Winter Pick-Me-Ups

Nothing beats the winter blues as much as flowers. Have you ever noticed how a simple vase of flowers can brighten any room? I am so thankful that there are blooms that emerge in late winter to remind us that spring is coming.

The winter daphne not only looks beautiful this time of year...its scent is heavenly. My husband described it perfectly the other day. He said that it smelled like Fruit Loops. I have to agree. The sweet scent of this shrub does remind me of the many bowls of Fruit Loops that I ate as a child. I get to enjoy this scent everytime I walk into my front yard. It is planted right beside the front porch steps for visitors to enjoy as they pass by. I also cut some of these and bring them in for their beauty and lovely scent.


My hellebores are beautiful outside against the dull winter landscape, as well as, grouped together in a vase to brighten any room in the house.


Their blooms will not last quite as long as some cut flowers, but for several days one can enjoy their beauty.



I am so thankful for these little winter pick-me-ups. What are some of the pick-me-ups that you enjoy during the winter months?

Warm Winter

On the news last night I heard the weatherman say that this was the warmest January in over seventy years. I believe it! Around here it looks like spring has sprung. Although I am perfectly content with the warmer winter, I sure hope that my plants will not suffer from the early blooming. These blooms do not usually show up until March.


hellebores


Yum, I smell Fruit Loops!


Nope, Chord, it's a winter daphne!


Daffodils already?


Blooms on my star magnolia???


Unfortunately, the pretty pink blooms are turning brown after a couple of days. :(

Well, it looks like winter has been cancelled in North Carolina this year. How is winter treating you in your neck of the woods?

Hang In There!

I know many of my blogging friends are buried in snow at the moment. Here in North Carolina we have managed to escape the big storm. Last night we had some rain and today it is windy, however, temperatures are in the lower sixties...not bad for the second day of February. I thought I would venture out and look for some signs of spring to share with those of you that may need some warmth today. I didn't find much happening in my yard at the moment. It seems that the signs of spring are running a little late this year; however, I did manage to get a few glimpses of what is to come.

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For instance, my winter daphne appears to be getting ready to bring forth its sweet smelling blooms...



...and my daffodils are just starting to poke through the barren ground.

So, for those of you who are anxious for spring to appear...




...hang in there, spring is on the way! :)

Scent of Heaven

The weather was rainy and chilly this weekend. After a couple of seventy degree days last week it seems we are back to normal temperatures. There were a couple of bright spots in an otherwise dreary weekend; one being the beautiful rainbow that graced our sky on Saturday afternoon, the other being the heavenly scent that I immediately drink in every time I open my front door. My winter daphne is in full bloom!



I know that scripture has many descriptions of the beauty of heaven, but I have been unable to find any scripture on the scent of heaven. I wonder if there is anyone else out there like me that thinks about things such as this. I am quite sure that much of the beauty on earth serves as a little glimpse of what is to come. If that is true, then the wonderful scents that we enjoy have to give some insight into the scent of heaven. What do you think?



I do wish I could make my pictures into scratch-and-sniff ones. Or maybe I could bottle the essence and send it to all of my friends. In any case, the only flaw that I can find with my winter daphne is that some of the leaves are yellowing. I am assuming that all of the rain has caused this. I hope the roots are not staying too wet. I would hate to loose this plant.



I only wish it were warm enough outside to open up the windows and let the beautiful fragrance drift throughout my house!