Gladiolus for the Garden

My thoughtful friend ixoj and sent me a large bag of fifty gladiolus corms (which are different from bulbs) for my birthday. They arrived yesterday, and I quickly planted them in the ground two hours later. Hooray! I planted the corms along the north fence of our house; they are spread out to cover about 25 feet altogether. We have had a late spring this year, so I'm hoping that these corms will take and we'll enjoy gladiolus blooms in August or September. The bag of corms said that there is a "mixed" variety, so it will be fun to see what colors pop up. I'm hoping for something as vibrant and fun as the flowers in the photo above.

• Gladiolus (see an extensive care guide HERE): Grows between 2'-6' tall. This is a hearty plant which does well in well-drained (and even sandy) soil. Since we have mild winters in Washington state, I don't need to dig up the corms in the winter time, but I will need to cover the bed with mulch or hay.

Birthday festivities!

I enjoyed a whirlwind of birthday activities and celebrations when I recently turned thirty. Everything was so much fun, I wanted to make sure that I wrote everything down so I could remember it all. I feel very loved. And I almost feel guilty at the thought that my birthday celebrations haven't really ended, since some friends and I will be traveling to Istanbul this summer (to celebrate that we all turn thirty this year). Needless to say, this new decade is off to a great start!

My birthday festivities lasted for several days. The day before my birthday, I got together with my friend Rachael. She had compiled an eclectic present for me that contained a whole bunch of objects which have some type of significance - either relating to something about me or a story that I've told Rachael. For example, she gave me some Swedish Fish because I told her about the "smut candy" that I used to eat with friends in college. It was such a thoughtful and fun present.

On my actual birthday, I received some very nice gifts from my family members. My favorite gift was from Sam. The night before, he went with J to the store because he wanted to buy me a present "that [I] never had before." And Sam was true to his word. I've never gotten a huge bag of Red Vines for my birthday before. As soon as I opened them, Sam said, "And you can even share this with me, Mom!" I didn't know that Sam liked (or even knew about) Red Vines.

That day I worked in the morning and then stayed on campus to listen to the art historian Francis Pohl give a guest lecture on the Italian artist Mirella Bentivoglio. (I'm such a nerd - I was so excited to see that a lecture was being offered on my birthday, that I made child care arrangements for Sam so I could be sure to go to the lecture.) Afterward, I rushed to take Sam to my mother-in-law (who generously offered to babysit Sam at our house) and changed my clothes. When I arrived at home, I was greeted by a number of packages and a lovely "apple attack" (a version of a "heart attack" with paper hearts, but with apple-shaped bits of paper) from an "anonymous" friend (cough - Carrie - cough). I'm not sure if she picked the apples intentionally (she used to be an elementary school teacher and has creative supplies on hand), but the green apples made me think of this blog's header image. Each of the apples had some comment about me or fun little phrase, and it was a really nice surprise.

Anyhow, after I changed I hurried to pick up J. We had a reservation at Sky City (the restaurant on top of the Space Needle) for dinner, but traffic was so horrible that we arrived downtown an hour and fifteen minutes late! Luckily, we still were able to get seated and enjoyed a really nice dinner (with a bottle of Martinelli's to celebrate!). I've never eaten at Sky City or been up the Space Needle before that point, so it was fun.

J and I then took the monorail (which I have never ridden before) to the 5th Avenue theatre to see a performance of "Damn Yankees." One of the backdrops broke during the second act (the whole audience could hear a big thud), and the stage crew had to close the curtain and set up something different while the audience waited for fifteen minutes. We actually ended up leaving the show a little early so we could take the last monorail train back to the Seattle Center. Luckily, it's easy to surmise that the show had a happy ending.

The next day, my friend Meka and I took an impromptu two-day trip to Vancouver, B.C. It was fun to go out of the country for a few days! We visited the Museum of Anthropology, ate at The Flying Pig, hung out in the rooftop jacuzzi of our hotel, impulsively got haircuts at Bangtown hair salon, and visited Stanley Park.

When I came home, I was greeted with a lovely birthday dinner, courtesy of my in-laws. I've eaten so much delicious food over the past few days, I'm starting to feel really spoiled.

The new haircut!

Here's to a new decade! I'm curious to see what happens in the next ten years. I feel like I accomplished a lot of lifelong goals in the last decade, and as of yet, I don't feel like I have any long-term goals lined up for my thirties. (And, honestly, I can't decide if that is a good or a bad thing.) We'll see what goals and adventures crop up in the next few years.

Finding Happiness

It's been a strange day. This morning I went and visited with a friend, who unexpectedly told me that she and her husband are getting a divorce. At first, I felt horribly sad about the whole situation (and I still am sad that this couple's relationship and dreams for the future haven't worked out), but my friend was so happy at the same time. She was glowing. And as we talked about her current plans and situation, I could tell that she is doing what she feels will ultimately bring happiness to herself and her family. As I left her house this morning, I felt happy too. I'm happy that she is living the life that she wants to live, and I'm happy that she has found happiness.

After leaving my friend's house, I went downtown to see another friend at his new job. This friend and I worked together several years ago, and he just moved into the area to live with his boyfriend. Although it seems like he's a little out of his comfort zone (he just moved here from Utah) and we only spoke for a few minutes, and I can tell that he's happy too. I know that this friend has experienced a lot of pain and difficulties in his life because of his sexual orientation. It was so nice to perceive that he is in a positive environment and is thriving in his new life up here.

The juxtaposition of these two visits has gotten me thinking a lot about happiness today. Both of my friends have made some drastic life changes in order to find happiness. And in many cases, I think those drastic changes are necessary for happiness to come about. My own husband made some drastic changes in his own life over a year ago, and he has felt more peace and happiness than he has felt in a long time. And I'm happy in my husband's happiness. Although I wish that the drama and drastic changes could be avoided (especially for my friends' sakes), I'm glad to know that people find happiness after the dust settles. That's what we all want, right? I believe that deep down, everyone just wants to find happiness in their own way.

Flowers and Wildflowers in the Yard

I am really excited about some of the flowers that we have planted in our yard.

This clematis was planted next to our front gate and trellis. We've started to train the plant to climb up the gate, and hopefully it will have grown up and over the trellis by the end of the summer. I bought this variety because it is named Rubens, and I figured every art historian should have a plant named after the 17th century Flemish master.

• Rubens (Clematis montana 'Rubens'): Features 2-3" clear pink flowers with golden stamens bloom freely in the spring. Bronze tinted new leaves mature deep green. Blooms in May and June. Prefers sun to shade with roots in cool shade. Likes cool, moist, well-drained soil. Grows 20-30' tall. Moderate growth rate. Remove damaged or yellowing branches. Frequent, light doses of fertilizer are better than heavy doses. Apply fertilizer around the "drip line" of the plant (the drip line is under outermost branch tips and contains feeder roots). Use clematis pruning method A.

On the south side of the house we planted a Bowles Mauve Wallflower (with purple blooms in front) and a Misaka (Beautiful Blossom) Itoh Peony (in background). The peony already has large buds, so I hope that it will open into gorgeous blossoms in the next few weeks. We got the mauve wallflower for only a dollar at a nursery sale, so my frugal side will be very pleased if it flourishes in our yard!

• Bowles Mauve Wallflower: Large clusters of mauve flowers which have a long blooming season. Blooms from winter to summer. Needs full sun. Grows at a fast rate; will grow about 12" high and 12-15" wide. Remove spent flowers. 
• Misaka (Beautiful Blossom) Itoh Peony: Large flowers (up to eight inches across) appear orange when first opening, then fade to a beautiful peachy-yellow. Large contrasting dark-red central flares are extremely prominent. Needs full sun exposure. Reaches 20 to 30" tall and wide. Needs regular watering - weekly, or more often in extreme heat. Follow regular watering schedule during the first growth season to establish a deep, extensive root system. Prune foliage in the fall. Performs best in slightly acidic soil.

Several weeks ago I scattered a few packets full of wildflower seeds along the southern side of our house (just further east of the peony plant, on the other side of the drain pipe). A lot of seedlings have popped up, so I'm hopeful that my idea of a wildflower garden will pan out. Although I don't have any blooms yet (and some might not even appear this season), I thought I'd include some images of the flowers (do you can see what I'm hoping for).

Poppy Iceland Mixed Colors

Needs partial sun. Germination in 7-14 days. Takes 180-300 days to bloom. Thin when plants are a few inches tall.

Oriental Orange Scarlet Poppy

Needs full sun. Takes 12 days to germinate. 365+ days to bloom

Black-Eyed Susan

(Wouldn't it be awesome if my whole flower bed looked like this?)

Needs full sun. 60-90 days to bloom. Grows 2-3' high

Sunny Meadow Mixture

Needs full sun. Takes 7-21 days to germinate. Takes 42-56 days to bloom. Contents: White Yarrow, Poor Man's Weather Glass, Calendula's Pacific Beauty Mix, Cornflower, Dwarf Mix, Primrose Clarkia Confetti Mix, Lance-leaved Coreopsis, Plains Coreopsis, Rocket Larkspur, California Poppy, Blanketflower, Indian Blanket, Spurred Snapdragon Mix, Sweet Alyssum, Arroyo Lupine, Virginia Stock, Four O'Clock Mix, Evening Primrose, Showy Evening Primrose, Shirley Poppy Mix, Catchfly.

Nature's Rainbow Mixture

Needs full sun. Takes 7-21 days to germinate. Takes 42-56 days to bloom. Contents: Prairie Aster, Bachelor Button, Farewell-to-spring/godetia, Mountain Garland, Lance Leaved Coreopsis, Plains Coreopsis, Cosmos, Purple Coneflower, California Poppy, Blanketflower, Indian Blanket, Globa Gilia, Spurred Snapdragon, Blue Flax, Perennial Lupine,  Arroyo Lupine, Missouri Primrose, Corn Poppy, California Blue Bell, Annual Phlox, Gloriosa Daisy, Scarlet Sage, Catchfly, Nodding Catchfly.

It will be fun to see what grows and flourishes in our yard this summer! We are planning on planting some more flowers (and perhaps a tree or two?) this season. I'm planning on posting more updates here.

Flowering Bushes in the Yard

The past few Saturdays have been really nice, and we have been feverishly working in our yard. We're a little bit at a loss for what to do with so much yard space, but I'm sure we'll figure things out eventually. There are a lot of flowers, trees, and bushes that we like, and it's nice to know that we have enough room to add lots of different things.

Lately we have filled up a few garden beds with some flowering bushes. I want to keep track of the plants that we plant (and their bloom seasons), so I'm afraid that my gardening post might not be very interesting to everyone. But I'm excited about creating my own garden (hopefully one that will continually have different blooms in the summer!), and I want to keep track of what I am doing. I just took all of these pictures this evening, so hopefully I'll be able to gauge what plants will be in bloom at the end of next April.

These are on the north side of our porch: Rosebud (Evergreen Azalea) in upper left, Girard's Purple (Evergreen Azalea)  in lower left, and Spring Bouquet Viburnum on right. I just took these pictures this evening. The purple blooms have been open for about a week or two, and the pink ones have just started to open a few days ago.

•  Rosebud (Evergreen Azalea): A slow, compact, spreading growth habit. 4' high x 4' wide. Needs part-sun exposure. Hardiness = 5
• Girard's Purple (Evergreen Azalea): Prolific bloomer that grows dense and compact. 2-3' high x 2-3' wide. Needs part-sun exposure. Hardiness = 5
• Spring Bouquet Viburnum: Needs full-sun exposure (6+ hours of direct sun). Blooms in the winter and spring. Grows at a medium rate, and will reach 5-6' high x 5-6' wide. Keep soil semi-moist. Fertilize in the early spring and prune to remove damaged limbs. (I'll be quite pleased if this grows into a large plant, especially since we got this starter for only a dollar!)

We planted this rhododendron on the south side of our front porch. It is supposed to have wine or burgundy colored flowers, and I'm hoping that these buds open around the time that the purple azaleas are finishing up.

• Olin O. Dobbs Rhododendron: Will grow to about 4' high in about ten years.

This hydrangea is around the corner from front porch, along the north side of the porch (pay no attention to those other weeds and plants!). It's had a hard life so far, but I hope it will pull through. Hydrangeas usually don't bloom until August, and I think that this plant is in a little bit of shock since it left the nursery a few weeks ago.

• White hydrangea (right now I think it might be a Blushing Bride variety, but please correct me if I'm wrong!): Requires minimal pruning; pruning should be to remove dead flower heads. Prune to just above the nearest facing outward bud. Pruning should take place in March (not in autumn). Blooms in summer and early fall. Will grow 3-6' high.

We placed this itty-bitty forsythia plant in the back corner of our yard. Unfortunately we missed the yellow spring blossoms on this plant, but we look forward to seeing them next year.

• Lynwood Gold Forsythia: Blooms in spring. Keep water semi-moist. Average size is 10-12' high x 10-12' wide. Fast growth rate. Needs full sun (6+ hours of direct sun). Prune after flowering if desired.

Sam's First Representational Art

Up until now, Sam hasn't been too interested in drawing or coloring. And if we do try to paint, he usually just wants to find out what happens when different colors are mixed together. He does like looking at art though, so I'm taking that as a good sign.

I've tried to not pressure him too much to make art, even though I am very interested in seeing what he might create. When he has painted anything or drawn little lines, I've tried to praise whatever he has created without asking him to tell me what the art "means" or what a stroke represents. I'd like to see if he decides to create representational or non-representational art on his own. Only once in a while will he tell tell me that a line is a "tree" or some other object.

However, this past Sunday, Sam was in an artsy mood. We sat down and he drew several pictures of me and him, without any prodding from me. I've never seen him draw anything with this much detail before (or take so much time to draw something), so I feel like I can truly call these Sam's first drawings. He drew six pictures altogether, but these two are my favorites:

This drawing is of me and Sam in a park. (Note the single arc that constitutes my hair. Love it!) The line which separates our bodies and curves around my head is a path. We're walking on the path together.

Ode to Team Shirt #4

I've known that this post was going to be written for a long time. About four years ago I noticed that my "Team Shirt" was getting worn thin. It was probably about that time I decided that I better not wear it in public anymore - so it became one of my faithful pajama shirts. And then about two years ago, when holes started to form, I knew that I would have to pay homage to this shirt when I laid it to rest. And now, after two gaping holes in this shirt and one on the way (not to mention a black paint stain), I think it's time to retire my #4. [Sigh.]

J is going to be so pleased when he hears what I've decided. He's pleaded with me to get rid of this shirt for years. But I have so many great memories with this shirt, that it's been hard to let go. And then in December I read, The Story of Stuff: How Our Obsession with Stuff is Trashing the Planet, Our Communities, and our Health - and a Vision for Change. The author, Annie Leonard, discusses how people need to be more prudent and economical with the clothing and objects that they own, instead of simply buying new stuff all of the time. That book gave me the impetus to keep my holey shirt for several more months. I would think to myself, "I'm saving the planet!" whenever I put this shirt on. But really, I just wanted a reason to prolong the inevitable. I can't wear this shirt anymore. Maybe I can turn it into a rag (if J will let me), so I'll still feel like I'm saving the planet.

When I was a sophomore in college, my roommates bought matching "Special Olympics" shirts for all of us at a thrift store. We used to wear the Team Shirts while we studied at the library or walked around campus together. (Fer cute!) This shirt also went with me throughout Europe and to the tops of many mountain peaks. And we've been sleeping together for years. It's just hard to move on, with so many memories. And so, before I finally say goodbye to Team Shirt #4, I'll share some highlights of our relationship:

In Fall 2001, soon after my roommates bought the Team Shirts for us. We're standing around the old fire hydrant that we brought into our Miller apartment (photo removed).

I wore this shirt throughout the summer of 2002, when I was a camp counselor.

Fall of 2002, with my roommates at the Brick Haus. Phin didn't have a Team Shirt, but we quickly transformed her Dodgers shirt into a Team Shirt (photo removed).

In summer of 2003, my shirt and I went on a study abroad in Europe together. Here we at the acropolis in Athens!

Here we are in early fall of 2003. Llama Fest!

Now there is a gap of a few years in the chronology of pictures. I ended up leaving my Team Shirt at home while I was in Brazil on a mission, so as to preserve my shirt. (I ended up taking another blue shirt to Brazil instead, which enigmatically said, "Support the Group that Supports You." That shirt got totally hashed while I was in Brazil, so I'm glad I left #4 at home.) After wearing the Team Shirt for a while after my mission and marriage, I realized that the shirt was too worn for public wear. But then I consistently wore it as pajamas!

Hike to Willow Lake with Joanna (and the extended L family) on Memorial Day of 2007

This is early in the morning on Sam's second birthday (2010), right after we woke up in our cruise ship cabin. I'm glad that my shirt got go on a cruise to Alaska, even if it had to stay in the cabin!

I know that some of my roommates' Team Shirts traveled around the world as well. Ixoj wore her shirt when she taught English in Guatamala:

Every Team Shirt has a story. And I'm glad for the story that I created with mine.