Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Pining for Pine

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Have I mentioned that one of my favorite scents in all the world is pine? It may even be my favorite. I have a long history with pine. I grew up in Michigan. Summer vacation for our family was a camping trip to the Pigeon River State Forest. We started out in tents, then eventually graduated to a pop-up camper, and by the time I was in high school we had a trailer/RV. As we neared the campground and I caught my first whiff of pine, I knew we were almost there. (I didn’t particularly like camping, but I loved that piney scent.)  In my college years I was a camp counselor in the northern Michigan woods – more pine. To my mind, it was absolute heaven to be surrounded by pine trees. To this day, whenever I get a whiff of pine, I relax and feel my shoulders drop.

When I lived in Philadelphia in my grad school days, Wanamakers carried this wonderful pine bath from Austria. I bought it and used it religiously. A hot bath with the scent of pine was the perfect way to relax after a long day.  When I moved to Boston, I found it for a while at Crabtree and Evelyn or Caswell Massey (one of those ‘C’ shops.) But no longer. I search for it whenever I travel. I miss it so much it hurts. If you ever run across some form of pine bath, let me know please!

We always have some form of pine scented candle in our house. The best, bar none, are the ones from Aunt Sadie’s Candles. It’s their “Tree in a Can.” Heidi sells them in her shop and they sell like hotcakes every year.  I usually stock up on them for the long winter ahead.

But this time of year, I get the real thing. Right in my home. There’s nothing better. That’s why we always have a real tree here at MHC. Pine heaven. I don’t want an artificial tree. I love picking out a tree at our favorite nursery and that each year’s tree is different in size and shape from all the others we’ve had in previous years. Every year we say, without fail, “This is the prettiest tree ever!” This year’s tree is particularly well-shaped.  Let me show you.

Oooh, it’s pretty. It’s covered in vintage ornaments, as well as some newer ornaments that look vintage, like my favorite bottle brush ornaments:

(this was on my photo blog, hence the different water mark.)
A perfectly shaped tree loaded with cherished ornaments and the scent of pine? I may just stay in the den for the rest of the holiday season.
Thank you so much for all your compliments on Don’s video. (If you haven’t seen it, just scroll down one post.) I hadn’t planned on being in it, but the filmmaker requested my presence one day last week. Let me tell you, it was friggin’ freezing that day! The temperature was in the single digits. And when he asked us to lie down on the ground I thought he must be joking. He wasn’t. I was sure that little segment wouldn’t make it in the video, but I was wrong. Don says to tell you that the song isn’t on iTunes yet, but it will be soon. I’ll let you know when it’s there.
I’m off to do some shopping. And then back home to more crocheting and crafting. And hot chocolate.

Baths, Photographing Trees & Presents

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Oh lordy. Today is dog bath day. I’ve mentioned before that this is a major undertaking. Unlike those of you who blithely give your dogs a bath in your own home, we must journey several miles away to a dog wash. Scout and Riley are fairly large, extremely hairy dogs. Riley hates getting a bath. I repeat: Hates It. Lifting him into the tub will accomplish nothing but the spectacle of a big, wet dog escaping and then running around the house, shaking every part of his body. At the dog wash, we can put on his muzzle, secure him to the tub, and wash away…all the while telling him what a good dog he is. He gets clean, we don’t get a fear bite, and all is well. Scout, on the other hand, loves getting clean. She’s a girl, through and through.

We put this off until we absolutely have to. We have to. Afterward, both dogs will be exhausted. The next 10 days will be about chasing tumbleweeds of dog hair around the house. Hopefully, by Christmas all will be in order again.

We got our tree on Saturday. Yesterday, we decorated it. I’ll have some photos later in the week, though I always get frustrated trying to take photos of the prettiness I see in front of me. Last year, I googled ‘photographing Christmas trees and lights’ and read all sorts of advice, but the running theme through all the posts seemed to be that it is next to impossible to take a successful photo of a lit tree unless you are a professional photographer with lots of equipment. This year I will adjust my expectations.

Once again, I have been blessed with treasures from my friends. When my friend Elizabeth and I got together in New York, she gave me a little present.

You know I’m loving that dress form. What was inside?

Homemade caramels. Oh boy. They are scrumptious! Thank you Elizabeth!

My friend Betty wrote me a note around my birthday saying she had something in her house that kept reminding her of me and she had decided to send it to me. It came on Saturday.

Gasp! Yes, indeed – it reminds me of me! Is this not beautiful? Here’s the other side:

I’ve done some research. This pitcher was made by Hull and the pattern is Sunglow. Uh oh. The collecting urge is starting again. How many kinds of pottery can I collect? If you were in my home right now, your answer would be: ‘Apparently, a lot.’ I cannot help it. I know. I’m hopeless.

Hey, I don’t smoke. I don’t drink. I never did drugs. I’m a vegetarian. This is a relatively harmless vice, don’t you think?

My new obsession? Saving my pennies for a new camera. (Sssh! Don’t say anything about it to my current Canon. ) I love my camera. I just want to be able to do more. I really love photography and it’s time to step it up a notch or two. Or three.

I’m just putting it out to the universe.

The Where Women Cook Launch Party

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On a cold, cold December day, I made my way into Manhattan to have some fun at the party celebrating the first issue of Where Women Cook.

(my very own autographed issue.)

It was held at Chelsea Market – oh my gosh, what a fabulous place! It is full of wonderful restaurants and food emporiums and is in the old Nabisco Building. Oh, there’s also an Anthropologie there. You can bet I will be visiting it again, especially when I’m working on a coaching job in NYC this February and March. Many of the restaurants and businesses are owned by women. In fact, several of them will be featured in upcoming issues of Where Women Cook.

Interestingly enough, I ate very little while I was there. I was too busy gabbing. I did manage a cup of soup with my friend, Elizabeth Maxon. Elizabeth and I are blogging friends and we were so excited to finally get the chance to meet. She is featured in this issue – and she also contributed some of her photographs.

Elizabeth is wonderful. We talked and talked and if she hadn’t had to attend to other things (like signing copies of the magazine) we would have kept right on talking. We have theater in common – both of us were actresses for a time. Elizabeth is generous, funny and oh, so talented. I am in awe of her design style and her way with a camera. Speaking of cameras, I was lucky enough to be asked to take some photos with her camera, as well as Tiffany Kirchner-Dixon’s camera. Oh. my. goodness. I love my Canon but it is a very high end point-and-shoot. And I now realize there is a major difference between that level of camera and the next level of camera. I want one. I will have to start saving my pennies. It’s time to move on to the next level. Perhaps I should start a “Help Claudia buy a new camera” fund. Just kidding. Sort of.

What was so inspiring about this get-together was that it was about women celebrating women. So many talented women were there and each one was warm, friendly and charming. Usually, these events don’t seem to take place on the East Coast, so I’m really happy I had the chance to attend. I was lucky enough to be introduced around by Elizabeth and meet some wonderful women who are entrepeneurs and bloggers. The idea was to have the featured women sit at tables and sign copies of the magazine, as well as their books. There was a long line outside the door leading up to the 2 pm start time.


Here are some photos from the event:

 Elizabeth and Tiffany
MaryJane Butters in an adorable outfit, great hat and stole.
Elizabeth and Serena Thompson of The Farm Chicks. Celeste Shaw and Marcy Iverson on the left.
Molly Wizenberg, Jo Packham, the creator of Where Women Cook and Sarabeth of Sarabeth’s Kitchen.
Mamma Agata, Elizabeth and Suzy Eaton.
My blurry photo of Ree Drummond.

Wendy Addison was also there – for some reason I didn’t get a photo of her – darn! I’m sure I’ve missed a few others. If so, I apologize.
When I first arrived, I saw a woman who looked familiar. Turns out it was fellow blogger, Jane of A Pixie and a Gypsy.
It was a fun afternoon! But soon I headed out into the very, very cold weather and boarded the bus for home. When I arrived at the bus station, it was snowing! Our first, very light, snowfall of the season.
Hope you enjoyed this peek into the launch party. Today we bought our Christmas tree and I’ve made a little start on the decorations. We keep it pretty simple here at MHC.
It has been hard for me to visit everyone lately. I apologize. I will try to get around to you all this week. I also see some new commenters – thank you so much for leaving a comment. I promise to visit you soon!

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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