Mockingbird Hill Cottage — Page 1108 — Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Spying

August 31, 2015 at 9:13 am by Claudia

You may think me a voyeur, but I can’t help it. I’m always curious about Caroline’s activities. She is, after all, living under the same large roof as Don and me. Speaking of roofs, what did I see yesterday?

8-31 dh ottoman

Hmmm….let’s zoom in a bit.

8-31 mini mag

Aha! When the story on her house was published in American Miniaturist, Caroline seemed rather blasé about the whole thing, which made my reaction look over the top. I offered her a copy of the magazine. She declined. No more was said on the subject.

Apparently Caroline is a bit more excited than she let on. This rather well-thumbed copy of the magazine is sitting on the wicker ottoman, right where Caroline spends hours basking in the summer sun.

So: we have new sea shells on the coffee table:

8-31 dh den

And a new magazine. Could Caroline have purchased it while away on her vacation? One wonders.

Not that I’m spying or anything.

Your obligatory flower photo:

8-31 hydrangea

The hydrangea that I planted last year keeps blessing us with vividly colored flowers. I wondered if the original color would be the same after it had been planted in our soil, but it is.

The limelight hydrangea at the front of the house is starting to turn a soft pink. Happens every Autumn.

Don: Read No Further!

I finished the other side of the Top Secret Project yesterday.

8-31 tsp one side

The exterior has been covered with board and batten.

8-31 tsp another side

I added a coat of Matte Varnish by Delta Ceramcoat. I just may add one more coat today. Then it’s on to the inside. There’s some priming that needs to be done.

Happy Monday.

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Shells, Music, and an Anniversary

August 30, 2015 at 9:52 am by Claudia

I don’t profess to know all of Caroline’s comings and goings. She is very independent, as you know. Yesterday, during her absence, I snuck a peak at the interior of her house.

8-30 DH shells 1

She’s clearly been to the beach. I know those seashells were not there before.

8-30 DH shells 2

They’re pretty.

I wonder where Caroline was? California? Some Caribbean island? Hawaii? I mean, I know it’s none of my business, technically, but don’t you think letting me know when she’s going to be out of town would be the polite thing to do?

8-30 The guys-2

A wonderful performance last night by these guys.

Although there was a table of very loud patrons who were annoyingly clueless about their volume level and the fact that people were trying to listen to the words Don was singing. One woman eventually turned to them to ask them to keep it down. I walked over and stood by their table and gave them the evil eye. Twice.

There are people who travel in their own little bubbles and have no clue as to what is going on around them.

I wanted to knock their heads together.

Ah, well.

6-11mhc

Today, my friends, is the tenth anniversary of Mockingbird Hill Cottage. We moved in on August 30th, 2005.

Ten years!

The name Mockingbird Hill Cottage was not in existence on that day. It was just our very own house. That was enough, believe me.

Mockingbird Hill Cottage came a couple of years later. And then the blog appeared about a year after that.

Corners-kitchen 5

Yep. Ten years. See?

Does this mean we’re adults now?

Happy Sunday.

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Flowers, Shells, Scout, and Don’s New CD

August 29, 2015 at 8:49 am by Claudia

When I feel a certain level of stress, I find myself gravitating to some chore that is so all consuming that it takes me away from the endless repetition of fear thoughts in my head. Yesterday was one of those days. I yanked tons of weeds. I weed whacked. I mowed the back forty.

I guess it’s the equivalent of a good workout – I felt much more centered after all of that. Tired, but centered.

8-29 hollyhock

The hollyhock is still blooming. I love the raspberry color of the flower.

8-29 shells

I rinsed a lot of sand off a lot of sea shells.

8-29 Scoutie galloping

Though Scoutie has her share of aches and pains and has a lot of trouble getting around, the one place where she can be her old self is here. As she heads on in from the corral and reaches the little hill, she begins to gallop. I managed to catch her in mid-stride yesterday.

Tonight, Don and his pals, Dan and Dewitt, are playing a gig just down the road from our house. You might remember that they played together a few months back and it was an incredible evening. I was determined to get back from Florida in time to be a part of the audience. Can’t wait!

Don and Dan stepped into the recording studio a few months back and recorded a live album in one day. Don’s words and music, his guitar, and Dan’s incredible work on multiple instruments came together for the perfect CD. They held a fund-raising campaign on IndieGoGo to raise the money needed to master the songs and package the CD and by the day before yesterday, they had managed to raise all the money they needed. I’m so excited for them! Soon, Don will have the CD he’s always dreamed about; a truly professional (and beautifully recorded by Rick Gedney) CD of some of his favorite songs. Whoo hoo!

I’ll tell you more about it when it’s finally packaged and ready for release. I’m thrilled for Don. He’s worked very hard on this project and witnessing his joy when he heard the recordings was a beautiful thing indeed.

This may be a day for some Top Secret Project work…

Yesterday, I realized I hadn’t picked a winner for the book giveaway of The Reinvention of Albert Paugh. Yikes! I quickly changed that little scenario and the winner is Linda. I’ve contacted her and she’s excited. Congratulations, Linda!

Happy Saturday.

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Spying

Shells, Music, and an Anniversary

Flowers, Shells, Scout, and Don’s New CD

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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