I felt very poorly yesterday – I think the sudden change in the weather from summery to  30 degrees colder and windy was behind it. I seem to suffer for a day or two and then I’m back to normal. Still, I tested myself for Covid yesterday given my upcoming trip to Wonderland of Play. Negative. It was just ‘the crud.’

Tonight, it’s going down to 27 degrees. Tomorrow, the same. So some of the porch plants will come inside for 48 hours. The impatiens are pretty scraggly, so I might just let them go. I will save the rest because temperatures will soon be warmer for a week or so. It’s my yearly struggle: when do I give in and let nature take its course?

I succumbed again. I saw this girl was up for adoption and was able to negotiate a very very good price. The original owner lives in Amsterdam, so she had a long journey to my little cottage, with the usual obsessive checking of the tracking number. For a few days there, I couldn’t get a consistent status. But she arrived safely on Monday.

First photo was taken late Monday afternoon:

She was customized by Dragonfly Blythe, the same person who customized Nina. Right after I made the decision to buy her, I read that Ola was no longer customizing. I’d been trying to message her for a while because I hadn’t seen any activity on her IG account and I was worried about her.  And then, since she lives in Israel, I grew more concerned. I do hope the decision to stop customizing is only a temporary one because, to me, she’s a truly unique artist – there’s no one like her – and I adore her creations. (Someone did get in touch with Ola, by the way, and she and her family are safe, but she has friends who lost family members in the recent attacks by Hamas.)

Anyway, this is Prudence. I didn’t come up with a name until I opened her box and saw her up close – that’s a first. I’ll call her Pru. She has no shoes on because I’ve run out of shoes, but I rather like the barefoot look.

The next day, after a hair trim:

I love her eye chips. All four pairs are striking and perfect. That’s a rarity. There’s usually at least one pair I don’t like.

My only quibble with Ola is that she does something weird to the body and neck, She adds some sort of cement-like covering to the upper chest and neck to strengthen the body and therefore, if you want to add a different neck joint, you can’t. It doesn’t work. In this case, her head is wobbly, so a friend of mine is bringing a new body to Wonderland of Play. Nina needs a new body as well, with a proper neck joint as she can tilt her head.

But it’s a small quibble. I can change out the bodies/neck joints. Pru’s need is a bit more urgent than Nina’s so she’ll be fixed first.

If you’re able to zoom in on her face, you’ll see a gorgeous face up. Tiny, subtle little freckles, shadows under her eyes, beautiful lips. I love the way Ola paints a face.

Pru is now sitting on the edge of the shelf where Lily sits on the bed.

Don is quite impressed with Pru. (I think she’s one of his very favorites.) Thank goodness for a husband who fully supports this passion of mine. When he saw Sophie, my first girl, he immediately said “she’s a work of art.”  Also, he understands that I’m happier when I can ‘play’ and that these girls have brought much-needed joy to my life, especially as I struggle with anxiety and a bit of depression.

Grateful.

Stay safe.

Happy Wednesday.