Perhaps the Biggest Test to Our Marriage

Last night, UConn (Darcy's alma mater) played Syracuse (Ryan's hometown team) in an epic 6-overtime battle. As you can imagine, the game was intense and emotional. Some things were said that we can't take back. For example, "How could you support the Cuse? Devendorf is a douchebag!" and "UConn is a bunch of lazy kids that don't move on offense." We've spent a lot of time this morning apologizing to each other and trying to move on, and I feel good about our chances to make it through this bad spell.

Ok, that's a little overdramatic. It was a great game and we couldn't believe what we were watching.

I took a few poor quality photos on my iPhone. Sorry for the blurriness -- it was dark and I'm sure my hand was influenced by my nerves.

Jonny Flynn shooting free throws in the sixth overtime.

Freshman Kemba Walker Stunned

Ryan's joy and his security blanket.

I'm not a happy camper.

On to the big dance!

Even the plants want to celebrate Ryan's birthday!

It's no secret that Ryan has done a lot for our garden since we bought our house last summer. He helped put in a new flagstone walkway, take out grass and put mounds of dirt down for a new flower garden, he built two raised beds for our vegetable garden, and much more. For the last couple weeks, he's been working -- rain, snow, or shine -- to put up a pergola to retrain our wisteria vine. Before, the wisteria grew on a rickety trellis up the side of our porch and when we pruned the vine a few weeks ago, we noticed that it was jeopardizing part of our roof and our gutters.

Ryan has really become an impressive handy man around the house. While he is likely to need a break after the pergola, he's already talking about the next big project, which could be a new deck on top of our garage or a bathroom/utility room in the basement. Who knows! You'll just have to keep reading to find out!

The new pergola that showcases Ryan's path and plant beds.

This week was also special because Monday was Ryan's birthday. Seemingly in recognition of the big day, the garden started to show signs of spring. Dormant plants began to wake up from their winter slumber to show appreciation for all the hard work and loving care Ryan has shown over the last few months.

It all started with the camellia tree. In this picture, you may notice the single bright pink bloom that opened just for Ryan.

A close up of the camellia flower -- see all the other blooms that are just waiting to open?

A winter pansy
(OK, so this is just a new plant in a planter that I put together last weekend, but it's festive!)

The first crocus of spring!
Perhaps it's no surprise that this bloom is near the wisteria.

Hellebore Madness!

Happy birthday, Ryan! Thank you for all you do!

Yikes! Our only February post!

As you can tell by our lack of blog posting, we've been a little busy. I'm in the middle of my busy season at work and Ryan is busy building coffee tables and pergolas for the house (pictures to come soon, I promise!).

A few weeks ago, our good friend, Jeff, came to visit from Denver. Jeff may be looking for a new city to call home, and we tried to lobby for Seattle. Unfortunately, the weather was crappy and someone dumped garbage on our street, so I'm not sure our fair city made the best impression. At least we enjoyed a little culture at the Seattle Sculpture Park!

Life Imitating Art

Art makes Ryan think deep thoughts...

A famous sculpture that I can't remember the name of (Eagle something?) and the Space Needle.

Jeff explaining the influence of post-modern realism in what I call the "Lincoln Log Sculpture."

REBEL!

Blooms in January

One of the reasons I love living in the Northwest is that you can have interesting things happen in your garden year round. I planted some galanthus bulbs last fall, which are starting to bring life to our front walk. Some hellebores were already in the garden when we bought the house and it's exciting to see them bloom in the middle of winter. Our camellia tree is covered in flower buds that should bloom any day now. The pulmonaria that I got from a friend and didn't expect to bloom this winter is loaded with little pink flowers.

While I appreciate all the beauty in my garden, I can't wait for spring. I can already see mysterious sprouts from perennial bulbs of the past. I've ordered hostas and designed two shade gardens for under our camellia tree and another under a conifer in the backyard. Anytime I have a minute to spare, I open our laptop and browse the web for container planting ideas. My friend, Amy, and I are planning on going to the Northwest Flower and Garden Show in February, and I'm sure that event will put me completely over the edge.

How did this happen? I've never been much of a gardener, and frankly, I probably laughed at gardeners as old-fashioned and uncool in the past. All I know is that I love seeing the life that our garden provides whether through plants or the animals and insects that find refuge in our mini-habitat. As I've gotten older, a garden is both a therapeutic exercise in teaching me patience but also helps me relax when the world outside seems chaotic and overwhelming.

2009 is the "Year of the Garden", and I will post lots of pictures of my work and the rewards throughout the year. To get us started, here are a few images of what I love in January:

The Galanthus, or Snowdrop, Flower

Green Hellebore

Another View of the Hellebore


Pulmonaria Doin' Its Thang...

Inside the house, I forced some Paperwhite bulbs.

More Paperwhites

Now let's just hope my dog-child doesn't kill anything...

Don't Rely on Us in an Earthquake

It's been too long since I posted on this blog -- my apologies to our legions of fans. I'm in the middle of my busy season at work since the legislative session started three weeks ago. Ryan is busy saving us all from hordes of zombies in a new computer game and building a beautiful coffee table for our living room (pictures to come). 

Anyway, you may be wondering about the title of this blog post. Well, yesterday morning at 5:30 a.m., Seattle and the region felt a 4.5 scale earthquake. Ryan and I slept right through it. Granted a 4.5 quake isn't a big deal usually, but it's big enough to wake most people up at night. In fact, most of Ryan's coworkers felt the earthquake, but that's probably because they were still up at 5:30 a.m. playing World of Warcraft. 

So if you ever need us in the middle of the night, you are warned about our heavy sleeping. Whatever you do, you need to make more of an impact than a 4.5 scale quake. 

First Post of 2009 (3 weeks late)

A little over a week ago, Ryan's parents came to visit rainy Seattle from snow-infested Syracuse, New York. This was the third year his folks ventured out west to escape from freezing temperatures and to enjoy some relaxation before Ryan's dad (an accountant) becomes entrenched in his busy season. Usually we try to show them a good time with lots of fun touristy and not-so-touristy stops, but this year we did the Seattle Underground Tour, ate a bunch of food, and lounged at the new crib. Check it out!

Patty and Ryan before we head into the underground.

Although you are underground, you are actually at what was street level in the mid to late 1800s.

Old school skylights that illuminate the underground.

Patty and John making their way through the depths of Seattle.

What used to be windows are now bricked over spaces in the wall.

A photo immediately after the Great Seattle Fire of 1889.

The couple against the wall took one of the first tours of the Underground over 40 years ago. Very cool!

The red jacket brigade (not to be confused with the British troops during the Revolutionary War) takes a walk around the neighborhood.

Ryan's parents enjoying some lunch after the Underground Tour.

Why so sleepy, Ry?

John and Patty: Thanks for coming to visit us! We had a great time and hope to see you soon!

Happy Holidays!

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