Thank You.

I'm not really sure how to adequately express my appreciation... but I want to give a heartfelt thanks to all of you kind people who honored me with a Mouse & Trowel Award nomination. When I went through the official Nominees post, I had to reread my name a couple of times before my jaw finally closed and it sunk in. Then I kind of had a Sally-Field-at-the-Oscars moment: "You like me! Right now, you like me!"

Hot on the heels of my amazement was the feeling of being deeply touched that the nomination came in the "Garden Blogger You Would Most Like to Have as a Neighbor" category. That category is most closely allied with the reason I really love garden blogging: Community.

Here, I receive assistance, empathy, and sometimes a much-needed kick in the butt as I stumble my way through my garden. I enjoyed your delight as you experienced spring in the Black Swamp with me. Elsewhere, I got to appreciate the blooms on Annie's native coral honeysuckle while waiting for my own to be shipped and planted. I sometimes ache for your losses--animal, vegetable and mineral--and you make me smile when you share your beautifully crazy garden dreams, like overgrown forests of delphiniums. Occasionally, I run across a blog post that even makes me chuckle so hard I almost cry.

After an evening of catching up with my favorite gardening blogs, I determine that I am going to revel in subtle woodland beauty a la Don in Iowa. Like Lisa at Millertime, I plan to never be without a project or twelve. Pam at Digging makes me want to plant more agaves and succulents, and pay more attention to texture in the garden. Craig at Ellis Hollow inspires me to incorporate more height and ornamental seedheads--not to mention botanical knowledge--in my yard.

In fact, I have gained so much knowledge and enjoyment from my fellow garden bloggers that I could never list it all. Obviously, we're all already neighbors of the virtual variety... peeking over the proverbial fence and sharing our trials and tribulations.

I feel as lucky to have all of you as I am to have been nominated for a "Mousie." And I appreciate the nomination both for the spirit in which it was given and for for the fact that it reminds me what a great online community of people I blog amongst. Thank you for both.