Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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Tuesday Potpourri

January 4, 2022 at 9:46 am by Claudia

Just one more reminder that the email version of this post is no longer consistently delivered and it can go out any time – usually much, much later than I publish it. Please consider getting in the habit of just coming to the blog directly. I always published the post by 11 am, usually by 10 am.

That’s your public service announcement for today.

It is VERY cold here. For some reason last night, I couldn’t get warm when I went to bed. So I didn’t get as much sleep as I would have liked. Maybe it’s the sudden change from relatively mild temperatures to very cold weather. I’ll eventually get used to it.

Friday’s forecast has changed from 3-5 inches of snow to 1 inch. We have some rain coming Wednesday and Sunday, but no snow in sight on the long range forecast which goes to January 18th. We did not get hit with the snow that the coast did – that storm went right up the coast and we’re inland so we were spared.

One of Don’s birthday gifts to me:

He had a mug made for me with a picture of my director’s chair from the movie set. I did grab the canvas with my name on it. (We all did.) It’s on the wall in the office.

I’ve started the Jane Austen puzzle, but I didn’t start it until late in the day yesterday, so I just got all the edge pieces in place. More today. I’ve been experiencing some anxiety lately and working on a puzzle is a pleasant way to make that go away.

It’s sunny today. I can’t tell you how much we need it!

And finally, these arrived in the mail yesterday:

Yellow! They’re made by CraftyCora. She lives in Connecticut, which is refreshing since most of the stuff I order for the girls comes from other countries. There just isn’t a whole lot available here – based on what I’ve discovered so far. Cora does impeccable work. I have the same pair in green and I suspect I’ll order more.

I don’t know how she does it!

Stay safe.

Happy Tuesday.

Filed Under: life 26 Comments

It’s Finally Monday

January 3, 2022 at 9:15 am by Claudia

Don is fetching our ornament bins from storage as I write this. Time to take down the tree.

It’s very cold here today and as I scanned the weather forecast, I noted the possibility of 3 – 5 inches of snow for Friday. That would be the first snow that wasn’t just a coating of snow/ice. We’re sort of excited.

Time to get salt.

Speaking of salt, our little hardware store closed. It has been there for years and years. The original owners were a well-known family in this community and they sold it a couple of years ago. I guess the new owner couldn’t make a go of it. We’re so sad. Now we have to drive 10 miles or more instead of the 2 miles we’re used to.

Our little town has become boring. It started with my friend Heidi closing her wonderful shop (remember, I used to work there part-time?) Now, there’s a pizzeria, an insurance agency or two, an accountant, a couple of small restaurants, and a yoga studio. No hardware, no pharmacy/drug store, no bookstore, no antique shop. It’s depressing.

Pippa helped me yesterday. She’s very bright and seems to like jigsaw puzzles, like her mom.

And the final product, finished this morning:

I always do 1000 piece puzzles and I didn’t realize until I started in on this one that I’d given Don a link for a 500 piece puzzle. Cockily, I thought I’d breeze through it. I was wrong. It was quite difficult!

Next up, the Jane Austen puzzle.

But first, taking down the decorations and then endless vacuuming because this tree is really dry.

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

 

Filed Under: Blythe dolls, Christmas, jigsaw puzzles 12 Comments

A New Year

January 2, 2022 at 10:09 am by Claudia

Well, Happy New Year! I was born in 1952 and this year ends in ’22, so you do the math. It won’t happen until the end of the year, but, believe me, I have taken note.

We had a very low-key New Year’s Eve. I think we went to bed around 11 pm. We dined on delicious Thai food, ate a few chocolates, watched one of our favorite movies – It Happened One Night – and toasted the new year with sparkling cider.

Now we’re at the point in the weekend where we keep thinking today is Monday. Just as we thought Saturday was Sunday. I’ll be happy to get back to normal, whatever that is. The tree is still up, though it’s very dry. (We never have the lights on when we’re not here, so it’s safe.) We were going to take it down today, but Don asked if we could keep it up one more day. Normally, we’d have it up until the 6th, at the very least, but this tree from Lowes is not lasting as long as the trees we usually buy from our favorite nursery. I’ll miss it. It’s quite beautiful.

Plus, it’s raining. Again. We’ve had endless fog and rain. It’s getting rather depressing.

This tray full of vegetables and a copper pan with the makings of soup was one of the miniatures that Ben gave me as a present on the last day of shooting. There are several others that I’ll share with you. Here’s the back story: When I was coaching Ben via Zoom, I used our office. I did my best to angle the camera so that the Beacon Hill wouldn’t appear in the shot. Not everyone understands dollhouses, for one thing, but more importantly, it seemed unprofessional. But eagle-eyed Ben caught sight of it once and became excited and wanted me to show it to him. So I showed him the Beacon Hill and the English cottage and he was quite taken with them. (His mom had a dollhouse.) I mentioned that I hoped to get to Tiny Dollhouse in NYC while I was staying in Brooklyn. If you didn’t read my post on IG, I went there on the one day I had off and they were unexpectedly closed. I was so disappointed. But Ben, who was always on set, sent his boyfriend David to the shop to pick out a few things for me! David, by the way, fell in love with miniatures while he was there. Ben presented me with the loveliest card with very moving thank you, along with a gift bag. Inside the bag were all the miniatures. So, so dear of him. One of them was for Don and me – a really neat guitar. I’ll show you more in the future.

And here’s Zoe and Bertie (on another dark and dreary day.) She’s wearing a new dress.

Okay my friends. I hope you had a lovely weekend.

Stay safe.

Happy Sunday.

Filed Under: Blythe dolls, dollhouse, miniatures, Zoe 34 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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The Dogs

The Dogs

Scout & Riley. Riley left us in 2012. Scout left us in February 2016. Dearest babies. Dearest friends.

Winston - Our first dog. We miss you, sweetheart.

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Lambs Like to Party

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Thanks for visiting! Feel free to browse, read and enjoy. All content is my own; including photos and text. Please do not use anything on this site without permission.

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