All our mother, Diane, wanted for her birthday this year (besides a week in Florence, Italy to see her sister!) was a 21st century phone on which she could check her email, take pictures and perhaps make a call or two.  Her old phone was limited to verbal communication and texting (which she never did since she didn’t see why she wouldn’t just call the person instead.)  Then came the new phone… and Diane has discovered the beauty of texting (you don’t have to have a long, involved conversation if you don’t want to), taking pictures of her grandchildren (after they taught her how to do so!) and reading emails wherever she goes.

Artist Guido Daniele for AT&T

Given the time she now spends on the phone, we were a little hesitant to teach her how to download apps.  But since she does have a long commute to the office, we thought we might introduce her to a couple of our favorites – all botanically related, of course!

There's an App for Everything!

Plants vs. Zombies (to bring out the kid in her):  Our tween boys highly recommend this great way to “while away the hours, conferrin’ with the flowers…”  The goal is to plant flowers in the yard to defeat the zombies before they come into the house and eat your brains (their words, not ours!)

Plants vs. Zombies

Flower Garden (so that she can tend her virtual garden and send bouquets to her friends): Black thumbs be gone – plant different types of seeds, water them and watch them bloom.  Once they’re grown, you can create mixed bouquets of the best blossoms to share with loved ones.

Flower Garden

Flower Shop Frenzy (a must-have for entrepreneurs): Since Diane knows how to run a flower business, this should be easy.  All she needs to do is help Emma run her friend’s flower shop and make it a financial success in time for the renowned international rose festival.

Flower Shop Frenzy

What Flower? (just in case she needs inspiration for a new collection): Search for 250 flowers by name, meaning (did you know that a dahlia mean “good taste”?), emotion, occasion and season and see how different flowers go together to make a pretty posy.

What Flower?

iZen Garden (for days when she’s frazzled): On her commute “om”, Diane can soothe her senses by creating zen gardens with stones, shells, fossils and plants while listening to meditation soundtracks.

iZen Garden

We think these should be enough to help Diane pass the time for now…  What kind of apps make you h-APP-y?

Photos from Guido Daniele and Apple