Thought I’d share a gift of a springtime dream of color and fragrance with you this Christmas morning. Sometimes I think I like the bud stage more than the fully opened flower. Such energy and promise!

Visit Macro Flowers Saturday , Blue Monday and SOOC Sunday when you have time. If only one photo here, click on Sara’s Fave Photos, and for even more photo browsing fun, click on Free Photos. Have a wonderful holiday!

I was browsing through my archives trying to create a slideshow of flowers for the garden club I belong to and found this image. Neat, isn’t it? But I have no idea what it’s called. Anyone?

Visit Shadow Shot Sunday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), Color Carnival and Today’s Flowers for great sites in blogland. Browse around here while you’re already here, perhaps something like “sunset” or “rose.” And if you’ve landed here via the permalink, an easy way to the latest post is by Sara’s Fave Photos, above.

This iris growing against my house is actually a lovely shade of lavendar when open, almost an orchid color. The stems are very tall, almost five feet (!) and they are the old fashioned kind with a sweet scent,  almost a bubblegum kind of smell. I took a number of photos of the open blossoms but liked this one best.

Does anyone know of a meme dedicated to the color purple? I thought I saw one once but now can’t find it. This would be a great post for it, if it exists.

We had lovely weather in Seattle today. I hope you got to go outdoors, wherever you are.

Check out Macro Flowers Saturday for more ravishing floral close ups. And click on Sara’s Fave Photos above to return to the latest post here.

We’re planting a big rose garden out in front. What a lot of work! But it will be worth it, absolutely. This is one of the 18 roses waiting in pots, named Broadway. In a rare burst of sunshine, it created this shadow, almost like another petal form. Visit Shadow Shot Sunday for more fascinating shadows.

Yet another photo from the Bronx Botanical Garden and my recent New York City trip. This was taken in the beginning of May, and the peonies were ALMOST ready to pop. For more ruby redness of all kinds, go to Ruby Tuesday, a fine place in blogland if ever there was one.

They are so beautiful and they are still doing what they do: give such pleasure. Here is another, just for you.