Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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You are here: Home / Archives for jigsaw puzzles

Day Fifty-Three

May 5, 2020 at 9:39 am by Claudia

Rick wanted to drop by yesterday morning to leave a piece of his chocolate pie for Don. When they arrived at 10 am, they had masks on and Sam was with them. So we decided to have a responsible social distancing visit with them – separated by several feet (definitely more than 6 feet.) Sam was on his leash and was handed off to us and we got to hug our favorite little boy.

Rick and Doug, with masks.

Doting aunt and uncle with Sam.

Sam is a licker and he tried to lick my face, which I normally welcome, but the darned mask stymied him. Poor guy! Rick and Doug said he really misses seeing people. We really miss him, so it was so lovely to have some time with him. And Rick and Doug, of course.

It was a cold and windy day and we had vowed to take a day off from outside chores, so we retreated back inside after our visit. I worked on this most of the day:

It’s almost done. I should finish today or tomorrow. We’re mowing today, so that will take up a chunk of time. It’s sunny out there and I can’t wait to get back outside.

I’m currently reading Love in a Cold Climate  by Nancy Mitford, having just finished Thornyhold  by Mary Stewart, a book I had on my shelf for several years but hadn’t read until now.

Puzzles and my garden/porch are keeping me sane. Don’s support and his endless gift of eliciting gales of laughter keep me grounded.

What’s keeping you sane during this time?

Stay safe.

Happy Tuesday.

Filed Under: friends, jigsaw puzzles, social distancing 53 Comments

Day Forty-Nine

May 1, 2020 at 9:36 am by Claudia

Finished.

I inserted the last piece in the early afternoon yesterday.

Then I let it sit for 24 hours so I can admire my handiwork! Actually, I keep it there to admire the design of the puzzle itself. These puzzles are so bright and wonderful with all the wonderful cover illustrations. Hard to take a picture of all the detail, especially on a dark and rainy day, but you get the idea.

A close-up of one of the book covers.

And another.

This one is my favorite:

Can you imagine all the young boys who wanted this Detective Handbook? Who wanted to learn about “Authentic detective methods for solving mysteries?” I wonder if I can scout out one of these on the Internet? I’d love to have it to add to Don’s collection. It’s sort of like sending in for decoder ring or a special prize on a cereal box. A special detective handbook!

Such a pleasure working on these puzzles (thank you again, Vicki!) I love doing them, I learn about the books, and I inevitably think I don’t have enough pieces (it happened again,) am faced with the empty space where the last piece should go but I’ve used them all and then…discover it on the floor. This happened to me with both puzzles.

It rained all night long – very, very heavy rain, so we have a river flood warning. Today? Rainy, thunderstorms in the afternoon. You can bet I’m pulling out the next puzzle. It will be the perfect thing to do on a rainy, thundery day.

But first, we’re going to the nursery/farm stand. We’re out of fresh vegetables. I’ll see if any of the plants I want/need have come in. We’ll wear masks. We’ll take disinfectant wipes and hand sanitizer. And then we’ll come home and wash our hands and all the vegetables and then we’ll wash our hands again and take showers and put on hand sanitizer.

It takes twice as long to do anything these days.

Tomorrow, we pick up our order from the grocery store. We’ll disinfect everything. And then, hopefully, we can lay low for the next week.

Stay safe.

Happy Friday.

Filed Under: jigsaw puzzles, social media 39 Comments

Day Forty-Eight

April 30, 2020 at 9:39 am by Claudia

Rain and more rain, including very heavy rainfall overnight tonight.

As Don said this morning, “I guess I won’t be doing any work outside.” Yep. We’re stuck indoors for the day.

Almost finished. Once again, I look at the number of the remaining pieces and the empty spaces on the puzzle and worry that something is missing. I did that last time. Don kept saying he was sure I had enough. We even had a $5 bet going on the subject, which I lost, as I did have all the pieces.

It’s a very dark day here today so getting a good photo is difficult.

Thank goodness for these puzzles and for this, which arrived a day early.

These are Nancy Drews with the original cover illustrations, designed by Russell H. Tandy. They’re the ones I collect and I have all of these on my shelves. Don thinks this is one I should frame as it could hang on the wall near my children’s bookcase in the upstairs hallway; the bookcase where I have all of these, along with some Hardy Boys and childhood favorites that were my mother’s. It would be neat, wouldn’t it? Don comes up with some pretty good ideas.

Honestly, there’s not much to report. It’s dismal out there, the garden is progressing but not to the point where I would take photos. We’re currently debating when to go get fresh produce. When we do that, I’ll check to see if there are any more flowers and plants in at the nursery. Saturday we drive to the grocery store to pick up an order. Pick up seems to be more readily available than delivery.

I know this is the new normal, but the combination of worry and planning and sanitizing along with the gray and rainy weather is a bit too much for me today. It all seems a bit grim at the moment. That will change, of course, so don’t worry about my state of mind. It’s just what it is this morning.

Thankfully, the weekend weather forecast looks positively pleasant!

Stay safe.

Happy Thursday.

 

Filed Under: jigsaw puzzles, social distancing 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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