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A Birthday Recap & Bill Cosby

November 22, 2014 at 8:27 am by Claudia

Thank you for the lovely birthday wishes! Between this blog and Facebook, I was truly blessed by messages from friends near and far. Goodness!

My husband spoiled me, as usual. (I think he’s better at this sort of thing than I am.) The morning was spent on long, lovely phone calls with my sister and my best friend. Then it was off to our local tea room for tea and a sweet something.

birthdaygirl

Birthday Apple Pie with whipped cream! Yum. Yum. Yum!

We love this little tearoom which is in a very old building in a neighboring town.

birthdaygirlcupcakes

We stopped off at our local cupcake shop and picked out four cupcakes, including one of these.

Another wonderful phone call from two dear friends that I’ve known for 30+ years.

Then Don made my favorite dinner – remember me talking about those faux crab cakes? Oh, lordy, it was good! Then presents and cupcakes.

birthdaygirl and scout

Someone was very interested in that cupcake. Oh, that girl! I believe I was making a wish when Don snapped this picture.

What did I get? Not one, but two pair (or is it pairs? the rules seem to be changing) of Nick and Nora flannel pajamas. For those of you who love them, I got the sock monkey design in red, and the macarons design in pink. Hello! I’m all set for winter. At this very moment, in fact, I’m wearing the sock monkeys. I got a bottle of my favorite cologne, Amazing Grace by Philosophy. I got a sweet bracelet. And somehow, Scout found a wonderful wooden egg cup from the forties! How did she do that? She is full of surprises.

My cup runneth over.

I couldn’t have asked for a nicer day.

On another note:

Bill Cosby has been in the news a lot lately. Many women have come forward to share their stories. They don’t know each other, but each of them has an eerily similar story to tell.

If you’re sitting on the fence on this one, let me tell you that one of my former students, who continues to be a friend and who is someone I trust implicitly, had an frightening encounter with Cosby in 1994. I won’t go into the details because it’s her story to tell, but she’s a smart and savvy woman who saw his dark side and got out of his house before anything could happen. That didn’t stop him. He kept calling her house after the incident, insisting that she needed to come to his house to work on her ‘acting technique.’

And if that isn’t enough, a friend of a friend had the same thing happen to her. Both of them are actresses. Both of them dodged the bullet. But clearly, many, many women weren’t as fortunate.

It’s one thing to read about it in the news and hold back, thinking ‘Bill Cosby wouldn’t do that!” Or watch the news, as Don and I did, and think that it sure seems like these women are telling the truth and know, at the same time, that it will be impossible to prove anything.

It’s another thing entirely to know someone who saw that reality.

America’s beloved icon isn’t a nice man. Image and reality are two very different animals, aren’t they?

I leave it at that.

Happy Saturday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Filed Under: birthday, Don, Scout 105 Comments

Mon Anniversaire

November 21, 2014 at 8:02 am by Claudia

rays of light

Il est mon anniversaire aujourd’hui.

I’ve retained a little of my high school French – un peu.

I remember being a child and thinking that my birthday, November 21st, must be the most magical, wondrous day ever. That November 21st was simply more special than any other day in the history of the world.

Do you remember that feeling?

It changes as we get older, of course. But I still get a little hint of that feeling every year on this day. It’s fleeting, but still wondrous. Thank goodness.

This is the first birthday of mine on this earth without my mother.

As I said in another post – a year of firsts.

So…bittersweet, wondrous, sad, happy, celebratory, fun. That’s the order for the day.

And Happy Birthday to Patricia, a reader of this blog who shares this birthday with me, along with the number of candles on the cake. (And let me add the name of faithful reader Mary D. – she is celebrating her birthday today, as well!)

Happy Friday and Happy Birthday to me!

ClaudiaSignature140X93

 

Filed Under: birthday 76 Comments

Who, What, Where: Dollhouse Den

November 20, 2014 at 9:22 am by Claudia

As in the real-life decorating of Mockingbird Hill Cottage, decorating the dollhouse’s rooms has been about collecting things over time, about gifts given and/or inherited and proudly displayed, about re-imagining older pieces of furniture and making them ‘new.’ I looked at each room this week and wrote down the story/source of each item. I wanted to get it all down on real and virtual paper – partly for me, and also for you. I often get emails asking me about where I source things for the dollhouse. I will provide all of the information I can for you. Links will be at the end of the post.

Today we visit the den. It’s on the second floor of Hummingbird Cottage.

WWW-dollhouseden6

Wallpaper: ItsyBitsyMini; Moldings, trim, spindles and newel post: miniatures.com; Floor: made by me from popsicle sticks.

Sofa: Dollhouses and More; Knitting on sofa: a gift from Julie. Coffee table: a gift from Marsha, I painted and distressed it.

WWW-dollhouseden2

To Kill a Mockingbird: LDelaney, an Etsy Shop; Bluebird Mug: TwelveTimesMoreTeeny, an Etsy shop (Spain); Flower Vase: purchased at a craft shop; Flowers: from my stash; Chocolate Biscuit Box: handmade by Norma; Pansy Painting: hand painted by Mary Bell, part of a miniature swap.

WWW-dollhouseden3

Various Bird Plates on the wall: from two Etsy Shops – TwelveTimesMoreTeeny and A LavenderDilly (Australia).

WWW-dollhouseden4

Cabinet: a gift from Rizzi, it was unfinished. I painted, stained and distressed it and added wallpaper behind the shelves; Vases on top shelf: gifts from Marsha and Jayne; Books: some were gifts, some purchased, some made by me; Singing bird vase: a handmade gift from Kim, made to match the singing birds on the piano in MHC; Liquor bottles: a gift from Barbara; Platter hanging on the wall: from TwelveTimesMoreTeeny.

WWW-dollhouseden5

Wicker chair: handmade by Casey of Casey’s Minis. I won it in a giveaway. She made the chair and the cushions. Footstool: also handmade by Casey.

 

 

It’s important to me to get all of this source information down on paper. I have been blessed by friendships via this blog and many of those friends have sent me gifts for the dollhouse. I’ve also learned so much from bloggers who are miniaturists. Their generous sharing of information has been an absolute essential in the rehab of the dollhouse. And I’ve put in a lot of work, sourced materials, found Etsy shops. Putting together a dollhouse such as this one didn’t happen overnight. I found it on Craig’s List in 2009, five years ago. And I’ve been working on it ever since.

So, if you’re getting tired of all this dollhouse stuff, I understand. However, I know there are those who love reading this information and find it helpful and valuable.

In other words, I’m continuing until we’ve covered all 7 rooms!

Happy Thursday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Tagged With: dollhouse, miniaturesFiled Under: dollhouse, miniatures 32 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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