Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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When ‘Grass Growing Under Your Feet’ is a Good Thing

May 7, 2012 at 8:46 am by Claudia

A look around the garden:

The catmint is bigger than ever. I have it planted throughout the large bed. I can see the beginnings of its purple blooms.

Yellow Archangel. Do you see the Jacob’s Ladder in the top left hand corner? Heidi gave me some cuttings a few years back and it has really taken off. I wish everything thrived like it does. However, it tends to take over.

I wanted it for the portion of the bed that is right under the Sugar Maple. Jacob’s Ladder does really well in shade.  But it’s a pushy little devil. I’ve already had to yank some of it out. See how it’s trying to take over where my grasses and daffodils are (in the upper right hand corner?) And how it’s creeping down around the Yellow Archangel and toward the Sedum?

The silvery Lamium will have purple blooms soon. Jacob’s Ladder will also bloom. All in good time.

The peony buds are getting bigger. Every year that we’ve lived here, the peonies have bloomed the first week of June, but I think it will be much earlier this year. Please, peonies, hold off until I get home on May 19th!

But here’s the biggest news; it may not be as pretty, but it’s pretty exciting to me:

Grass is growing! After a drought-like winter and early spring, we had some rain last week, and this is what I saw when I got home on Saturday.

That grass seed sat on the dry ground for a long time. But I remained hopeful. I’m sure we’ll have to seed in the fall, too, but it will be much less daunting. And yes, I know there are rocks there. After picking up approximately 1 jillion rocks, I finally realized it was a losing battle. Anyway: Hello, grass! Welcome!

I scrubbed down the porch yesterday, planted my pots and window boxes and added a couple of hanging plants. I must admit, the inside of the house is being woefully neglected as I devote my energies to the outside. I only have so much time on these days off. One more day at home, and then I’m off to Hartford again for 10 more days.

Happy Monday.

Filed Under: garden, grass, Mockingbird Hill Cottage 14 Comments

Hello garden!

May 1, 2012 at 6:48 am by Claudia

Two days at home = two days of mowing. I’m exhausted. And mowing the front yard is extra hard as we have ruts from all the work on the tree and the septic system. No time to work in the garden, but next weekend I am determined to weed and plant my pots and window boxes. It’s been very cold here at night lately but the week ahead promises warmer weather, so it should be okay for planting my impatiens next weekend.

I’m going back to Hartford to rest!

The garden is starting to fill in – lots of green but not too many flowers yet. I missed the bloom of the yellow daffodils, but I didn’t miss the bloom of my favorite daffodils:

They were already here when we moved in. I didn’t know about them until the following spring and I was entranced.

To tell you the truth, yellow daffodils have never done a whole lot for me but these make my heart sing.

The lilacs are blooming. Oh my goodness, what a glorious scent! My little bush is hanging in there but it only has a few blooms. Anyone know the secret to more blooms? Should I prune it after the bloom is finished? I haven’t been home at this time of year for the last 4 years, so this year I can tackle things like that.

Oh, and look what’s coming!

My peonies are budding! For those of you who are new to this blog, peonies are my absolute favorite flower. I. love. them. This cottage came with two peony bushes that are planted close to the road. I treasure them. And I haven’t been home to see them for 4 years! Yes, I know I’m away in Hartford right now, but I can get home for visits! It makes a huge difference in my life. My garden is my favorite place. Gardening is good for my soul. I find peace there.

So here’s to spring at home, here at Mockingbird Hill Cottage!

Filed Under: garden, gardening, Mockingbird Hill Cottage 20 Comments

Around the House

March 26, 2012 at 11:25 am by Claudia

Yesterday I was in the mood to clean. I’ve long since learned that I have to be in one of those efficient, determined moods to do any deep cleaning. I tackled both bathrooms and the kitchen. If you are a longtime reader of this blog, you are more than aware of the fact that I hate cleaning the bathroom. I abhor, detest and dislike intensely cleaning the bathroom. I even wrote about it in this post.

I even washed the fake fruit in this bowl. Oh, I forgot; the thing to do is call it faux fruit. But really, it’s fake fruit.

Now it’s clean and spiffy, as are the countertops and the island. Side note: since I’m in the mood to use the word ‘detest’ let me add that I detest our tile countertops (the grout never looks clean) and I also detest our humongous black microwave. It takes up too much space. But since it came with the house and is still working, I can’t get rid of it. Oh, and I cleaned the inside of the microwave.

Do you see that piece of paper on the butcher block? Here’s what it says:

These are the kind of love notes my husband and I leave for each other. Mr. Riley has a debilitating disease which involves his spine and hind quarters. His poor muscles just don’t have the control they used to. So, if Don is working late, I leave him a note with a Riley update in hopes that if we cover our bases no ‘incident’ will happen during the night. We love our boy and aim to make his life as stress-free as possible.

Speaking of my husband, this pile of his washed and folded clothes has been in this chair for 3 days. Any bets as to when he will take it upstairs?

The other night, Don was waiting for Riley to, you guessed it, poop and sat down on the bench. He decided to play with his jumping jacks. The next morning I arose to find the guy in the center (soldier?palace guard?) decapitated. He has since been repaired. The monkey was also decapitated at one time, which is why his head is permanently cocked to one side.

Aren’t these flowers Easter-like? I found this mixed bouquet at Trader Joe’s and it reminded me of Easter eggs and Easter baskets and Spring.

Today it is very windy and tonight the temps are going to go down to the mid-twenties. A hard freeze. I’m worried about my lilac bush and all the other plants that have popped out of the ground in this early Spring.

Have a marvelous Monday!

Filed Under: flowers, Mockingbird Hill Cottage, Riley 14 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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Scout & Riley. Riley left us in 2012. Scout left us in February 2016. Dearest babies. Dearest friends.

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