Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Life in our little cottage in the country

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Creative Messes & A Quick Trip to IKEA

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Lest you think everything is in order around here – or that every photo I take is styled.

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Yes, this is what it looks like up here in the office/studio. It’s a mess. A creative mess, but a mess nonetheless.

We went to IKEA yesterday. It takes an hour and a half to get there – it’s in New Jersey – so we rewarded ourselves with lunch while we were there. The new catalogue is out and I grabbed a copy as soon as we entered the building.

There were a couple of things I wanted to get. For Little Z:

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This dollhouse, which can stand alone or hang on a wall. It’s the Flisat Doll House. I saw it on my friend Kat’s Instagram feed and since every time we Face Time with Little Z, he wants to see my dollhouse, I thought this might be fun for him. I’m not quite sure what to do with it yet. Do I decorate it à la Paw Patrol? Or is that too limiting? Do I gather up some basic furniture that is appropriate for a five year old boy, so he can play with it? Not sure yet, but I don’t mind saying I wouldn’t mind hanging this on my  wall! But, as you well know, the available wall space around here has already been taken.

Besides some new fry pans (which we desperately needed) and some new drinking glasses, I also spotted this little piece and decided it would be perfect for storing minis:

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That’s what is in the box that’s leaning against the wall in the second photo. Now, unfortunately, I have to put it together, which will result, I’m absolutely sure, in lots of cursing.

The dollhouse is in the big blue IKEA bag. I have about 8 of these bags now, because I always forget to take the bags I already own with me when I visit IKEA and end up having to buy new ones. Since they are handy for so many things, among them, moving my crap into temporary housing when I’m in Hartford, I don’t mind having more.

There is an Excessive Heat Warning today with the heat index headed to well over 100°. I will water. I will walk down to the mailbox to get the mail. That’s it. I’m hiding indoors for the rest of the day, putting together fiddly pieces from IKEA, and…maybe…straightening things up around here.

I framed the watercolor of Scout:

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It’s so beautiful. Now, we just have to figure out the best place to hang it. There has been much discussion, but we haven’t come up with a decision yet. To be continued.

Happy Saturday.

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Thunder, Lightning, Books, Flowers & Theater

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Big, big thunderstorm last night! It seemed to go on for hours. Cracks of lightning, the sky lit up, thunder, torrential rain.  This morning everything in the garden is water-logged and sort of smashed down. I know this because I had to go out to remind Henry that the big garden bed was not for him. That scamp!

During the storm, I had my iPhone out and was checking The Weather Channel. There was a warning saying “Lightning Strikes in your area. 0 miles WSW.” In other words, right here. When I tapped the warning, a map came up and I could see all the lightning strikes happening around us and it was actually sort of terrifying! It felt like we were sitting ducks! Maybe it’s better not  to know that sort of thing.

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Impatiens are my favorite plant for our shady porch and there are pots and pots of them. Normally, I overwinter several of them, but I only overwintered one plant this past winter.

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Yesterday, the first flower opened up on that overwintered plant. Hurrah!

We chat with Little Z most every night, but now we have introduced FaceTime to the mix. I had a long FaceTime chat with Z the other day where we talked and laughed and he asked to see ‘my things’ and I played a little of the piano for him. He immediately requested another chat, which took place yesterday evening. I love seeing his adorable little face on the screen. I do my best to make him laugh and give him kisses and Uncle Don, who was in the middle of cooking dinner, also made an appearance that sent Z off into gales of laughter. (We’re actors, after all, and are really good with funny faces and voices.) Added bonus: I get to see my dear sister. I had a nice long chat (a traditional phone call) with her yesterday afternoon, as well.

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Yarrow in the big garden bed. I have two yarrows this year.

I’ve started John Connolly’s newest book (I’m a big fan) titled, A Time of Torment. It won’t be published until the beginning of August, but I have an eGalley. You know that feeling when you open the newest book by a favorite author and you read the first page or two and then you sigh with happiness because you know you’re in good hands? That’s what I felt yesterday.

I’ll feel the same way when Daniel Silva’s newest comes out next month and Louise Penny publishes her newest at the end of August. By the way, in case you missed it, I reviewed a book by a new-to-me author yesterday as part of Soho Crime’s 25th Anniversary Read-Along. It’s Rock Paper Tiger  by Lisa Brackmann. I really liked it and plan to read the other books in this series. Book review here.

We received the official news yesterday that Anastasia  will open on Broadway on April 24, 2017 at the Broadhurst Theater. Even better, the actors playing the four leading characters have been signed. I love that – they are talented actors who captivated audiences and deserve to be a part of the Broadway production. Bravo!

Wonderful piece of writing on LitHub: On the Invisibility of Middle-Aged Women.

Happy Wednesday.

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Around the Garden And A Little Gift

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What’s up in the gardens on this first day of summer?

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The bee balm will be in bloom very soon. I can’t wait for those splashes of vivid red in the big garden bed.

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Bees are everywhere. This one was working very hard at something  on the end of that leaf. I was fascinated but I could never quite figure it out.

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Roses keep blooming.

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The pink spirea is fully in bloom. Clouds of pink everywhere.

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Post petals, this is what remains of the clematis bloom – along with a bug and a gossamer web.

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Dame’s Rocket with little bug.

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New Dawn Rose buds.

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A spider web, stretching from boxwood to boxwood.

The camera becomes my third eye and I’m always surprised and delighted by what it discovers. It truly is my favorite time of year, despite being sleep deprived.

We’re on the countdown, my friends: T minus 4 days and counting. A big birthday on Friday for Don and Little Z. Oh that little boy, we love him so much. We talk to him most every evening, conversations where word games are played, giggles erupt, and a besotted aunt and uncle sigh with happiness. He’s going to be five years old, you know. Don is going to be, ahem, sixty-five.

This was waiting for Don on Father’s Day, along with a card from Winston, Riley and Scout.

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I matted and framed Shanna’s sketch of Scout. Don was very pleased. Shanna managed to capture the twinkle in Scout’s eye, that look that said, “I’m game for anything!” If I had to describe Scout with just one word, it would be JOY. In caps.

We miss my dad. We miss Don’s dad. And we miss my brother, dad to three wonderful children – now adults – and the seven grandchildren he never got to know. Father’s Day is bittersweet, indeed.

Anastasia  closed its run in Hartford yesterday. Next year: Broadway. I know at least two of the readers of this blog saw it and loved it, which makes me very happy.

Happy Monday.

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Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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