of blooming cactus

Our Christmas cactus is blooming more magnificently than I could have even imagined!

It has been blooming for weeks now. Every plant tip has 3 to 5 flowers. It is truly amazing.

When we left for the winter it was the one plant I did not take to the green house, it stayed in the house in front of a window with no water all winter. When we came home we watered it and turned the heat on. It took a month and then wow - Bloom!

A great gardener friend of ours told us that is the best way to grow those cactus, they LIKE to be dormant and dry all winter. Well that must be true as this is the most beautiful show of these I have ever seen.

It is still gray and cloudy here in the southern most part of the Pacific Northwest. I am hoping the sun will come out soon!

good movie

It has been raining here for the last week, cool and rainy. We can't work in the garden so we watched a movie yesteday afternoon that was really good:

I wish I had read the book, but the scenery in the movie was awesome as it took place in India and New York.

A movie, what a great thing to do on a rainy day.

Barack Obama wins Oregon primary

Obama 58% 344,762

Clinton 41% 242,270

Yea Oregon!!

Yea Obama.

eye contact with Obama!

Yes it's true, Obama came to Roseburg, Oregon yesterday!! We so lucked out. No one knew he was coming until Friday. Well actually one woman I met at the event said she heard Thursday because her husband was a fireman and they called on them for security. As soon as I found out I called our democratic party who said they had nothing to do with the tickets. Great. But they did tell me where downtown you could get them. I called my office downtown and asked my co-worker to run down and get tickets. I was still in Myrtle Creek, half hour away. Right after I called him I saw on the Internet that people had been waiting all night for tickets and they were all sold out. Seth did get us on the waiting list.

We drove into Roseburg at 9 AM and when we got to the high school, the line was 1/2 a mile long! We decided to go and do some errands. He was not speaking until 11:30. We got back to the school and there was no line, in fact when we were in the parking lot we heard the pa announce that there were some extra seats.

When we got inside it was packed. I could not believe there were that many democrats in Roseburg! There were no seats and not much standing room. We went to the side and back thinking we could stand. We ran into several of our friends as we made our way to the other side of the room. Lo and behold there were 2 chairs for us when we got there.

It was not long before Barack came out - right next to us!! I couldn't believe it we could not have been in a better place than if we got there at 6 am!! We both got to shake his hand!

His speech was very inspiring. It is the first time a candidate has said what we were waiting to hear. He talked first about the war - he will end this war now, not some date in the future. (John McCain 2013!) He then talked about health care. Those are my big issues.

The crowd was excited, we cheered, whistled and clapped until our hands hurt. We jumped up from out seats and threw our hands in the air in agreement. There was so much energy in the room and so much hope, it was heartening to see.

After he was done answering questions, he left the same way he came in and we got to shake his hand all over again. William held his hand for an extra second, Barak looked at him questioningly, William said, "We are counting on you". And they looked at each other for a minute and then he was gone.

101 in the shade!

Yes, it is hard to believe but it is 101 degrees here in the shade today. I watered really well yesterday and this morning, but I am just watching all my spring blooms wither under the intense sun.

We are staying in, with the doors, windows and most curtins closed. It is 20 degrees cooler inside than out. With a few fans it is quite comforable.

Even the ice cream truck melted......

happy

I am so happy, this is the first year that the wisteria has bloomed. When it didn't bloom last year I was worried.

Then someone told me that they take 3 to 4 years to bloom, so this was the year.

Thinking too much is a lot like worry. Most of it unnecessary.

The dogwood has bloomed beautifully this year too.

Spring is good.

Happy Day to all you MOTHERS out there.

This was sent to me....

This is for the mothers who sat up all night with sick toddlers in their arms, wiping up puke laced with Oscar Mayer wieners and cherry Kool-Aid saying, 'It's okay honey, Mommy's here'. Who have sat in rocking chairs for hours on end soothing crying babies who can't be comforted.

This is for all the mothers who show up at work with spit-up in their hair and milk stains on their blouses and diapers in their purse.For all the mothers who run carpools and make cookies and sew Halloween costumes. And all the mothers who DON'T.

This is for the mothers who gave birth to babies they'll never see. And the mothers who took those babies and gave them homes. This is for the mothers who raised and loved their step-children.

This is for the mothers whose priceless art collections are hanging on their refrigerator doors.And for all the mothers who froze their buns on metal bleachers at football, hockey or soccer games instead of watching from the warmth of their cars, so that when their kids asked, 'Did you see me, Mom?' they could say, 'Of course, I wouldn't have missed it for the world,' and mean it.

This is for all the mothers who yell at their kids in the grocery store and swat them in despair when they stomp their feet and scream for ice cream before dinner. And for all the mothers who count to ten instead, but realize how child abuse happens.

This is for all the mothers who sat down with their children and explained all about making babies. And for all the (grand) mothers who wanted to, but just couldn't find the words.This is for all the mothers who go hungry, so their children can eat.For all the mothers who read 'Goodnight, Moon' twice a night for a year. And then read it again. 'Just one more time.

This is for all the mothers who taught their children to tie their shoelaces before they started school. And for all the mothers who opted for Velcro instead.This is for all the mothers who teach their sons to cook and their daughters to sink a jump shot.

This is for every mother whose head turns automatically when a little voice calls 'Mom?' in a crowd, even though they know their own offspring are at home -- or even away at college.This is for all the mothers who sent their kids to school with stomach aches, assuring them they'd be just FINE once they got there, only to get calls from the school nurse an hour later asking them to please pick them up. Right away.

This is for mothers whose children have gone astray, who can't find the words to reach them. For all the mothers who bite their lips until they bleed when their 14 year olds dye their hair green.For all the mothers of the victims of recent school shootings, and the mothers of those who did the shooting.For the mothers of the survivors, and the mothers who sat in front of their TVs in horror, hugging their child who just came home from school, safely.This is for all the mothers who taught their children to be peaceful, and now pray they come home safely from a war.

What makes a good Mother anyway?Is it patience? Compassion? Broad hips? The ability to nurse a baby, cook dinner, and sew a button on a shirt, all at the same time?Or is it in her heart? Is it the ache you feel when you watch your son or daughter disappear down the street, walking to school alone for the very first time, or the jolt that takes you from sleep to dread, from bed to crib at 2 A.M. to put your hand on the back of a sleeping baby?The panic, years later, that comes again at 2 A.M. when you just want to hear their key in the door and know they are safe again in your home?Or the need to flee from wherever you are and hug your child when you hear news of a fire, a car accident, a child dying?The emotions of motherhood are universal and so our thoughts are for young mothers stumbling through diaper changes and sleep deprivation...And mature mothers learning to let go.

For working mothers and stay-at-home mothers. Single mothers and married mothers. Mothers with money, mothers without.

This is for you all.

For all of us.

Oregon Democratic primary

What is wrong with this picture, Bush, Clinton, Bush, Clinton.......

OK, I was disappointed too that when finally a woman was in the running for president that she wasn't the best candidate. I realized I could not vote for her just because she is a woman. I think Obama will do more for the cause of minorities then she ever could.

What, has there become only 2 great houses of candidates, the Bush's and the Clinton's? Who next, Chelsea? Think of all the money we could save by just not voting and letting their families take turns.

And how much more experience does she have? Pillow talk with a president. I am married to a carpenter and I can't build a house.

of teeth and travel

Sage and Emily are showing you their new grown-up teeth. I asked Emily if the tooth fairy came when she lost her first tooth. She said yes, and she left me five bucks. Wow, five dollars I said, she must like you a lot. Well, Emily said, it was a really good tooth grandma!

Beth and the girls came down when we got back from Mexico. They went on down to California and Beth got the rest of her things, backed them in the truck and stopped on the way back through. The hot tub was a big hit. Especially as Oregon has been having (I know we are not the only ones) some crummy unseasonably cold spell lately....2 days ago in the hot tub, it hailed.

We are traveling up to Port Townsend today for Em's 6th birthday party on Saturday. We are staying in Quilcene on our property with the cabin. Beth has put in a wood stove and a bed, so I am looking forward to "camping" in the cabin.

Happy Spring from your not very regular, no excuses now, thinking too much blogger-