I fell in love today...

...with dahlias. I've always loved fresh flowers. They have an incredible ability to instantaneously put me in a good mood. A friend told me the other day-one of the "must haves" during a difficult life transition is fresh-cut flowers in your home. I agree whole-heartedly. That brings me back to the whole falling in love with dahlias comment. Today I went to the Swan Island Dahlia Festival.
 Growing up in Seattle I've always heard about the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival in Mt. Vernon.  I've seen pictures and I've always wanted to go.  Yesterday I saw an ad on TV for the Dahlia Festival and I figured it would be a perfect Monday outing.  It did not disappoint.  More than 40 acres-and row upon row of bright dahlias awaited me in Canby (just south of Portland).  Each color has a different name.  Everything from a pale pink "first kiss," a yellow dahlia called "gramma's lemon pie," to a more vibrant pink "she devil."  I bought three bunches of dahlias.  Guess who rang me up?  The gal who started the festival with her husband decades ago.  Her name is Margaret, she told me her husband's name was Nick.  He passed away a few years ago-but his legacy sure lives on.  Margaret says he came up with the majority of the dahlia varieties on display at the festival today.  I never thought much about dahlias before today-but now they're right up there with peonies (my very favorite flower). Take a look at some of these gorgeous flowers-it's hard to feel anything but happy in a field surrounded by dahlias.