Back from NYC.

What a wonderful trip we had to New York City. I don't see how it could have been any better. We stayed in a really nice hotel that was convenient to so many things. We walked many a mile! You don't see many really overweight New Yorkers, and I can see why. They walk everywhere at all hours. The decorations were beautiful and lots of them. The tree at Rock Center was amazing! We say Jersey Boys, The Rockettes Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall and South Pacific. We had lunch at Tavern on the Green and visited the Nativity Scene at the Met. Visited the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island and Ground Zero. I highly recommend a trip to New York at Christmas time. The photos are of Tavern on The Green (crystal room) and the tree at Rockefeller Center.

Off to New York City!

The trip Sue and I have planned for almost a year is finally here. We leave early Friday morning and return on Wednesday evening. I'm busy finishing up my Christmas shopping and deciding what clothes to take on the trip.

Back from Cowtown.

I'm back from a short getaway to Fort Worth with the Rowdies. Had a fun time at the Stockyards Hotel, which is over 100 years old and has a lot of history. Here is a photo of the 5 of us on the staircase at the hotel. They had just brought in hundreds of poinsettias to decorate for Christmas. We had lots of laughs, good food and exchanged fun presents. Can't wait to do it again next year, perhaps in the Hill Country.

December is here!

Can't believe it is December already. Birthdays flying left and right and Christmas around the corner. We had a nice Thanksgiving at the Dawson house with lots of good food. I have included a photo of my contribution to the feast - 4 pies. I also made praline sweet potatoes.

Tomorrow I am off to Fort Worth with my gal pals for a short getaway. I will take photos to share.

Thanksgiving thoughts.

Well, I didn't make my full week of blogging as planned. A stomach bug got me and I was down and out for a few days. Thank goodness I am feeling better. As they say, you have to be sick once in a while to really appreciate it when you feel good.

The countdown is on for Thanksgiving, and we will be with lots of family, so I am thankful for that and many other things. I will get back to blogging after the holiday and plan to have some photos to share.

Happy Thanksgiving to those of you out there reading my blog.

Cold Front!

Today a blustery cold front blew in and really cooled things off. It is still pretty windy at 10:30 p.m. Just a quick post so I don't break my promise of posting every day for a week. This photo is my Butterfly Weed plant before the freeze.

Christmas is coming.

It seems Christmas comes around quicker every year. I think that has something to do with age! Today I started putting up a few decorations. We are not having Thanksgiving here, and I have a very busy December with a trip to New York City, so I thought I would get a head start. This photo is of a Department 56 village piece I bought a few years ago. Reminds me of our cruise to Alaska.

Cozy fire.

It doesn't have to be very cold for us to enjoy a fire in the fireplace. If you look close you can see Buddy in his bed by the fire. He has a tough life!

Monday.

This has been a busy day, but I finally got around to posting. I got some Christmas shopping done, went to the grocery store and planted some pansies. The photo today is my persimmon tree. The birds have gotten a lot of the fruit, but I love the tree.

Beautiful Sunday!

Great fall weather today. I have been out raking some leaves and enjoying a quiet day. We had family here this weekend and my photo today is of grandchildren having fun in the golf cart along with grandpa and "Daisy" the dog.

November resolution!

OK, I am going to take a photo every day for a week and post it to my blog. Today's photo is of a delicious and easy breakfast casserole I made. The recipe is from a magazine called "Taste of Home holiday collection." You can find this magazine almost anywhere they sell magazines. If you would like the recipe, leave me a message and I will email it to you.

Wonder what my photo will be tomorrow?

Preparing for Fall.

I am finally starting to come out of my summer hibernation and think about fall planting. We are still low on rain, but I am hopeful that will change soon. My new project is a prairie meadow in front of our house. I have a good start with wildflowers and some native grasses and I have convinced my hubby to lay off mowing that area. We will see what happens this fall. Today I took this photo of my Sweet Autumn Clematis in bloom. It looks like dainty crochet on top of the arbor and smells like vanilla. This is a great vine that stays green for many months. It blooms late August and I cut it back in mid-March every year before new growth begins.

Hot, Hot and Hotter!!!

I haven't posted in a while; I didn't want to just gripe and gripe. However, July was a very bad month for gardening, or anything outside. This is not my favorite time of year in Texas. I long for fall and cooler weather. We also need rain very badly. I am using this time to get some "inside jobs" done. When the weather is nice I just want to be outside so the inside suffers. Now is the time to do "housework." Also, I am doing some "light" reading. Nora Roberts "Blue Dahlia" is good so far and it incorporates my love of gardening. This is the first book of the In the Garden Trilogy. I recommend it. Here is a photo of my Texas Sage in bloom. If you look closely you can see the honey bees all over it. This plant only blooms after a rain shower - watering won't do it! We did have a brief rain one evening, and that is all it took to produce these blooms.

Taking a break.

I have been out working in my yard and it is heating up fast. Time for a water break.

I have added a link on my blog page to a book I just bought from Amazon. It is a great reference for all Texas gardeners, and at a great price! Also, check out these links for great gardening information for all gardeners: www.highcountrygardens.com and www.texasdiscoverygardens.org. They both have newsletters you can subscribe to if you choose. High Country Gardens not only sells plants but has lots of useful articles available on their site for free. Texas Discovery Gardens is located in Dallas and is a wonderful place to visit if you are in the area. They also have a lot of good info on their site.

Morning in the garden.

I have been out for my morning walk around the garden. Here are some photos of my tomatoes, including my first harvest of cherry tomatoes. Yeah! Also a photo of my Vitex bush/small tree. It is in full bloom and the bees love it!

June musings from the garden.

Well, it is June 1 and it feels more like July in Texas. Everything is growing well, but I am hoping for a break from the heat. Here are a few photos of my garden in spring. I will add more soon. Happy gardening!

Thoughts from the Garden.

This blog will be my thoughts on gardening in general and my garden in particular. I hope those who visit will tell me about their gardens, and ask questions if they like. I will also be posting photos of my garden, and maybe others that I visit.