This week I found two gems: history about a tree for mothers and an aritstic escape for the weary.
The Tacoma Mother’s Tree
The first is a historical marker. Apparently, in 1929 the Girls Corner Club planted a white birch in honor of mothers. The plaque and tree are still near the pond or so says the parks department. But I cannot find it! I searched for about half an hour, asked in the Seymour Conservatory and got an excellent map of Champion Trees. I even pestered someone with a nametag telling me she was a Master Gardener with WSU. I’ve become excellent at identifying paper birches but never did find the white birch (or gray birch) dedicated to mothers.
If you know where it is, I’d sure be grateful if you could tell me. I want to find it soon because my characters NEED to sit next to this place. Here are a few of the MANY many trees I checked while looking and the helpful map that did not have my tree.
- Not the right tree
- The bridge without the right tree
- The pond with no mother tree in sight
- Champion tree
- Champion tree
- Champion tree
- Champion tree
- The unhelpful tree map
- Map #2
- The tree planner plaque
Uncorked Canvas and Friends
And then my fantastic librarian friends met me to celebrate the end of a long winter quarter full of productive students who wrote all the papers I asked them to write and then needed me to grade them. We discovered Uncorked Canvas very near Opera Alley–another place that simply begs for a story.
Here’s what we made while sipping wine and beer, laughing, and soaking up each other’s company. Life is good–even if Beth couldn’t quite make that orange glass skull work in her piece.
Karrie

- Deb’s candle holder
- My yard art
- Beth’s upside down bird bath
- Neighbor’s work