I know it is Christmas when...

the nandina berries bloom!

I've posted several pictures of these berries during the last few months, Nandina Berries and P.S. to the Nandina Berries post.  Now here they are, not as red as they are in some years but good enough for me.  Sadly, these were just about the only ones on the bushes this year (I'm sure the birds enjoyed the others!).

And, totally unrelated to Christmas but I'm posting anyway, remember the tomato plant that surprised me with the little green fall tomatoes?  Here are the four tomatoes, three are ready to eat, one almost.  I had almost forgotten about them when I went out one afternoon last week to prepare for a light freeze.  There they were, wearing their Christmas red colors.  I ate one in a wrap and it was delicious! A nice surprise!