How do you pronounce “peonies”?

OKay, so spill it: pee-OWN-nees or PEE-un-nees?

Personally, I am a PEE-un-nees girl. But I'd consider switching to pee-OWN-nees if it meant I could have peonies in my home every day.

I was so excited to find them for this week's One-Bouquet-a-Week Challenge--it's the first time I've seen them all year. To me, peonies are a combination of everything that's amazing about the flower world: the fullness of hydrangea, the sweet scent of roses, the quick-opening-up-just-after-you-place-them-in-water entertainment value of daffodils, the spring/summer happiness of hyacinth, and the showiness of poppies.

(And after all that, I guess I'm saying that they might just be the perfect flower.) (So is that why the shop down the street charges about $4 a pop?)

P.S. Oh, hey! My little challenge got a little attention on RealSimple.com this week. Pop over and take a look here. (Thanks, Kristen!)