Poor

The big buzz around our house this week was Tyler's training. Tyler and kaj had been selected to be in an eating contest.  They were part of the debut of a burrito eating challenge at Salsa Blanca. A team of two people have 1 hour to eat a 15 pound burrito if they Beat the other team the would win 

Happy birthday Ashley

Today is Ashley's 13th birthday. We spent our morning cleaning and preparing for the party. Ma'am and papa came to visit. Then the two of us went shopping for shoes. Ashley decided to forgo the pedicure and apply the expense towards more shoes. 

Her party started with swimming and shaved ice. Then we made hair flowers. Blinged out sandals using flip-flop glue. And decorated cupcakes. The older girls headed off to the church for a youth activity. After getting back there was some begging to swim again. It is almost 10 pm. I am going to have start dragging them out.

Garden Swing

So here is my dear hole digger. That is a bit of a joke in our house. Have you seen Holes. Our favorite line is by Mr. Sir...

                    "You take a bad boy, make him dig holes all day in the hot

                  sun, it turns him into a good boy. That's our philosophy here at

                   camp green lake."

Let's just say Michael has dug a lot of holes, scrubbed garage floors and other cruel forms of labor.

I gained more weight bringing him into our family than any of my children I gave birth to. I have gotten a lot better about eating when stressed or I would have had a heart attack by now. Inspite of my huge thighs that would disagree, he really is a good boy now. So I think it works not the eating, the punishment by boot camp.  He hasn't been kicked out of school for a couple of years. :)

While he was helping me I just kept thinking "I am loosing him, a few short years and he will be gone.  I only have a month or so left with Ty and then I will loose Michael too....who is going to do all of my manual labor now!"

So this is the deathtrap swing he helped me put up before digging all of  those holes. I know it is not going to work that tree across the top is too saggy, but down at the right I planted a Clematis (Jackmanni alba) to climb up the oak.  I envision it climbing up and over blooming like crazy and sitting in that swing singing the song "kiss me."  Sigh..more fantasy day dreams from a desert gardener.  

Gardening in zone 5

I live where it hot, crazy stupid why do I live here? hot! My gardening zone is 10+ ( zone 13 for those of us who trust in Western Gardener.) Imagine my shock when I realized that the cabin is a zone 5 ( WG zone 2) I was in the nursery and they had blueberry plants, with real blueberries growing on them. I just stood there looking at the plants. Well sampling the plants. It took a while for my brain to get around the idea I could grow blueberries!
So lucky me I had an experienced hole digger on had, because after confirming the zone thing on my phone I went a little crazy at the nursery.  It was also very nice that there was a dance Friday night that he really wanted to go to so he was more than happy to dig a lot of holes.
More excitement...I planted a Red Indian Raspberry plant last year. All week I had been thinking about where I would move it once winter hit. It hadn't done a thing and it looked pretty sad. I was sure I had put it in a bad spot. But as I was mulching I realized it had sent out 4 shoots. Baby raspberry plants. Yeah I am not a total failure in a good climate.

And...as I was mulching the Irises I found this! A seed pod, on an Iris plant! I had no idea this was possible. I have grown Irises in Hades for 20 years and have never had an Iris plant set seed.
I love zone 5!

Goldwater Lake, Prescott Arizona

This seems like a lame way to come back. Especially after the crazy awesome year it has been. But I loved this picture. Moments like this make my heart sing. And I guess the quietness and slow pace of the cabin allow time for reflection.
I had been ready to leave the lake for a couple of hours. I had quietly and patiently endured the embarrassment of being the loudest people on the lake. I don't think fishermen appreciate my kids playing "Pirates of the Caribbean" complete with theme music as they attach, ram and try to flip each other over. I am not sure anyone caught a fish this afternoon but I was richly rewarded.