Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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Dollhouse: Kitchen & A Shabby Sofa

October 22, 2011 at 10:41 am by Claudia

I found the sweetest wallpaper for the dollhouse kitchen. It arrived yesterday. So what was I doing last night when it was really too late to be doing it? You guessed it.

Not the best lighting this morning, but I’ll take more photos later in the afternoon. The pattern is of pink roses with a light robins egg blue on a creamy background. Sweet and old-fashioned – just the way I wanted it. This is the first room in which I’ve also used beadboard. There will be more. I started to add a chair rail, but until I decide where cupboards and appliances will be, that’s all I can do for now. Don’s reaction last night? “I want to live there!” Sorry, Don, no boys allowed.

It’s not perfect. Despite my best intentions, sometimes the trim is a bit crooked, sometimes a bit of glue gets on the wallpaper (rather like our for-real house.)

But, gosh darn it, I’m having such fun with it all.

The reality of my life lately is one of sadness, worries and tears. That’s just the way it is at this point in my life. My parents consume my thoughts. My mother will never be able go home again. She is getting weaker by the day. My father cries when he speaks to me on the phone, all the while trying to cope with his new reality. I need to find a job as there are no coaching jobs on the horizon. These are the facts. So I try to snatch some joy wherever I can find it. My little dollhouse provides a wonderful, magical escape where I can imagine and create and play. Surely that is good for the soul.

Isn’t this gorgeous? It arrived in the mail yesterday – all the way from Italy. Flora, who is a talented miniaturist and has an Etsy shop and a blog, made it for me. I had discovered it on Etsy but it was reserved for another customer. When I asked Flora if she would make one for me, she answered with a resounding yes and here it is. Since the living room will be a bit more formal, in a shabby sort of way, I thought this sofa fit the bill.

Etsy is a wonderful source for handmade miniatures. There is so much talent out there! Thank you, Flora.

I plan on searching eBay for another one of these chests because I want to put it in two places and we all know that is impossible. I want it here, under the stairs. I also want it in the bedroom. So, I simply have to find one more. I’m not crazy about the fabric on the chair, so I will be recovering it when I find just the right look.

Anyone want to join me for a cup of tea on a Saturday morning?

Filed Under: Dad, dollhouse, etsy, mom 23 Comments

Dad and Mom

September 28, 2011 at 6:00 am by Claudia

Mom and Dad – photo taken 17 years ago in San Diego

Today is my Dad’s 88th birthday. My mother had been scheduled to go home today, on his birthday. Yesterday he got the news that Mom has declined in the last few days (which we all knew) and that she isn’t strong enough to go home. She is being moved to the nursing home side of the facility.

Dad was inconsolable and it broke my heart to hear the despair in his voice. I think the prospect of Mom coming home was the only thing keeping him going. Most of yesterday was spent on the phone with my Dad and my sister.

In a perfect world, my parents would age with dignity and then quietly fade away at a grand old age.

But we all know this is not a perfect world.

I’ll be back later this evening with a post for Reality Shot – be sure to link up if you’re interested. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to shoot me an email.

Filed Under: Dad, mom 19 Comments

In Need of Sunshine

September 6, 2011 at 5:44 pm by Claudia

Rain, rain, rain. It seems to be raining endlessly here, which is bad news for the already swollen rivers  and for those who are still coping with flood damage from Hurricane Irene. So many people in our area have lost so much. One of our friends still does not have power. Another has 3 feet of water in his house. Enough already, please?

I took this photo the other day – you know fall is on the way when the Sedum Autumn Joy starts turning pink. Such gentle splashes of pink all over the garden.

This vine is growing in our back forty. Does anyone know what it is? The leaves are star-shaped with spiky white flowers.

Growing all over the edges of our property – and everywhere else on my travels around the neighborhood.

The day after the hurricane I noticed this spectacular spider web. It’s stretched between two trees in our overgrown back forty. Amazing, isn’t it?

Mom is still in the rehabilitation facility. She is barely speaking to anyone – she says about 10 words to my Dad and my sister and then sends them home. I call her every day and lately I get about 30 seconds of phone time before she cuts me off. She is withdrawing from everyone. She wants to die and she says it fairly often. I wonder if this is her way of pushing us away so she can transition. I don’t know. I only know that my father is heartbroken and that my mom is desperately unhappy and determined to remain that way and that there is nothing but sadness permeating everything.

A little sunshine might help.

Filed Under: Dad, flowers, garden, mom, rain 28 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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