Friday Five

Five different things from recent weeks for Tom's Willy Nilly Friday Five:

1.  It took forever, it seemed, but I finally got the curtain rods up so I could hang some curtains.  The ones that came with the house were HORRIBLE so they were removed, and I feel like these have more class....My poor hubby worked hard to help me get this done!

2.  In the south and east, I always loved being around azaleas and didn't think I would find any here in Oregon.  But, they do have azaleas here! (A plaque and bush found at Ft. Clatsop)

3.  We didn't see any wild animals on our recent trip to NW Oregon...EXCEPT these two deer wandering around in a neighborhood in Astoria....

4.  While in Astoria of course we had to find and photograph the house used in the movie The Goonies.  The poor people who live there have to put up with a lot of looky-loos!

5. This is the table I set up at the Farmer's and Artisan's Market last Saturday, hoping to sell a painting....but I didn't have any takers.  Well, I plan to be there several more times over the summer, and also plan to make some watercolor postcards of sites in the area, which I may have better luck with.

Saguaro National Park

Visited a friend from church who is ill yesterday and on the way home we had to drive through a section of the Saguaro National Park (our fortunate friends live in a great place! :-) ) so we stopped and took a few pictures.  Saguaros (SAW-WAH-ROH)  are the cacti only found in the Sonoran Desert areas of Arizona, and Mexico (maybe a few strays in far west NM and far east CA, but it's doubtful).  Whenever anyone films about any place in the west, including Texas, they tend to include Saguaros in the scenery, but that is not correct.  Southern Arizona has many and they grow to 25 to 30 feet tall, and can live over 200 years old.  Hope you enjoy the photos; sharing with Through My Lens and Tuesday Treasures, since Saguaros are actually TREASURES! :-)  And also connecting with NF Trees & Bushes. Thanks to Mersad , Tom and Monica for these awesome memes!

In my friend's yard is a saguaro with its "nurse tree."  The new seedling cactus grows at the base of a young tree, in this case a mesquite, to protect it while it is vulnerable, then as the cactus grows tall, the tree ages and eventually will die.  You often see dead trees right next to Saguaros in the desert.

An example of a dead nurse tree with its Saguaro, all grown up.

There are unopened flower blooms at the top of the Saguaros right now...when they open they will be beautiful white flowers, and I will try to share some with you all!

A bit of an odd one

OK...yes, I am going to miss Arizona! :-)

Friday Thoughts

1.  This week we mourn with Brussels, Belgium for another senseless terrorist attack on innocent people.  I always wanted to visit Belgium but am certain I will never have an opportunity.  It is a small country, nestled between Germany, France and England. I do not agree with much of the political leanings of this country...what interests me more is the history with it's sobering, tragic WWI "Flander's Fields" and it's art and architecture.  And the people who are innocent victims of this horrible event this week did not deserve this any more than those in Paris did, or those in NY and Washington in 9/11, or in any city that has felt the hatred of these terrorists.  God be with their families, and heal their people.

Here is a beautiful work of art by Jan van Eyck...

2.  Today is Good Friday and this marks the beginning of the most important weekend celebration:  Easter, and the rising of Jesus from the grave to sit on the right hand of God and make intercession for us!  I am thankful this Easter weekend for His great sacrifice for me and for us all!  I hope you have a blessed Easter, each of you, dear blogger friends!

3.  The moving time has come for the kids.  By Tuesday morning they should be on the road to Oregon!  Not moving west as the pioneers did, but moving north! :-)  The pods are to be delivered today, and loaded tomorrow.  The cleaning crew will clean on Monday.  The kids will stay with us these last few nights.  Our own move will not happen for several more months but I have started packing!  I can't wait!

4.  I love it when the Palo Verde trees bloom here in Tucson!  The city is turning lemon yellow just in time for Easter!

5.  I don't have anything else I guess.  Am reading an awesome book right now but it's slow going because I am packing and also sewing.  For book reviews, check out Springtime in Magnolia.  I am trying to finish off several baby and child quilts and blankets because once these are done we will be taking a load of things to the AZ Baptist Children's Home and the Pregnancy Center.  Then, no more "sewing for others" for me for quite a while.  I have a quilt I want to make for my grandson for Christmas, an that's the only thing I will be working on while all this packing is going on.  Hoping to leave here by the end of August and I probably won't have access to my machine for at least a couple of months, so I need to get most of it done this summer.

God bless!  Have a wonderful Easter weekend!

Connecting to Tanya's Willy Nilly Friday Five, Amy's Five on Friday and later to Monica's NF Trees & Bushes.

Tuesday Treasures-Tumacacori

Mission San Jose de Tumacacori (Too-ma-Cah-corri) church is breath-taking.  It is often overlooked by visitors to S Arizona and Mission San Xavier del Bac is always on the itinerary.  Oh, yes, San Xavier is definitely a MUST-see, and I will post about it on another day.  But today...share some of these views of beautiful Tumacacori (present church built in the early 1800s) for Tom's Tuesday Treasures, for Mersad's Through My Lens and joining in also with Monica's Trees & Bushes as well.

Learn more about this beautiful Mission HERE

A pear tree on the grounds.

A tree in the cemetery

 

Desert Christmas

I wanted to do this post last week for the final 2015 Through My Lens, but was sick and unable to get out and get the pictures.  So, after I was better and with our grandson spending the night this past Friday night, he and I went out on a quest to find the perfectly decorated Christmas saguaro!  We did not find exactly what I was looking for but we did get some interesting shots of how the desert celebrates (with decorations at least) Christmas!  It was fun driving around and looking together too!  So check out others photos on the first 2016 Through My Lens with Mersad as well!

Not the super tall saguaro, thoroughly draped in lights, arms extended....but at least a reasonably sized one being festive in the edge of someone's yard!  We did  find a number of these.

There were many more of the shorter variety (the middle one is a barrel cactus, but the outer two are young saguaros).  I thought the Santa hats were a nice touch! :-) 

 One really has to realize that decorating a really tall saguaro with Christmas lights would be quite a feat considering all the spines and the need for a tall ladder to get all the way around its body.  I have seen a photograph of one and was hoping to get my own similar shot, but I do understand why they might be pretty rare! :-) 

On the other hand....lights coming from the ground illuminating upward....Joining in also with Monica's NF's Trees & Bushes:

This is a single yard on Ina Road with changing colored lights illuminating the tall palms!  They did a wonderful job!  It was a delightful show!

On the Fence, On the Wire

I am joining in with the following memes with this post:
Bird d'Pot
Catching Light
NF Trees & Bushes
Wild Bird Wednesday
Good Fences
Thanks to each host for these awesome memes!

House Finches on the Fence

 

Birds...and Light

Gila Woodpecker on the Fence

Cooper's Hawk facing away

Juvenile Gila

Black Chinned Hummer on a Wire

Shadow in the late afternoon light of my Mesquite tree on the fence

Mesquite leaves capturing the late afternoon light