Fall time Planting

Well, summer is coming to a close and fall will be rolling in soon. I LOVE fall time, it is beautiful and the air is crisp.

At the new house, we need some 'sprucing up' of the lawn and I'd like to plant some flowers around the house... I do NOT have a green thumb at all so I need plants and flowers that can not only survive the hearty winters of the north but also survive me! That is a fairly BIG task.

Here are pictures of the house (above), it faces straight north. So in the back we get a LOT of sunlight.

The flowers/plants that I have been looking at so far are:

Clematis
Day lilies

Variegated Hosta
Lavender

Iris
Yarrow

Peonies

Hydrangeas

Lilacs

From what I read, these plants/flowers all come up annually AND they can survive through our winters and hopefully me too! I have yet to go to a garden center to see how to organize and plant these so they do not look like a big mess! Any tips?

Here is a picture of our home so you can see what I am dealing with...

I'd love to hear your input on my gardening dilemma and seed planting tips for our yard!