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You are here: Home / Archives for Claudia

Condo Update: Finding a Home for the Furniture and the Cats

December 18, 2015 at 9:55 am by Claudia

Gray. Rainy. Lights on all day long. Impossible to get a good photo.

Since I have two more pieces from my smallish Roseville collection to share with you, I’ve had to resort to pulling older photos from the bowels of this blog. Bear with me.

Corners-bedroom 6

You’ve seen the cornucopia on the left. But I also have the green dish in Apple Blossom. Both of these pieces live on my dresser, which, I might add, is a heck of lot more cluttered than this older photo would indicate.

(I just deleted the other photo because the code was acting strangely. I’ll take a photo of it another day.)

We’re all caught up!

Today, all of the furniture is being removed from my parents’ condo. Meredith found an organization that works with the homeless that is willing to take everything, so we feel very good about that. Meredith has had to spend some time there in the past few days doing some clean-up and I know that has been hard on her. Too many memories.

Once everything is removed, she’s going to meet with a realtor later in the day to see just what we need to do, if anything, before we put it on the market.

Our biggest worry was what to do with the cats. Luke is gentle and lovely, so we knew we would have no problem finding him a home. But Lydia can be mean, is very territorial and protective of everything in the condo. We promised my dad we would try to keep them together, but for a while there, it seemed like that wasn’t going to happen. Stacy, my dad’s caregiver, volunteered to take them, but she already has 3 cats and a couple of dogs and four children and she was about to move to a different apartment and I was worried that these 2 cats who had only lived in a quiet condo with my parents would not be able to cope with other animals.

Meredith has a friend who has a true gift and can communicate with animals. She has also been involved with cat rescue in the past, so she really knows cats. We asked her to talk to Lydia and tell her that Dad was gone and he wouldn’t be coming back and that we wanted to find a happy home for her but her aggressive behavior was going to keep anyone from adopting her. Once that conversation happened, Lydia started to change. Stacy, who was helping pack up the condo, spent time with her while she was there and assured us that Lydia would be okay. It was clear that Stacy, who had promised my dad she would adopt the cats, wanted to make good on her promise.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago when Stacy picked up both cats and took them home with her. And then to a week later, when she sent me pictures of her daughter petting Lydia. She even sent me a video of Lydia clearly loving all the attention. She was a cat transformed. It’s an ongoing process, I know, but the change is evident.

I sat there and cried. Thank heavens for Stacy. My dad is somewhere smiling, I know it.

Happy Friday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

 

Filed Under: cats, Dad, Meredith, Roseville pottery 40 Comments

In the Mail

December 17, 2015 at 9:05 am by Claudia

First of all, this arrived yesterday:

12-17 meandmag

Since this is a selfie, the writing is reversed, but you get the idea, right?

I’ll try to take some photos of the article for you. I’m thrilled that Hummingbird Cottage is the lead feature and a photo of the fireplace gets a full page at the beginning of the article. Don hadn’t seen the article yet, so he read the whole thing and was quite chuffed! As am I.

Again, on a tough day, something lovely lightened my mood. Very grateful.

My ankle is much, much better. I still wear an ace bandage for some mild support and, more importantly, to remind myself that I have to be careful. The bruising has faded a great deal and, as I’m at the two week mark, I’m very pleased.

I hung the lights on the porch railing yesterday. They were modified by necessity as one of the strings wasn’t working and I wasn’t about to go in the shed and look through bins for some more. It’s just fine as is.

No little white tree yet, but maybe today. Or maybe not.

Barbara sent me a package that arrived earlier this week. It was full of lots of goodies. I didn’t take a picture of the lovely Christmas napkins and mints that come in a guitar-shaped tin and winter gloves meant to be used with an iPhone (huzzah!) but I did manage some pictures of the other treasures inside that box.

12-17 books

Yay! I finally have my own copy of All the Light We Cannot See! If you remember, I had it on reserve at my library and didn’t get a chance to read it before it’s due date. The second book is mystery that takes place in Canada (Barbara is from Canada) and I’m excited to read a new-to-me author.

12-17 robot

An incredible robot ornament – isn’t it neat? We’re calling it Mr. Robot, in honor of Don’s appearances on that series.

12-17 ghirardelli

A bag full of Peppermint Bark from Ghirardelli. Oh. my. goodness. As you might imagine, we’ve already had several. I love peppermint bark.

12-17 stereo

Eeek! For the Top Secret Project! This is perfect, Barbara! I haven’t done any work on the TSP since Dad’s death. I haven’t been in the right frame of mind. I am thinking about it, however, and I plan on getting back in gear when I have my little office/studio space set up.

By the way, the house that I’m using for the TSP was designed for the HBS Creatin’ Contest. I never had any plans on entering that contest, but many incredible miniaturists have entered their projects and I am blown away by their creativity. The deadline to enter was just the other day. I’m going to try to gather some links to their finished projects so that you can see them for yourselves. You won’t believe what they have created!

12-17 clematis flower frog_

And this was in the package. Roseville Pottery in the Clematis pattern. Barbara wasn’t exactly sure what it was, but I knew because I’d been watching one of these on eBay. It’s a flower frog. It was designed to sit in a matching console bowl, like the one I showed you the other day.

12-17 clematis flower frog rear

The rear view.

12-17 clematis flower frog bottom

See? There are holes in the bottom.

It’s gorgeous. Thank you, Barbara. I am blessed by your generous spirit.

I am blessed by every one of you who read this blog. Thank you.

I’m clearly celebrating Christmas a bit early this year.

Happy Thursday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Filed Under: china and pottery, Christmas, gifts, Roseville pottery, The Dolls' House Magazine UK, Top Secret Project 28 Comments

Quite the Day

December 16, 2015 at 9:01 am by Claudia

We made the trip to IKEA yesterday, after I dug through my shoes (most of which are now too small for me) to find something I could wear that wouldn’t irritate or press on my still-tender ankle. The nearest IKEA is an hour and a half away from us, so we’re talking a total of three hours drive time. It’s an all day event, which for us is always a challenge because we have to consider Scout’s needs.

We walked through, I wrote down all the stock numbers/locations, and had lunch. Don had his favorite Swedish Meatballs and I had the Vegetarian option. And some chocolate cake for dessert. I was walking slowly and being very careful, but I have to tell you, by the end of the day my ankle was complaining loudly.

No reveals for a while. We have to paint the room and assemble everything.

It was quite the day. I came home and later that evening, the news that my parents’ ashes are being taken out to sea today coupled with Scout’s troubles and my worries about her – well, I simply lost it. A major cry. Then a bath, as prescribed by my husband, and bed.

Needless to say, I’m wiped out today.

We’ve lit a candle for my parents and it will burn all day long.

I want to share some gifts I’ve received recently over the course of the next couple of days. My longtime blogging friend Linda sent me a package which was a surprise and a delight. Linda and I share the collecting bug and both of us collect egg cups, McCoy, and miniature pottery. I guess you could say we happily enable each other. Inside the box were birthday and Christmas presents:

12-16 shawnee gift

Two Shawnee miniatures to add to my collection! Aren’t they lovely? Linda has the best luck finding these treasures! These beauties were my birthday present.

Then a sweet Christmas present:

12-16 sheep

This adorable sheep to add to my collection.

And, what’s this?

12-16 caroline'sgift

Caroline got a gift!

12-16 cupandsaucer

A beautiful Paris cup and saucer. She’s thrilled!

Thank you, Linda!

Linda’s beloved cat Charlie, who is the same age as Scout, had a scare yesterday, so send some prayers his way, okay?

Happy Wednesday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

 

Filed Under: animals, collecting, friends, gifts, Ikea, Scout 36 Comments

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Welcome!

Welcome!

I live in a little cottage in the country with my husband. It's a sweet place, sheltered by old trees and surrounded by gardens. The inside is full of the things we love. I love to write, I love my camera, I love creating, I love gardening. My decorating style is eclectic; full of vintage and a bit of whimsy.

I've worked in the theater for more years than I can count. I'm currently a voice, speech, dialect and text coach freelancing on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater.

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