveler, and we've been apart for much of the last 10-15 years. But now it's finally time for us to do life together again! 

As for December itself, I used the first part of it to finish my holiday prep. The decorations were put up, and gifts were purchased, then wrapped. Goodies were baked and placed into the freezer for future use. Cards were sent, and menus were prepared for holiday gathering. And some small gifts were made by hand, mostly scarves and earrings.  

After the holiday prep was complete, we packed up the car and drove south to spend Christmas with my parents in Florida. We hadn't spent Christmas together since they moved away from Michigan back in the 90's. It was a quiet time together, but we had plenty of good food and lots of visiting. No, it wasn't actually warm, even though we were in Florida. But it sure wasn't as frigid as the north can be, that's for sure. And it was definitely a green Christmas, a first for us. 

Now that we're back home, it's time to prepare for our late family celebration. The gifts have long been wrapped, so all we need to do now is shop for groceries and do some cooking. I'll leave the decorations up late this year, since the fam isn't coming until just after New Year's. Trying to remain festive! I didn't put up a tree though, since weren't home to water it. But all the other decorations are still in place. 

As for the garden, it's asleep. There isn't anything to see outside except the bones of the place. I miss the flowers, but I do enjoy resting during winter. I kept my display of Christmas greens simple this year, no bows or baubles, just the greenery itself. I like to keep these on display until March, and remove them when everything starts coming back to life for the spring. Below, you'll see the extent of our snowfall. It was just a dusting, and quickly melted. I did like to see the Sweetgum tree wearing its baubles, and the euphorbia Ascot Rainbow looking so well despite the cold it's been through. 

The gray skies of December in Ohio don't allow many sunsets to peek out. When there is a sunset, the best view is usually from my upstairs windows. I'm sure I'll get down to the local pond soon, since the sun sets over the water at this time of year. Meanwhile, it's quick and easy to watch out back at home. 

Thanks for stopping by to see what's happening in the Nest. I have to look beyond the garden at this time of year, while I keep hoping for snow. January should be fairly quiet, but with hubby actually at home, who knows what we'll get up to! Until then. 

November in December

 Well that's a new one on me, I forgot to put up my November blog post! So here I am in early December, still talking about November. 

In early November, there were still a few fall colors to see. Some years, we don't even show our peak colors until then, but this year, we peaked earlier in October. But there are always some late splashes of color to enjoy. October was so glorious this year, by the time November arrived, even I had my fill. I know, it's truly shocking. I always swear that there is no limit to how much fall color that I can enjoy. 

We had the standard first frost in mid October, and several more frosts since then. But none of them were hard freezes, so some of the flowers continued to bloom. Sure, all the tender annuals got zapped early on. But there were many stalwarts that just kept going. Some of these I expect to see in the cool weather. But some were totally confused by the strange weather this year, and decided to bloom totally out of season. Lilacs, primrose, hosta, zinnias, sunflowers, in November? 

The local historical farm did a luminary walk recently, I presume to celebrate the upcoming holidays. But it was so incredibly dark that I found it a bit spooky! I enjoyed it, but couldn't even see the ground beneath my feet. Next time they should bill it as a Halloween event! My photos are deceptive, it was much darker than it appears. 

Now that the days are short, I spend more time indoors, cooking, decorating, crafting etc. 

At the end of the month, we still hadn't had a deep freeze, and I found a few stragglers in bloom. But they're gone now, we finally had temps in the 20's overnight, and even the hardiest flowers gave up. I still need to get out there and empty the last flower pots, but it's just too darned cold! I might have to lug the pots into the garage as is, full of dead plants and dirt. I've tried emptying frozen soil before, and it never works. 

I only have a few sunsets this time, the skies are often gray now. It's a time to hunker down, be cozy and warm, and dream about next year. Thanks for coming by to see November in December! Next month I'll have Christmas decorations to show off. Sometimes I do them in late November, but I wasn't ready for it then. I realized that it was because Thanksgiving was so late! I can't get in the mood for Christmas if we haven't celebrated Thanksgiving yet. Till then!