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    T Tuesday: missed a week edition

    Last week is a whirlwind in my mind. I’m not even sure why I missed T stands for Tuesday but I did. So this week will be a bit of a catching up….again.

    I think we shall start with Mother’s Day.Mothers day sushi

    Take out sushi from our favorite local sushi resturant. We actually had this on Saturday since we spent Sunday at my in-laws house. Since their health isn’t the best right now, I brought the meal. The boys tackled the spring/summer to-do list for their folks. It was a good day. Staying busy  was good so I didn’t dwell on my first Mother’s day without my mom.last concert

    Last week also brought the last choir concert for J. Its an emotional concert for me…even before having a graduating senior. The last two songs are always the same and they are sung by all members of all choirs. Real tear-jerkers. As they sing the seniors come off stage and bring their parents a rose. Pass the tissues please…..

    senior rose

    They also have a fun slide show of highlights and the guess the baby photo of the senior. So awesome! When we got home it was late and I couldn’t bring myself to dig in the storage room for a bud vase especially when the recycling was so close. A wine bottle works well. And bonus it hits the T stands for Tuesday beverage as well. 🙂paint to paper

    Workspace current view…

    I haven’t really had any creative mojo for the past week or so. I’ve put paint to paper but completed nothing.

    Most of this past weekend was spent outdoors. We scrubbed the deck which was long overdue. We decided that once it was scrubbed the weathered barnwood look was quite appealing so we’ve decided to just re-stain the railings.

    Marvin approves. We used some plywood to provide a temporary gate so he could enjoy the a little sun on the deck with us. Of course he has his own personal greenhouse. Cats and boxes…

    Anyway…we were enjoying the sunshine on the deck after long weekend of toil which also included planting in the garden.

    The shed garden doesn’t look like much yet. Once the seeds sprout the space will quickly fill.

    These onions are a funny story. Last fall I dumped this planter box into the shed garden figuring we’d just use the rototiller to mix in potting soil from containers into the garden. As I was pulling weeds, I noticed that this brick of soil was sprouting onion up from underneath. I tipped it back over and had all these green onions that were curling around the edges seeking sun. I tossed it back in the planter box and watered to see what would happen. Now a week or so later they are wonderful.

    After we took the patio set and chiminea out of the shed and set it up we noticed that the chiminea is on its last summer.

    The crack in the terracotta has grown exponentially. We need to be very careful with how we treat it over summer.

    This week is slightly quieter than last…I think.

    What are you doing today?
  • Blog - Creativity - Photography

    T Tuesday: photography adventure edition (part 2)

    Last week I left off with the conservatory portion of our day trip to recreate the missed field trip. Next to the conservatory is a zoo. Como Zoo.

    As children, both Mr. G and I visited this zoo with our parents….rode the giant tortoise, looked at the gorillas behind the bars and saw Sparky the Seal perform. Things have changed for the better over the years. The habitats are continually being improved. Mini-me has even witnessed change in her years. When we got there we saw that both the seal and polar bear habitats were changed or changing. Good news for those critters.

    The big cats are a favorite of mine…

    Watching this big guy walk was like seeing a giant version of Marvin. He saunters when he walks.

    The lions were thoroughly enjoying the sunshine.

    And who could blame them when just off to the side was the remains of our snow.

    It is Minnesota after all.

    I have one more part of our adventure to share with you next week.

    Since this is T stands for Tuesday I had to share my birthday present to myself. I picked it up at Caribou (the best coffee place in my opinion…no affiliation, just a very smitten customer) while getting my free birthday drink.

    This weekend also brought prom for J. He went with a bunch of friends and had a wonderful time. I once again wish I could show you my favorite candid shot from pre-prom pictures. It captured his personality perfectly….but I respect their right to privacy even now that he is an adult.

    School is winding down…yet so many things that need to be done.

    What are you doing today?

  • Blog - Creativity - Photography

    T Tuesday: photography adventure edition (part 1)

    Today for T stands for Tuesday I’m sharing the first installment of the adventure Mini-me and I headed went on to recreate the Digital Photography field trip she missed while on her French field trip. Poor communication between teachers I guess.

    We followed in the foot steps of her class and went to the Como Park Zoo and Conservatory in our state capital city of St. Paul. 

    The Conservatory is a beautiful structure with the iconic glass dome and several glass wings jutting out from the center.

    I knew the structure was old but didn’t realize that it was over 100 years old until I noticed this sign.

    While Mini-me was working her photography skills on the flora and fauna displayed, I was marveling at the architecture and unique features of the building.

    Its amazing to me how glass and steel can be a work of art in itself.

    In a separate wing of the conservatory was a Bonsai pavilion. These were my favorites.

    Since this wing was dedicated to Japanese culture and tradition it was only fitting I share a bit of the traditional tea ceremony pieces on display here for T stands for Tuesday.

    The pottery was simple yet beautiful.

    More next time for T Tuesday…

    What are you doing today?