Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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Tuesday Ramblings

September 14, 2021 at 8:41 am by Claudia

And, suddenly, we’re in autumn. Along about mid-August, I stop caring about the look of the gardens. I only pull a weed if it’s in the way somehow. Every plant stays, nothing is pulled, and I let them self-seed and provide food and shelter for the birds and critters during the winter months.

Of course, raking must be done eventually. But let’s not go there yet.

I’m never ready for winter, but I am ready for fall. Bring it on.

I finished up my part of the 2020 deductions. Heaven knows what they’ll allow now. I’m hoping that the Biden administrations puts back some of the performing arts/freelancer deductions that they took away. Don is finishing up his deductions and I’ll send the whole ball of wax off to our accountant later this morning.

I also have to do some prep for my 12 noon coaching session with Ben.

It rained overnight and it’s supposed to rain tomorrow and the next day. Sigh.

Things on my mind, a running list of things to do before I head to NYC: show Don how I water the indoor plants so that he doesn’t overwater them, give him a watering schedule for indoor and outdoor porch plants, tell him when to pay the bills, encourage him to vacuum, dust, and clean the bathroom while I’m away, show him how to position the blanket on our California King bed (because we couldn’t find an affordable blanket in that size, this one goes on sideways.) There will be more things on that list and I’m not leaving for five weeks, but you know how it is.

It will be strange, as we haven’t been apart from each other since I spent a night in Hartford right before lockdown and we certainly haven’t been away from each other for any length of time since Margaritaville. While I was going through our bank records to look for deductions, it struck me: I could tell exactly when we went into lockdown. We were going along swimmingly until mid-March and then, bam! We were home. I also had to check my planner pages and I saw notes like “big grocery run” and “Don: last minute run before lockdown.” Then on the next day: “eerily quiet around here.”

The before times.

I’ve always had a planner of some sort. The kind of planner has changed over the years, but the recording of each day –  list of things to do, schedules, important notes, impressions of the day, quotes to remember, what I’m reading – has never changed. When I consult them for some reason, I see a visual of my life. I’m not a journal writer – this blog serves as a sort of visual journal – but boy oh boy, do I love my planner. It sure comes in handy at tax time, too. I can look back and see what dates I worked on a show, when I was out of town, the exact date something happened. It’s a memory refresher and I find I need that more and more as I get older.

Alright, my friends. I’m off to do some prep work.

But I have to include this:

Just because she’s so darned cute.

Stay safe.

Happy Tuesday.

 

Filed Under: autumn, Blythe dolls 22 Comments

Posing

September 13, 2021 at 9:49 am by Claudia

I’ve been feeling under the weather with allergies/sinus and yesterday was especially tough. Plus, I worked on our taxes and deductions for several hours. So, by the end of the afternoon, I was pretty fried.

What to do? Dress Sophie in her new outfit.

I’m not kidding! It was the first activity of the day to give me a wee bit of joy. So much so that I took some pictures – indoors and out.

(I promise not to make this blog about Blythe dolls, but if you will just indulge me at the beginning of this new adventure, I’d really appreciate it. I feel like I’m playing dolls again, but at a different level.)

First – indoors. In fact, right next to my blogging chair.

This outfit is adorable. Don loved the socks!

She’s way too big for that dollhouse.

Then outside – on a whim.

The minute my back was turned, she was climbing a tree. So much for a new outfit!

Communing with nature.

I have a lot to learn about posing these dolls for photos. They can’t stand on their own because the head is so heavy. So you have to prop them up, and I’m discovering a lot of tips on how to do that. Or you can put them on a stand and photoshop the stand out of the picture. But I don’t have photoshop. It will be fun to experiment when I have more time. Sophie’s body is adjustable, so I can position the arms and legs. Some Blythes have a special neck which allows you to tilt the head – but they’re more expensive. Sophie does not have that.

I’ve seen some extremely clever photographs out there. They’re a lot of fun.

For now, Sophie is back up on the music cabinet amongst the aqua McCoy.

Just wanted to mention the book, The Lonely Doll, by Dare Wright, which was published when I was a kid. I loved that book. It told the story of a doll and her bear friends in photographs and it was mesmerizing to this little girl. Apparently, there were ten books in all, all telling the story of Edith. Thanks to reader Margaret for reminding me of that series. I remember some people finding the idea creepy, but I loved it. I remember checking it out at our Bookmobile several times.

I got a lot done on the deductions yesterday. I’ll finish that up today and then I’ll type it all and send the info to our accountant tomorrow. I also have to prep today for a zoom session with Ben tomorrow.

I’m nicely busy.

It’s a lovely day today! Hopefully, I can take advantage of the light and get a little oil painting in this afternoon.

I hope you had a great weekend!

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

Filed Under: Blythe dolls, Sophie 40 Comments

From Our Walk and Clothes for Sophie

September 12, 2021 at 9:54 am by Claudia

From our walk yesterday:

These huge boulders were completely covered by water a week ago. It’s extraordinary how high the river was.

The mountains as seen from the side of the road.

I received some packages in the mail yesterday and it was truly an international event.

Some tights from Emma Florence Paris (yes! from Paris):

And these boots from Northfield Primitives, based in Yorkshire, England:

I can’t believe how adorable they are. The seller also sent along some purple socks.

And, from St. Petersburg in Russia:

This dress, pinafore/jumper, and yellow socks – from Lena Little Dresses. Two outfits in one. The dress can be worn alone or layered with the pinafore. Sophie is going to don a new outfit later today, whether she likes it or not. By the way, Sophie has her own IG account, mostly because I didn’t want to spam my regular account with doll photos as not everyone gets them. It’s @Sophieandherpals. That’s as creative as I could be yesterday. The implication is that Sophie might be living with a pal soon. Stay tuned. I think it will be fun to pose her and experiment with photographing her. As Don says, and I quote, “She’s very  photogenic!”

It was pretty neat getting a package from Russia. First time for that. This particular shop makes wonderful Blythe clothes and, considering the distance, the package got here very quickly. It came in a lovely box.

Sophie already has more clothes than I do. Cripes, I’m merely hoping to replace my worn out, baggy jeans this week. That’s all I ask.

Today: deductions. We took a very long walk yesterday and then I did some chores and by the time I was thinking of starting that process, I was too tired. I’ve been waking up way too early lately and it’s taking its toll.

Stay safe.

Happy Sunday.

Filed Under: Blythe dolls, dolls, Hudson Valley, Sophie 16 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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