Kubota Garden (Seattle part 1)

The first stop we made on my recent trip to Seattle was Kubota Garden.
Here are two sites you can visit to learn more of the history:
Kubota Garden


We flew into Sea-Tac airport around noon on Sunday. The airport was mostly empty. So we were able to quickly navigate our way to baggage claim and then out to catch the rental car shuttle. I must say I found Sea-Tac to be one of prettiest airports I've ever seen. That day was partly cloudly and the way the sun shone through the walls of windows was invigorating.

There are windows at Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix, but there is also tons of concrete too. I loved walking through the sunlit airport.


After picking up the rental car, we stopped at a Bartell Drugs and picked up some gloves, which I had been unable to buy in Phoenix. I think you can only really buy gloves here in November. Apparantly Bartell Drugs has been in Seattle for forever and my mom shared stories of her brother working there as a teenager in the early 1960's.

Then, we were off to Kubota Garden. None of us had been there before so were unsure what to expect. The garden is open to the public year round and is maintained by volunteers and funded by donation. It is 4.5 acres of well kept trails through a variety of landscapes. Here are a few of my pictures:



This is the marker at the front of the garden. It helps you know where to turn to get to the parking area.



One of the few flowering plants/trees there. Much of the garden looked just about ready to bloom. We thought it looked like popcorn on the tree.



There was a series of paths that led by many waterfalls. Each waterfall was beautifully framed by the nature around it. The sound of the falling water only added to the peacefulness of the place.

You see the beautiful clear skies? We could not have asked for a better day to spend the afternoon walking through a carefully crafted garden.
If you are going to be visiting the area or are lucky enough to live nearby I highly recommend you visit. There were many places with benches that would make for peaceful meditation. I think my kids would have even loved the place. I think the calm would even have infused them.

Keep an eye out for my next Seattle post: Magnolia (Seattle part 2).

Evil Bermuda Grass

Today I began resurrecting my flower garden. All that remained were my overgrown rosebushes. (Sounds like a description from the Secret Garden). I have spent the past two springs pregnant. Even the springtime heat quickly became too much for me to do the necessary work to keep it up. Now, no more babies, so I must tackle the bermuda grass ugh!
For those of you unfamiliar, bermuda grass is fine as a lawn, although course and prickly to bare feet. However, bermuda grass is the nemesis of gardeners!

A very hardy perennial, creeping grass with a deep root system, it reproduces through seeds, runners, and rhyzomes. It moves fast: it can put out seeds within three months of implantation, the seeds germinate when temperatures reach 68 degrees F., and will begin growing within two weeks. Though it prefers 16"+ of rain per year, once established it is highly resistant to drought (going into dormancy above-ground while its rhizomes extend toward the water table), it can spread in poor soils, and it is strongly fire-adapted. Its flowering season is long (September through May), a problem to allergy sufferers since its pollens are highly allergenic.

(click on the text to visit where I found it)

I have desert landscaping in my front yard, with just rocks..and the pretty flowers I plant around the mailbox. At the front of the house is my flower bed with my roses. The horrible bermuda grass has been snaking around my rosebushes and is going to be difficult to complete remove. Probably impossible to completely remove. I am determined however! Today I tackled around the mailbox.
I think bermuda grass with the way it winds around other plants and is impossible to just pull up is a lot like the stresses of life. Often they start small and I think 'oh I can take care of that anytime'..So I put it off and don't take care of it when it is a tiny problem., much like the first sprouting of evil bermuda grass. Finally, the problem weaves its way around my entire life leaving me to have to pull and tug until my palms are raw. The worst part, just like bermuda grass, huge stresses are hard to fully get rid of. The roots stay hidden underground until just the right conditions.
I like metaphors. I think as I am yanking out the bermuda grass strangling my rosebushes I will think about what I can remove in my life to reduce the stresses and recreate beauty. I'll share some pictures when the flowers are all in and my roses are cut back too. Flowers make me happy.

I Made It Through

We dreamers have our ways
Of facing rainy days
And somehow we survive

We keep the feelings warm
Protect them from the storm
Until our time arrives

Then one day the sun appears
And we come shining through those lonely years

I made it through the rain
I kept my world protected
I made it through the rain
I kept my point of view
I made it through the rain
And found myself respected
By the others who
Got rained on too
And made it through

When friends are hard to find
And life seems so unkind
Sometimes you feel so afraid

Just aim beyond the clouds
And rise above the crowds
And start your own parade

'Cause when I chased my fears away
That's when I knew that I could finally say

Chorus

by: Barry Manilow

Growing up, we always had a huge clean the house day on Saturdays. When we were little my mom would put on some of her records and we would sing and dance and clean. As we got old enough to work the record player, we started to put the music on even when she was not helping us. Some of our favorite records were by Barry Manilow and Simon and Garfunkel. Barry Manilow has a song called Burmuda Triangle. You probably aren't familiar with it, so check out the lyrics for a chuckle. It was my brother's favorite Barry Manilow song. We would listen to it over and over as we danced around the living room. Very funny..

Anyway, back to my original thought. I always really liked the song Made It Through the Rain . I loved the idea of surviving tough times. Later, when I was 13 I went on a Mountain Woman hike at Philmont. We carried everything in our backpacks for five nights, six days of adventure through the New Mexican wilderness. It was really rustic. We weren't even allowed to wear deodorant as it might attract bears. All of it really was a lot of fun, but we tired very quickly of hiking and setting up camp in the rain. On the third day or so, one of the girls started singing I Made It Through the Rain every time the rain would stop. It got so every time the sun would come out, we would pause, take off our hats, shake out our wet hair, and sing a resounding chorus. We even started doing pretty harmonies. At the time I was grateful to know the song, as then I got to participate with the singing.

Today, I have been humming the song again. Not that it has been raining, more metaphorical rain. My migraine seems to finally have passed and I made it through a very busy, chaotic weekend with a pounding head. I count that as a triumph. I made it through the rain.

I need to buy ear-plugs and teach my children sign language.

Medication for a migraine works a lot better without the five children.

New Addition to my Blogroll..Please, check them all out.

I've added another to my blogroll. Raindrops
People who live in vastly different climates than me have my deep respect. (That means you too Hope.) Snow scares me. lol
Raindrops is also where I found I could add a quote of the day to my blog. I really like the addition of it. Thank you Anvilcloud.

Spring Break! YAY! Oh wait, I'm a Mom.....

This week has been...SPRING BREAK for the kids anyway.
I haven't had much of any sort of break. So, my Seattle pictures etc. will continue to wait until my exhaustion levels decrease. Instead I thought I'd share some of what the kids and I have been doing this week.

Monday, we started the week off right. We went to a chocolate factory.

Cerreta's Candy Co.

They give free tours twice a day. (Not much to the tour as their manufacturing is mostly all in one big room, but still it is fun). They explained how they make the chocolates and caramels. Then for a small fee the kids got to make chocolate pizzas. A huge hit. We had a ton of fun. Afterward, we dropped by the office I used to work at (I became stay at home mom with birth of #5). We dropped them off a box of chocolates. I was really nice to see old friends. It had been a couple of months.

Tuesday, we went to the Zoo!
Thanks to my sister, my dear friend, my family now has a Zoo membership. We have quite a nice Zoo here in Phoenix. In fact, according to their website HERE, they were just voted one of the top five Zoos in the nation for kids. I went there as a kid and I think it has only gotten better! My kids had a blast. I packed a lunch and we wandered around for hours. I have even promised them we will return on Friday.
Here are some pictures from the zoo....

One our first stops was the flamingos.

I know it is dark, but I'm having troubles with Paintshop Pro ..so no editting on these.
We stopped near the Giraffes for lunch.

They have a petting zoo (which we didn't visit..it sprinkled on the trip and the smell of wet goat did not interest me) and also a kid's area call Harmony Farm at the zoo. They have old tractors and rope swings set up for the kids to play on.

By the end we were all pretty tired.

Even the baby slept (until I woke him trying to move his hand for a
better sleeping baby picture).

Today, well I should say yesterday as it is after midnight that I am writing this, we went to visit the play group my younger sister takes her kids to. It was fun to spend the morning at the park. The weather has been wonderful. My son has started cub scouts and his first meeting was today. Very exciting for him. All in all it has been a fun and busy week. The best part is that all the kids have gone straight to bed every single night without a fuss. Even my littlest ones. Tomorrow is a stay at home invite cousins over to play day. (Except for soccer practice and my class in the evening). I might just get caught up on the housework that seems to build up so much faster with all the kids home all day.

*Yawn*

Now I must get some homework done before class tomorrow night (or do I mean tonight). I keep putting off. I've been wearing myself out too. lol

With all those pictures I know this ended up being a much longer than normal post. So, if you've made it this far thanks for sticking with me.

Word Cloud

I heard about word clouds on Ginger's blog. There is this site you can go that will pull out the words frequently used in your blog and create a word cloud. It is called Snapshirts.
They want you to purchase the image on t-shirts, mouse pads, etc. I think it is interesting to see what words I tend to use frequently. You can learn a lot about yourself through your word choices.

Ode to the Lonely Blog

Hello my dear little blog.
Oh, how I miss you.
I miss your cousins I visit and read so often too.
I know you see me over on the couch...
Falling asleep during a basketball game
At 9pm.
Instead of visiting you.
I promise my sweet blog.
I will visit again soon.

Back on the Merry-Go-Round

This morning my husband has compared coming home from our trip to getting back on a merry-go-round. That we are having to get used to the movement of our lives again. I disagreed slightly and said is more like a roller coaster.




So, needless to say we have felt a bit overwhelmed since arriving home yesterday.
On a brighter side...
Seattle was beautiful. We had spetacular weather and my mom and I were able to visit many fun places. My husband enjoyed his training and the ferry ride etc we visited in the evenings.


I want to share more about my trip, but that will require looking through pictures etc. I hope to have time for it this weekend. Tomorrow is my husband and my eleventh wedding anniversary. It is also St. Patricks Day.

I did not wear a green wedding dress. But, I wore a green garter that day so nobody could pinch me. I have that garter in the back of one of my dresser drawers. I haven't even thought of it in years. What a pleasant memory.

Anyway, I have missed blogging and I look forward to having the proper amount of time to post all about my fun trip.

Seattle Day One

I am in Seattle and it is so beautiful!
We spent the day yesterday visiting the Kubota Gardens and the Space Needle.
We also spent several hours driving around my mom's old neighborhood on Magnolia. And went by her high school on Queen Anne (which is now apartments).
All in all a WONDERFUL trip!. The weather was perfect. It wasn't even windy up on the Space Needle.
I will post pictures when I get home. The garden was a great place to spend many afternoons. I will give links to more information when I get home too.
For dinner we went to Ivar's. My husband was impressed. I don't much care for seafood. It also was a place of memories for my mom.

My Dad's Truck

     In writing class this last week, we worked on using descriptions that trigger the senses. As we went through the discussion on it an idea occurred to me on how I could write about my dad. I haven't written about him since he died. I always felt like those emotions were too huge to try to put down without it sounding odd.
     Anyway, I wrote it down. It came out better than I could have hoped, but still it barely touches the true extent of my feelings. I figure though, it is a start. Writing is one way I work through how I feel about things. To try to explain it helps me understand it better. Someday, I hope to write a post about my dad, but for now, I hope you get a sense of him through this.

Dad's Truck

      Sometimes, I get to drive my dad’s truck. As I step up high into it, I think of walking with him. My steps had to be quicker and bigger than comfortable to keep up. Then, I lean back in the seat and my father’s scent fill’s my mind. I am taken back to pressing my cheek against his chest when we would dance. He smelled of zest soap and brutt cologne. I pull the seat belt around me and at the click I remember his hand firmly pressed to my back as we would start to dance. I always felt safe in following his lead. Sure he would guide me well. As I begin to drive the truck rocks and sways as only large vehicles and large men can. And we are waltzing across the dance floor carefully keeping time with the music. The truck warms me quickly on this cold night and his warm embrace reassured me then. As we danced he would talk of happy, simple things and the radio plays to me now; those songs he loved of a happier, simpler time.

Grass is greener true, but I do so love the sand.

You know what? I am crazy. I am as looney as they come. I don't know what I was thinking? All those who rolled their eyes over my wanting rain so desperately...you were right. I am nuts. Certifiable. Crazy.
Rain almost always brings...cold. I was so ignorant to complain about the endless 75 degree days.
So, I went and planned this trip to Seattle. I thought, it will be so great to get away..and experience something different. LOL....LOL..I'm nuts.
I don't own a true winter coat. I am going to have buy a warm coat for my trip to Seattle. I am so silly.

Check out the ten day forecast for Seattle...I leave Sunday and return Wednesday.

SEATTLE WEATHER

It is going to rain here, in Phoenix, on Saturday and maybe Sunday. I am very excited about that. We do need rain here. But otherwise, I should have bitten my tongue every time I complained about the dreadful sunshine. LOL

Check out the ten day forecast for Phoenix...Remember leave Sunday return Wednesday.

PHOENIX WEATHER

But you know what? I plan to have the time of my life. My mom, My husband (my two favorite adults in the whole world) and me...with NO children. I expect to toughen up and handle the cold and rain just fine. I just realized all of a sudden how absolutely crazy I've been for longing for cold and rain. I'll be kicking myself even harder come June. LOL

That whole grass is greener thing...not true.

Writing, and Other Things

     Eveything I have been writing lately for my Creative Writing course has ended up being too long for me to feel like I can put into a post here. I've been thinking and I do want to continue to share these explorations. I have listed a file here with my most current rough draft. If this works well I hope to continue to do it this way.

I really have appreciated all the feedback I've received about my work.


mermaid.swf


     Now, on to other things.
     My 21 mo old son has just learned that he can take me to what he wants and I am often likely to give it to him. He isn't saying much and so this difficulty communicating has begun to frustrate him. Yesterday, he took my finger and pulled me to the bananas on the counter. It was so cute, of course he got a banana. He thought this was great! It was afternoon, which is usually when he sits on my lap as I sit at the computer. I sometimes sit 'here' at my computer as my kids do their homework. It is good because if I am 'busy' I am less likely to try to overhelp them. They bring me their papers when they have questions or need the work checked.
I didn't realize how much my little boy enjoys this time on my lap, until yesterday. He wanted me to come with him, so I gave him my finger and he pulled me to the chair at the computer desk. I didn't understand at first but when I sat in the chair he climbed up onto my lap. He doesn't really care what I am doing, he just loves to watch it. Even now, all I am doing is typing, but he is watching my fingers move and keeping an eye on the monitor for every slight change. I see work in technology in his future.

Blogging About Blogging...It Was Only A Matter Of Time

I began seriously blogging at the end of January. Although, what exactly is "serious" blogging.LOL I will rephrase.

I began to blog on a consistent basis back in January. I have always done well thinking things out through the written word, but I hadn't really gotten into the whole purpose of blogging. Then I started a creative writing course and thought it would be fun to be able to post my work out there for interested people to see. When I thought of interested people, I thought of extended family members who in the past have enjoyed my writing. But, then I changed my blog so it would actually be available to other people and would show up on blogger's lists. And I found something much more than a few family comments on my writing.

I started reading other people's blogs. I find myself returning to some blogs almost daily. I began commenting on people's blogs and have been fascinated by the responses I get back. Mostly I have been so pleased to find other women I can relate to. I love that these other women are so different than me, but so alike all at the same time. I go read these blogs now to have my spirits lifted and to be reminded I am not alone in my experiences. When I am up all night with a puking baby, some other woman out there is probably up posting in her blog about the same thing.

We women who share these things are a technological, modern version of the women's clubs of the fifties. The bridge clubs of the past have become a subculture of women bloggers. LOL Okay, I am probably a bit over sentimental about all of this, but I spend so very much of my time alone with my children that the few comments I have received encouraging me to do well on my Spanish Midterm, or telling me I am doing well as a mother have been powerful for me. The best part is that while I work to make the time to be with those I am close to, the blog community is there for me at midnight when I am trying to work through writer's block or just can't get to sleep.

So, for any who in return are reading my posts, Thank You. Thank you for taking the time to share yourselves with me. The anonymous nature of it does not diminish how much I see of myself in you.

And a quick thank you to my husband who for years has been trying to get me to starting writing more and so created me a blog. ☺

Procrastinating Mom + Stress = No Dinner?

I am the worst procrastinator in the entire world!

Oh well, maybe not. But that is how things start to feel when I get like this. It is like everything around me is blown up to an exagerated size of how it really is. I look at the mess on the counters left over from dinner last night and immediate start to get after myself for leaving it until today. Which then reminds of the baskets of laundry waiting to be folded in the living room. So, I get after myself for having not gotten those done. Which then leads into every single chore that has yet to be done this week. I end up feeling like a horrible mother and an awful housekeeper and so I sit and feel overwhelmed. So then I must be the worst procrastinator in the entire world. lol

But, I'm not. If that were truly the case, there would have been no dinner last night to leave those messy dishes and counters. There would be no laundry washed waiting to be folded and there would not be two content little boys taking a nap right now. It can be so difficult to make it to this second point of view sometimes though. The past couple of weeks have been rather stressful and I have a sneaky suspition that they have been so tough because of my distorted point-of-view.

I miss going to work. Work was easy compared to this stay at home mom stuff. At work there were distinct completetion points along the way. I would manage to get to the bottom of the stack before going home and suddenly I felt accomlished and good at what I was doing. Rarely, is there a bottom to the stack of things I do now. And if I get behind here at home, it becomes the chaos I submit my family to. Part of the craziness I suppose is that I became a stay at home mom after my last two children were born (14 mo apart). Adding two babies does make this tougher, all the reason I am home to do it.

Ok, self therapy is starting to work. I think I can go tackle the kitchen and the laundry now. And if I really start to feel better, I might actually get some studying for my Spanish Midterm and some writing done for that Creative Writing course done. I am taking the classes to give my life more than the satisfaction of housework and changing diapers. So, I suppose I haven't completely given up on the idea of being proud of myself for getting to the bottom of the stack of work. I just now do most of that type of work after midnight.

Soccer

The game was coming to an end. The score (though they say it doesn't matter) was four to nothing. Dale was called over to toss the ball in. Coach Frank, also the time keeper, was entranced by the joy the kids found in kicking the ball up and down the simply marked field. So, the game was already overdue to end by five minutes. Dale's energy was just as intense, even now at the end of the game. This was his last chance to get the ball to his teammates to score. He peered down the field and found his cousin, J.R. J.R. finally noticed it was Dale throwing the ball and prepared himself for the pass.
Dale reached as far back as he could, determined to make it the best pass of the season and let the ball fly. J.R. was ready and let the ball bounce off his chest to his feet and he turned to kick the ball to the goal. The other children were converging on him as he gave a great kick and the ball shot right by the goal out of bounds. The goalie ran after the ball as it rolled into the gravel of the desert landscaping surrounding the park. Coach Frank blew the whistle, game over. Dale and J.R.'s moms groan to each other at the miss and prepare themselves for the disappointed boys.
Dale ran over to his mom, his face red from exertion. "Mom, mom did you see that throw? That was the farthest I've ever thrown it!"
J.R. followed close behind shouting, "Mom! Did you see how far I kicked it?"
Each boy received his due praise and then they ran off for their after-game treats.



My children play in a city soccer league. The emphasis is not on winning but on learning the game and participating. I think this is a good place for them to begin their soccer exploration. I personally do not know the game well and so am learning right along with them. I really enjoy watching them focus and concentrate on their positions. My oldest has declared that she wants to be a soccer player when she grows up (thank you Bend It Like Beckam). My son thinks being on the same team as his cousins is pure heaven. My 6 yr-old daughter says playing deffensive means sit down and watch. lol The picture above was from last fall's season. Spring season began last week and the kids couldn't be happier. I'm off now to pack the bag (four hours of games is a long time for the babies).

Added Blog Links

I added some links to my sidebar. Under the heading Blogroll you will find links to some of the blogs I enjoy reading. So far those on the list are strong women who have a way of explaining their lives in creative/interesting ways. I don't always agree with them in what they say, but what they say they say very well. I hope you enjoy them too.

Archive Update

Just a quick update.
Archives are fixed, thank you honey!
All because of one extra little space where it shouldn't have been.

Spring Training Has Begun!

The first games of spring training are being played today! The Diamondbacks have beaten the White Sox (9-2). I'll grant that the White Sox played with a split squad today, but that doesn't lessen the feel of a win, even in spring training.

My husband and I try to make it to one or two spring training games each year. Our trip to Seattle might prevent that this March.

We already have to dedicate another Saturday in March to the Arizona Renaissance Festival. We told the kids they could bring one friend with us to Ren Fest instead of have full blown birthday parties. They seemed happy enough with the idea and I am hoping it keeps our cost down.

Oh, and I can't forget to mention those Phoenix Suns! They are doing everything right just as we are leading into the Play Offs! Yay! Baseball begins..Basketball is getting oh so good..and the a good time pretending to be Britains from the Renaissance!

All in all I expect we will have a very busy spring!

Nature Poetry.

I do enjoy Emily Dickinson's work. It exudes profound simplicity.

Some continued thoughts on rain and nature . . .


BY Emily Dickinson

THE WIND BEGUN TO ROCK THE GRASS

The wind begun to rock the grass
With threatening tunes and low,—
He flung a menace at the earth,
A menace at the sky.

The leaves unhooked themselves from trees
And started all abroad;
The dust did scoop itself like hands
And throw away the road.

The wagons quickened on the streets,
The thunder hurried slow;
The lightning showed a yellow beak,
And then a livid claw.

The birds put up the bars to nests,
The cattle fled to barns;
There came one drop of giant rain,
And then, as if the hands

That held the dams had parted hold,
The waters wrecked the sky,
But overlooked my father’s house,
Just quartering a tree.



NATURE, THE GENTLEST MOTHER

Nature, the gentlest mother,
Impatient of no child,
The feeblest or the waywardest,—
Her admonition mild

In forest and the hill
By traveller is heard,
Restraining rampant squirrel
Or too impetuous bird.

How fair her conversation,
A summer afternoon,—
Her household, her assembly;
And when the sun goes down

Her voice among the aisles
Incites the timid prayer
Of the minutest cricket,
The most unworthy flower.

When all the children sleep
She turns as long away
As will suffice to light her lamps;
Then, bending from the sky,

With infinite affection
And infiniter care,
Her golden finger on her lip,
Wills silence everywhere.

Rainless in Seattle?

WARNING! COMPLAINING FOR THE NEXT PARAGRAPH! BE WARE!
See, my pessimism was justified. No rain. So, we are now at 134 days with no rain. Altho my oldest felt a few sprinkles on the way home from school yesterday. My son suggested she was just spitting on herself, but I disagreed. She probably did feel a sprinkle or two, just to tease us.
I know how to fix it tho! I am going to Seattle on the 12th. And the pessimist in me (murphy's law and all) is sure that it will rain here while I go to one of the rainiest places in the country. And of course, It will be bone dry there. I want it too much. So, I am destined to not feel rain ever again!
lol
Ok, that is a bit over-dramatic. I'll let go of it for now.
COMPLAINING ENDED (for now)



Hey I'm going to Seattle. You might have missed that mixed in with my complaints above. My husband has to go for a few days for training and I wanted to go along. I was going to go visit all the wonderful tourist attractions in Seattle for two days..alone. Then, I talked with my mom. She grew up in Seattle. I asked her if she wanted to go with me and she does! Spontaneity is wonderful sometimes! The trip coincides with hubby's and my 11th wedding anniversary. So, hey we are finally doing something for our anniversary (beyond dinner and a movie). Course he will be in training and I will be visiting my mom's memories, but hey it should be fun. He and I might even be able to fit in a dinner and movie.