Home Again, Home Again, Jiggety Jig

So did you do anything fun during the break?

Why yes. 

Yes I did!

I went to the warm lands where oranges grow in peoples patios during the winter.

  I went to see Miss Celiac Sis in Arizona for a week and it was grand!

 One of the first things we did was to open a birthday present she had packaged all Houdini style.

It was tighter than a week old tick, a teenagers pants, a cheap pair of shoes, a fat ladies' spanx...

 I "should" have taken a before photo...

Because the lovely blue down vest I'm sporting was compressed inside!

(Take my word for it these photos do NOT do justice to the miracle of that packaging).

 

We opened some Christmas gifts.

Which pair of kitchen gloves do YOU think best suits cold fusion research?

It was not all fun and games though....

Oh wait.

YES it WAS!

We went for walks- 

YES, outside in the warm weather where plants like this grow in the winter, 

-as well as the oranges posted above.

 We watched movies, and some crazy sitcoms, and played games.

We went thrifting, bought material, made aprons, and ate pork neck soup.

I watched as she made yogurt and made my first new year's goal to make some of my own.

Oh, did I mention we talked?

Yeah, a bit :0)

So, we were so busy I neglected to take my usual billion photos...

But fear not, on one of my morning walks I DID remember to take the camera...

 

If you like texture and pattern in plants Tucson is the place to be.

Just up the road a piece is a little nature area with the lovely name of...

 

 Not only was there no traffic and paved roads

 but there were little stones with the names of plants.

 

Nothing says hot climate like the old agave.

 

I already knew this one. 

We have plenty of those in Idaho!

I think we have some of these too?

 But not nearly so enormous.

Don't think we have any of these...

I KNOW we don't have any of these bad boys.

There were some cement picnic areas that I imagine are about a gazillion degrees in the summertime.
No need to light a match as there would be some spontaneous combustion from this crazy lady
were I to have the misfortune of being there in summer and prime picnic season...

The rest of the images didn't have name plaques

but were certainly great candidates for pattern and texture of the prickly, stickly sort.

Here's one with little short, teeny, nubby stickers.

 

This reminds me of the story or Brear Rabbit and the briar patch...

Anyone know that story?

This one looks kinda soft...but not.

But look what pretty buds it has.

Check out the lovely shade of purple on these stickery suckers. 

Did I mention there were a lot of stickery plants?

And I DO mean stickery!

If it looks like they're all from a western movie...

It's cause it's prime Western movie country.

I conned a retired guy to take a photo of me on site.

Celiac lent me a lovely visor and with my new blue vest I was good to go.

Ok.

That may not have been the most exciting post.

But, the trip meant a wonderful visit and much needed rest before heading 

home again, home again.

jiggety, jig...

You DO know that nursery rhyme don't you?!?

 Parting shot...

Celiac can grow these on her patio in the winter time.
We grow icicles in the wintertime.

I returned home to negative degree weather and a bumper crop.

Bit of a shock.