A Few of My Favorite Things

The MainMost and I woke up early this morning. VERY early. 3:30 a.m.

By 5:00 I had made his coffee and he had cooked me breakfast. It was a lovely treat to sit at the dining room table and eat with my favorite guy and not have to share him with anyone. We talked and visited and then he went on in to work early.

Since I was awake, I decided to do a few of the kids' chores for them. I took care of trash cans and fed the (way too) many dogs we have acquired -- and was welcomed outside by this beautiful sight.  Fresh gardenias!

Oh, how I adore gardenias! They are beautiful and smell delicious. And they hold such sweet memories for me.

One of my special memories of my great-grandmother is a story she used to tell me about sweet gardenias. It seems there was a certain boy from somewhere "up North" that was quite smitten with my Grandma Bonnie. She was beautiful -- and sly! There were actually a few male suitors vying for her attention and there arose a bit of a competition between them as to who could buy her the nicest gift.

Her story was that gardenias were a bit of a novelty up North and that the Northern boy decided to gift her with some. He had way too many sent to her house -- not realizing that they weren't the least bit rare here in the South. Her yard was full of them and then the florist arrived with bushes and bushes more. She was embarrassed and the poor boy was out of luck.

All these years later, the sweet smell of gardenias floods my heart with memories of Grandma Bonnie. How I wish my children could have known her, and she them. They would have delighted in each other's company.

Early morning talks with my MainMost
Special breakfasts and alone time
Too many dogs
Gardenias in the South . . .

These are a few of my favorite things. Pin It Now!