Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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Thursday

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The ever-present and very slow going puzzle. I think I inserted about 5 pieces yesterday. Sigh. But I will finish this thing, darn it! I will!

Yes, we will brace the bookshelves and attach them to the wall. We’re going to get a piece of ¼ inch plywood, suggested by one of the readers of this blog, and place it under the unit. That will allow the cutout to fit over the baseboard. It won’t be completely flush against the wall as there is a cable system cord there that we can’t do anything about, but pretty darned close. And then we’ll use the L bracket IKEA included and screw it to the studs in the wall.

Don is going to go get a piece of plywood this morning, along with a new battery for my stud-finder.

He was going to do all of this yesterday afternoon but he was really tired. He’s been doing a lot lately, most of it to help me out, so it was time for him to rest. Bless him, he’ll run any errand, but he needs to rest.

And in more “Dr. Frankenstein” (as Don calls me) news: the neck joints for the Obitsu 22 body that I ordered for Mabel arrived. Depending on today’s schedule, it might be time for some surgery. If you remember, Mabel came with a Licca body. I don’t like them because they are not posable. They’re great if you are a collector who simply wants to display the dolls, but you know I love to come up with little scenarios and stories. I only ordered one Obitsu body because they’re a bit pricey and Mabel needed it most, as her neck joint is making her head wobble. But little Olivia also has a Licca body and that will be replaced when I have a bit more money. Licca bodies are smaller, so Olivia always looks shorter than the rest of the girls. That’s sort of adorable, but again – all she can do is stand. Is that fair to Olivia? She needs to be as flexible as her sisters, don’t you think?

I’ll try to take a photo of Licca and Obitsu bodies so you can see the difference.

What else? I guess we’re going to get a small amount of snow tomorrow night. But it will melt quickly.

I am READY for spring. The daffodils are coming up on the edge of the woods, and the day lily by the side of the house is emerging from the ground as well. I’m sure there are more signs of life than that, but it’s too early to clear all the leaves/mulch in the garden beds because it’s definitely too cold at night.

Porch sitting, gardening, flowers, GREEN: Bring it on!

Stay safe.

Happy Thursday.

Puzzle and a Bird Nest Question

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It’s coming along. I’m in the tedious part of this puzzle; trying to figure out where the leaf pieces go. Once I get those in, along with the blue background, I’ll work on the edges. This is the kind of puzzle where, if I figure out where 5 pieces go during a session, I’m thrilled.

I just heard a Carolina wren calling from our maple tree. Soon enough his/her partner appeared. And they perched right outside the birdhouse. I think one went in. Now, I’m wondering: we haven’t got around to neatening up the nest that was turned on end when the squirrel knocked the little trailer out of position last year. That’s an awkward sentence, but I hope you get the idea. We were going to attempt to do that this week. When the squirrel incident occurred last spring, they never came back. Do we mess with it? Should we clean it out? Or should we just leave it? Last year they started adding materials to what was already there from the previous spring. Then, once the nest tipped a bit – even though we righted it – they didn’t come back. They’re perfectly capable of pushing everything back down and adding material.

I’ve googled this and some birds come back to the same place and add to their previous nests and some don’t. The jury is out on Carolina wrens. Some sites say yes, they’ll come back, and some say no. I do know that the male will show his mate 3 or 4 options. She picks the nesting site in the end. They left very quickly after they had briefly checked out the birdhouse. But it is perfect for them, and safe.

Any thoughts? I’d sure like to have them back this year.

Thank goodness, it appears to be sunny out there. Yesterday was gray and messy and downright depressing. Hopefully, more of the snow will melt and we can say goodbye to the slush on our driveway.

Petra: this is the wig that Katie arrived in. I like the braids, but the back of the wig is sort of messy. I still have it and I suspect I’ll use it again at some point. I did undo the braids and it looked cute, but it was too thin and wispy. Wigs slip, even with a silicone wig cap in place. So, every time I pose her, I have to tweak the wig a bit. What she really needs is a scalp which is attached to the face plates. But I haven’t found one I like yet.

Okay. Don has to tape an audition and I suspect he’s waiting for me to finish this post, as I read all the lines that aren’t his.

Stay safe.

Happy Sunday.

Books, Puzzles, and Weather

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The Deborah Crombie arrived at my local library yesterday, so off I went to pick it up.

Current reading pile – and I am  reading all three at once.

Oooh, how lovely! Three excellent books and I get to read them. I’m close to finishing Underland  and I can’t say enough about how wonderful it is. Of course, three hours after I went to the library, I received an email saying that two books I had also reserved had arrived. I think I’ll wait to pick them up tomorrow, so the two weeks we get for ‘new’ books starts a day later – giving me some wiggle room.

Also, Galaxy Puzzles (based in my old neighborhood in Michigan) is the online company I used to order my very first jigsaw puzzle at the start of lockdown. The owner is closing down because it’s been so successful that it’s become too much for her to handle. So she’s going out on a positive note.  She’s discounting all the stock in her warehouse. I ordered 3 puzzles.  I think they were discounted at 20-30% off. She ships quickly. I ordered on the weekend and I received them yesterday.

Anyway, the discounts are even deeper now; most, I think, at 40% – just in case you’re interested. I saved some money and I have some on hand.

Sophie:

It’s a rainy morning here with another storm headed our way tomorrow night. There is some disagreement on the actual forecast and my favorite local weather guys say it’s too “fluid” at the moment. So, something’s coming, we just don’t know exactly how much. Unlike the pretty snow of earlier this week, this one will have some sleet and ice in the mix. Not good.

Stay safe.

Happy Thursday.

 

 

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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