Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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Sun

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The clematis is blooming. Strangely, most of the flowers this year are not on the street-side of the boxwoods, but are blooming on the porch-side. So I get to see them when I’m sitting on the porch. I guess they decided to give us a private viewing this year.

It’s sunny today. That is a big deal because most of the last week has been gray, rainy, windy, and cold. Even on days when no rain was forecast, there would be sudden showers coming out of nowhere. I am over it.

We have to mow today or tomorrow – most likely, tomorrow. So today I’m going to pull some of the many weeds that have sprung up from all the rain. Mostly, I just want to get outside. It’s been hard being house bound.

I hope you have a lovely day today, especially if you’re getting together with family and friends.

On this day, we remember those who lost their lives while serving our country. We honor them today and always.

It always seems ridiculous to say “Happy Memorial Day” when we remember what this day really means. So I won’t.

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

Thoughts on Saturday

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Well, the rain has finally stopped. But it’s in the low fifties and it’s going to stay there today. Tomorrow will be better. Cloudy today, sunnier tomorrow. (This photo was taken earlier in the week.)

Wait! I just saw the sun! What a difference it makes. The endless rain around here does wear one down. Don is ready to scream, as am I. But the up side to all of this is that our long drought is officially over. And that’s a very good thing.

I’ll be honest. I’m having a hard time lately. It looks like my career is over without my having made that decision and I’m still mourning that loss. You know how I feel about the felon and fascism and the dark deeds going on in the WH. I’m having trouble motivating myself to read, though I do read a bit each day. I’m trying to get excited about the dollhouse work ahead, but I’m also quite limited as to budget, so I have to get creative and those juices aren’t always in evidence. Don isn’t finding any work at the moment and frankly, he is so castable right now. He should be working a lot. Don and I feel lost at times – we want to work in our chosen fields because we love what we do and we’re really, really good at it. (Please don’t suggest other possible jobs. We live in a small town, have one working car, and believe me, I have worked all kinds of part-time jobs over the years. There’s really nothing available around here and we’re in our seventies.)

We still pay a hefty mortgage because we bought a house much later in life than most people. That choice was ours, but we feel the strain financially. However, we’re not special, we’re no different than so many people, especially nowadays. And we have no regrets about choosing this house. We love it so.

So something silly like three days of rain can really impact our moods.

But we are basically positive people, so we work hard to find moments of joy and laughter and gratitude in each day. We’re big on gratitude.

Anyway, I share this only because you might be feeling the same way. If you are, I’m sending you a big hug and lots of love. This too shall pass. I have to believe that things will get better. I’ve experienced a lot of little miracles in my life and have no doubt that more are on the way. So this is not a “Poor me!” post – far from it! It’s just an honest status update.

Stay safe.

Happy Saturday.

Rain, Dollhouse Stuff, and a Pending Faceup

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Rain, rain go away. Honestly, it’s so dark and rainy around here that we’re getting depressed! It’s also very cold for this time of year and we’ve had to turn the heat on. Next week will be better. The rain should stop after today and it will warm up starting on Monday. I feel water-logged even though I’m not out in the rain, if you know what I mean.

It’s hard to take any pictures when the house is dark as well. I did my best.

I spent a couple of hours going through the box that holds the unfinished version of the Beacon Hill. I was looking for replacement parts – window trims that are missing, the base for the kitchen window extension and the bay windows, and a few other things. Greenleaf dollhouses have a lot of detail, but they’re made with cheap plywood. The parts are on big sheets of plywood and there’s a schematic diagram that shows where things are. When you find the part, you have to punch it oh-so-carefully out of the plywood sheet or you’ll break it. Supposedly, all the plywood sheets are labeled by number, but my experience tells me that not every sheet is numbered. So I had to spend a lot of time looking at the schematics and then searching for the corresponding plywood sheet.

This is something I’ve had on my mental list of things to do for years. I think I have everything, but we’ll see. I can tell you this, putting this monster together would be a giant pain-in-the-tush and I’m so glad I changed my mind and purchased one that was already assembled.

Inside the modern dollhouse. That chair was made by Arlette of Arlette’s Minitures in England. I have several of her pieces. Alas, she retired last year. This particular Art Deco-ish chair was a gift from a reader of the blog. She purchased it and then realized she wasn’t going to use it and graciously passed it on to me.

The sofa is identical to the gray sofa in Don’s mini music studio. Made by an Australian miniaturist.

I got the coffee table at a miniature show. And the vase, as well.

Don has a gig this evening at one of his favorite venues.

And this will be Jessie’s sister. Eventually. I don’t have a body yet and it’s far too rainy to work on the faceup as I have to spray it several times during that work and let it dry outside. But soon.

Stay safe.

Happy Friday.

 

 

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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