Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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You are here: Home / Archives for Stella

Heading Back

September 6, 2017 at 9:06 am by Claudia

There are splashes of yellow all over the property. Goldenrod, a staple of late summer, is blooming. How can I not smile when I see this cheery yellow?

However, today is a dark and rainy day here. We had storms last night. Not necessarily the best weather in which to travel back to Hartford, but there you go. We’re going to go out for breakfast before I head back to CT.

It’s been so lovely being home that I feel like I have to force myself to get in the car and turn it toward points east. I don’t want to leave. Don and I are feeling the sadness that impending separation brings. I figured it out yesterday: by the end of the year we will have spent 9 months apart. Nine months. That, my friends, is a hazard of our profession. But it’s easier to handle when you’re young and eager and ready to go anywhere to work. It’s much tougher at this point in our lives.

Anyway.

Stella is a dream. She cooks evenly. I know it will sound silly, but the baked potatoes we had (twice) were the most evenly baked we’d ever had. The texture was smooth as silk and they were delicious. As were the biscuits. As were all the entrees Don cooked on the stovetop. Oh my goodness. What a difference gas makes! And what a difference Stella makes.

This morning I walked over to her and hugged her. I love her. I love her in our home. I never get tired of looking at her. I never will. I have absolutely no regrets. Investing in Stella was the best thing we’ve done in a long time.

Another sign of impending autumn – Sedum Autumn Joy.

Hurricane Irma is a juggernaut and we are worried about her impact on so many island dwellers and the state of Florida, where so many are in her path, including my sister and her family. Please stay safe. I know many of my readers live in Florida and I urge you to evacuate if you are told to.

Happy Wednesday.

 

Filed Under: Don, flowers, garden, kitchen, Mockingbird Hill Cottage, O'keefe and Merritt, Stella 31 Comments

Biscuits, Rain & Dreams

September 4, 2017 at 8:20 am by Claudia

I hope you’re all enjoying an extra day off on this Labor Day weekend. Yesterday was a day of constant rain. At the end of the day the sun came out and I was finally able to get out on the porch to take a quick picture.

We ran some errands yesterday, including getting a passport picture of yours truly as I have to renew my passport.  I’ll send all of that info tomorrow.

Exciting, right?

We did get around to making dinner, but very late, because we ate a late lunch when we were out and about. So I wavered about whether to try the Cloud Biscuits or not. I ended up going for it. Don grilled some vegetables on the broiler, aka The Grillevator (yes, that’s the name), which caused our smoke alarm to go off a thousand times until we were finally able to dismantle it. Yikes. The veggies were great, a little more charred than we were aiming for, but the danged smoke alarm kept taking our attention away from the task at hand.

Because I was making the biscuits at night, the photos are pretty bad. Nevertheless, I promised to share them with you, so share them I will.

Before:

After:

They were amazingly good. Whether that’s because they are always good or because of Stella, I’m not sure, but they melted in our mouths. Oh, my heavens!

If I was a food blogger, I’d make this in the daytime and take lots of artfully staged photos of them from an overhead perspective. I’m not a food blogger, so this is what you get.

Just trust me: Stella can bake like nobody’s business! Yay!

I finished Sue Grafton’s newest Kinsey Millhone mystery yesterday and I started (barely) Glass Houses  by Louise Penny last night. Today? Time outside as it will be the only dry and sunny day this week.

Oh, I have to tell you this! One of the newer readers of this blog mentioned in a comment that she had gone back to read past posts and came upon one where I shared my Christmas Wish List. I had completely forgotten about that list; I described it as a fantasy list. It was posted on December 5, 2012 – nearly five years ago.

On that wish list was a vintage gas stove “preferably O’Keefe and Merritt.” And I used a picture from Country Living  of Kitty Bartholemew’s stove, an O’Keefe and Merritt. Here it is:

Except for the part-chrome part-porcelain top (ours is all chrome) this is the exact stove that we ended up buying. The exact stove. I had completely forgotten about this.

Boy, do dreams come true!!

Happy Monday!

Filed Under: Don, O'keefe and Merritt, Stella 37 Comments

The Star

September 3, 2017 at 9:06 am by Claudia

She’s definitely the star of the kitchen. Dare I say – the entire house? Photos are a bit problematic this weekend as it’s dark and rainy. Not the best weekend for those who have traveled to our area for the Labor Day weekend. I think the only day it isn’t going to rain is Monday.

You can see that we moved the chair nearer to the piano so we can see Stella from the living room.

We cooked on Stella last night – but no biscuits yet as we didn’t start dinner until later in the day and then I realized that we didn’t have any eggs. So, the Cloud Biscuits have been scheduled for tonight. Can’t wait!

Cooking on her was fun. Just a basic meal; some stir fry, some rice. Using gas again is so great -adjusting the flame, starting to ‘learn’ Stella, and then madly cleaning up any cooking mess that dared to fall on the chrome. I wonder how long I’ll be this meticulous about it?

I grew up with gas appliances, so did Don, and then it became electric as I rented here and there. I haven’t cooked with gas for years and I much prefer it. We were like little kids last night, playing with our big, big Christmas present.

This is the timer Don bought. I should have taken a better picture – the back of the red portion behind the dial goes to a point, so it looks very mid-century.

I’m absolutely crazy about her.

By the way, I have a little tour of Stella up on Instagram Stories. It will only be there until about 1:00 pm today, so if you’re interested in learning more about her, stop by.

It’s amazing how quickly the weather has changed here. It started last week. Suddenly we’re in cooler mornings and cooler nights. The light is changing. It’s still Summer, but Fall is definitely making itself known. The leaves are already starting to change color on our big old sugar maple. What????

I’m not ready.

I’m sitting here with a shawl on because it’s cold this morning and we refuse, absolutely refuse, to turn on the heat on September 3rd. No way.

Biscuit pictures tomorrow. I’m enjoying my time with my husband (and Stella) before he leaves for a month of rehearsals in NYC. We’ll see each other during that time, of course, but we are relishing time together in our home before the craziness begins.

Happy Sunday.

Filed Under: Don, Mockingbird Hill Cottage, O'keefe and Merritt, Stella 37 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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