Corona de Tucson
December 19, 2022
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| St Phillip's in the Hills |
Saturday morning, Joe and I were up and out early. Our first stop was at East Lawn Palms Cemetery in downtown Tucson.
I first learned about Wreaths Across America in December 2015. We were in San Diego and riding out to Cabrillo NM for a hike. The photo below of the wreaths at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery made a huge impression on me.
Our next stop Saturday morning was St Philips Plaza.
Every Saturday and Sunday (all year long) are outdoor market days at the plaza. I needed one more "little something" to go under the tree and knew my chances were better than good to find just what I wanted there.
Just down the street from the plaza is St Philip's in the Hills Episcopal Church.
St Philip's was built in Spanish Colonial architecture (similar to mission churches built in California over 400 years ago) in 1936. The very first service held there was on Christmas Eve. Tusconians John and Helen Murphy had a plan to build a private chapel at their home. Instead, the architect persuaded them to build a small church at the corner of two dirt roads...Campbell and River.
Although the church has undergone several expansions, the integrity of the architect's design has been maintained in the buildings. In 2004, St Philip's in the Hills was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Today, it is the largest Episcopal church in Tucson.
Back at the oasis, it has definitely been sweater weather.
Sunrise and coffee had an abrupt halt outside.
We bought our first tree for the backyard. It's for the birds! Once again, Civano Nursery, just down the road from us, delivered, planted and staked it.
Joe is getting his leather working tools organized for a project he wants to start.
I made a sugar cookies forest.
The House Finches add a bit of rosy red color and chatter to the backyard.
And the Arizona skies are a nice reminder of one of the reasons why we chose to live in the desert.
Until next time,
and
HAPPY TRAILS !
Merry Christmas to you, Joe and the pups! You've done enough baking and snack making to last until next Christmas :) Looks so yummy bet it won't last ...
ReplyDeleteHi Jeff, sweets don’t last long around here. I could eat just one cookie a day, but Joe doesn’t have any will power to space it out. December is really the only month I bake anything sweet…the rest of the year we try really hard to eat healthy.
DeleteI love the idea of a christmas tree cookie forest! Next year.....
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely holiday Gay and Joe.
Hi Sue…the cookies are yummy, but my decorating skills need lots of work! 🤪
DeleteMerry Christmas guys, it looks like you are all set to have a great one! The cookies look awesome!
ReplyDeleteHi Jim and Barb….cookies and Christmas just go together. Made them with my grandma for Santa when I was little, made them with our children and grandchildren for Santa and now I just made them for Joe!
DeleteI'm the one in our household who can't eat just one cookie although this year Mike seems to be keeping up. We are the same, no cookies or candies or chex mix around the house usually except at Christmas time. Notice I put the "usually" word in! You've given me another "must see" in Tucson--St. Philips's Plaza. It's been dang cold down our way too!
ReplyDeleteGood morning Janna…”usually” applies to us too. It’s good to splurge every now and then. I think pies are my weakness! I am a big fan of the open air markets and St Philips Plaza is a good one in the winter…not so much in the summer when it’s hot.
DeleteI always love exploring the southwest architecture in our area - Tucson has so much to enjoy. Nice to have a local nursery that has what you need. I'm hoping to get a couple trees here next year. Would love a cookie forest for now though :-))))
ReplyDeleteHi Jodee…most of the trees in the cookie forest have mysteriously disappeared! Someone around here has sure thinned out the forest. It was really hard to decide on trees for our small yard because we love looking at the sky. If you don’t have a nursery close by, Civano is a good place to start. They grow all of their trees and plants on a 70 acre farm in Sahuarita so they are already adapted to the climate here.
DeleteYour cookies are beautiful! Nothing like some good sand tart Christmas trees. Yum! Can't wait to see what Joe is making! Merry Christmas to you, Joe, and the Tan Clan!
ReplyDeleteGood morning Pam…and thank you! Sugar cookies have always been my favorite with lots of memories making them.
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