Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Before I get to the heart of this post, let’s talk about this clipboard. I was asked by Hometalk to create a clipboard entitled Quaint Quilt Ideas. Since I love all things quilting and quilts, I was thrilled to do it. I searched through all the posts on Hometalk and put together a clipboard that I think you will like. Here it is. Click on it and you will be taken to the actual clipboard and the posts that I’ve highlighted. Thanks for the opportunity, Hometalk!

And now, on to my confession:

As leaves begin to fall and the air gets a little cooler outside, I am reminded that Autumn is around the corner. And it’s time to admit something.

I don’t do seasonal decorating.

There, I’ve said it. And it might appear to be a form of blasphemy in our blogging world, which is currently full of pretty fall vignettes and wreaths and mantels. I love looking at them. Though I admire and applaud everyone who takes the time to do those things, it is simply not for me. Why? I’ve thought about it and here’s what I’ve come up with.

I live in a part of the country that has four distinct seasons. I live in the country. All I have to do is look out my windows to see Mother Nature’s seasonal decorating which, frankly, tops anything I could create. I bow to her and freely admit that she is simply the best. I’d much rather look at the real deal. So I let her do her thing and I watch and marvel and take pictures. That seems to be a fair trade.

I don’t think I did this even when we lived in San Diego, which does not have four distinct seasons. I suspect I might consider decorating for the seasons if I lived in San Diego or, say, Florida. But probably not.

I don’t have the patience or desire to create vignettes or seasonally themed wreaths or mantels. I don’t even have a mantel. This desire is clearly missing from my genetic makeup. It’s the reason that I could never be an elementary school teacher. If I had to constantly dream up new bulletin boards all the time, I’d be in trouble. My eyes glaze over at even the thought of it. My dear friend Jackie has been an elementary school teacher for years. She is the epitome of patience. She creates all sorts of bulletin boards for her students. She is all things I am not. My hat is off to her.

I can’t do it.

I also suspect that parents with children are more apt to decorate for the seasons. I might be wrong. My mother never did anything of the kind, but I can see that it would be fun and stimulating for kids. I don’t have children. And Scoutie doesn’t care about any of it. She told me so.

I have no storage space. Even if I wanted to decorate seasonally, I don’t have the extra room to store all this stuff. Nor do I want to spend money on something I have to throw away.

Oh, I’ll bring some branches of forsythia into the house in the spring. I’ll collect feathers and pine cones and acorns. But I do that because I want them with me in the cottage. I do it because I like them, not to create a vignette or a themed mantel. I may throw in a white mini pumpkin or two. And I’ll pull out the quilts and throws when winter comes around. But I have my quilts, with their delicious graphic beauty, around me all year round. And, of course, I decorate for Christmas – but no themes there, either. Just well-loved ornaments and decorations that we use every year.

There you have it. I’m owning up to the truth. “My name is Claudia. I’m a blogger who blogs about nesting, decorating, gardening, creating. And I don’t decorate for the seasons.”

Whew! That’s a relief.

Happy Monday.