Take THAT Mother Nature!

It's been a crazy cold summer (temps have not gone about about 68 degrees; and for the most part, have been hovering in the high 50s/low 60s. Welcome to England!). Which means none of the flowers I've planted have bloomed. The herbs and greens have flourished but other than the lilac tree, there have been no blooms. Entirely disappointing for me because I love flowers and have had to feed my fix through weekly purchases from the grocery story. So imagine my delight when taking the trash out over the weekend I spied two little sweet pea blossoms popping out on the trellis that MRN recently affixed to the garden shed. Whoop-whoop! It's still cold, but these little beauties are standing up against Mother Nature just the same. Maybe the rest of the garden will follow these little leaders.

(P.S. Don't be fooled by the begonias in the foreground-- those are recent purchases, already in bloom, from the garden store bound for MRN's dad's planter).

Lilac

Autumn has always been my favorite time of year-- it still is for the most part although living in the UK significantly reduces the joy due the rather temperate climate where you don't go from a blistering hot summer to wonderful cooler Fall where even the air smells different. Not to mention the lack of celebrations that mark a typical US Fall season-- from Halloween to Thanksgiving. Plus the leaves aren't the same amazing colors as in the Northeastern US, somewhat diminishing the effect. So, you would forgive me my surprise at finding that I may be converting to a lover of Spring and, gasp! Summer! I think Summer mostly because it's so mild here and never really exceeds the 70s (Fahrenheit), which is my ideal temperature (I hate heat-- funny from a girl who grew up in the desert). But I'm especially enjoying Spring this year because all the flowers are coming into bloom in my little garden (well, the ones that I haven't killed or are hearty enough to have somehow lasted through the Winter). My favorite is the hearty little lilac tree that's now survived two Winters and still thriving. These are some early buds chopped to accompany the ranunculus (that I still haven't killed!). The tree itself is beautiful-- I'm a sucker for flowers (my mother's daughter), so a flowering TREE is even better! I'll post a photo in a few days when it's in full bloom.