Monday, May 24, 2010

Sweet Lilies of the Valley

"The temple bell stops but I still hear the sound coming out of the flowers."
~ Bashō

How delicate and lovely are these beautiful bells!

This bouquet was my third from the garden.
They start to brown in a handful of days...
But
oooooooooo
the fragrance is heaven
Botanically known as Convallaria, 
but also known as
May lily,
May bells,
Our Lady's tears,
Convall-lily,
Lily Constancy,
Ladder-to-Heaven,
Jacob's Ladder,
Muguet

The Lily of the Valley
signifies a
"return to happiness"


They were first on Rachael's list for a bridal bouquet.
BUT
Rachael's flower budget is very modest, so she ordered a simpler bouquet of mixed flowers.
You see, our florist, Fran,
{a lovely woman that has know our children for years}
told us that a bouquet the size of the one above, from my garden,
would cost hundreds of dollars. 
They are $60 for 10 stems!
{Here's a link I found online.}

I'm so happy that they were blooming for Rachael's wedding shower.
~ These were free ~
"The flowers of late winter and early spring 
occupy places in our hearts well out of proportion to their size." 
~Gertrude S. Wister
 *
 Dear Family and Friends,
~ I hope you have a wonderfully sweet week ~

15 comments:

  1. Ooh! Lilies of the Valley are some of my favorite flowers...ever! I have a small patch of them out front and they have just started blooming.
    I think a small bouquet at my bedside table will be perfect tonight!

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  2. It's been one of my favorites since I was a little girl. So fragrant and delicately beautiful. A wonderful choice! Love Di ♥

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  3. I love them! How can something grow to be so delicate and perfect and beautiful?! How nice that you have them in your yard too! Come say hi :D

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  4. Well hello my dear friend,
    I do so love when you pop in and know how very, very busy you are at this time...thank you...

    Ahhh...Lily of the valley is {I'm sure }a wee bit of Heaven. We have Muguet soap at the store. It smells so very lovely, no wonder your dear girl wanted these to spend the day with her.
    I continue to pray for strength and endurance for you my friend...as you enjoy this time with your family...Smile on Rosie

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  5. Lily of the Valley -I'm reminded of visiting my dear grandmother and being sent to the side garden to pick a handful for her table. How I loved their scent! I'm glad they were blooming for Rachel's Shower, too.

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  6. Dear Maria..have a good happy week too.....oh lilly of the valley....they are verry expensive here too....but not as by you....it's here round the € 10 the 10 !!......so € 1 the piece...........shall i make the boquet ??? hahahahhaha!!.happy day my darling....hugs from Ria

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  7. Hi Maria,

    How I wished a scent button on my laptop right now. Love love these sweet little flowers, so delicate indeed. In the Netherlands we call them
    Lelietjes van Dalen. Hmm, would love to hear you pronouncing this ;)
    The two lovely ladies in the last picture are very beautiful. Are they both your daughters? I see a lot of similarity with beautiful mom, showing a lot of beauty inside and out.

    Wishing you a wonderful Tuesday, Maria! xxooxxoo

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  8. Hello Maria. Perfect flower!
    How wonderful. Wishing you all the best.

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  9. Oh sweet friend...I have always loved these sweet sweet bells! They are my Birth month flower and filled my grandma's garden when I was little.
    xoxoxoxo

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  10. little bells...so so cute :)

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  11. You made me smile. These were my Grandmother's favorite flower. They are so pretty and delicate. Everytime I see them I think of her.

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  12. Just me again...wanting to thank you for your sweet comment..you are the BEST!!!!!

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  13. Muget des bois are one of my very favorite flowers. The fragrance is unforgettable!

    I am so happy that Rachel got a little bouquet, even if it was for her shower! I didn't realize these humble forest flowers were expensive! Rachel will be a stunning bride with a lovely bouquet on her wedding day!

    Such a pretty post.

    Thank you for your kind comments. We are all very proud of my father's and my son's service.
    Yvonne

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  14. Those are gorgeous. When I was a child...they grew on my parents farm.
    I loved them...they have a beautiful appeal and I'm so happy that you could find them at such a humble price.

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  15. Lovely mix of text and photo. Love the Basho quote.

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Thank you for stopping by! Your comments add sunshine to my day~