Mockingbird Hill Cottage — Page 909 — Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Bashful

May 9, 2017 at 9:09 am by Claudia

I don’t know whether you do this, but I have alerts set on eBay for a couple of things I collect. Not Roseville or McCoy because I would get a slew of new listings every day. But I do have an alert for vintage Nancy Drew and for the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs egg cups that were made for Walt Disney in 1937. If you’ve read this blog for any length of time, you know that they are highly collectible and hard to find. I am the proud owner of two of them, Doc and Dopey. In the past couple of years, I have a bid on several, only to lose them to a higher bidder. Very frustrating!

The other day, I received an email alert for a new listing – Bashful. To my surprise, it wasn’t an auction, but a “Buy Now” and the price was very reasonable. I quickly clicked on the listing – it was still there, which was a miracle – and I bought it! I couldn’t believe it. It was so easy. Would that they were all this way! He arrived yesterday.

There he is! He’s in excellent condition. I’m so excited – can you tell?

Each name is on the egg cup itself.

Look at that sweet face. I’m truly amazed by the condition of this egg cup – the eyes, the rosy cheeks, the mouth – the paint is beautifully intact.

And there he is with Doc and Dopey. Doc and Dopey, by the way, seem to be up for auction far more often than the other dwarfs. The rest are quite rare. Snow White herself comes up once in a blue moon and usually goes for a hefty sum.

But, ever hopeful, I will strive to acquire them all.

I’m so thrilled that I got this little guy and for a very modest price, to boot!

I didn’t mulch or mow yesterday because it was cold and windy. Today, I will mow. Tomorrow, I’ll buy the mulch and some more plants and trust that the cold weather is departing, as it looks like the low overnight temps will be edging upward. Fingers crossed!

Yesterday, on his day off, Don drove out to the Borrego Springs in the desert, as it is a community without street lights and is known as a great place to see the stars. I haven’t heard about the stars yet as that happened after I was in bed, but I do know that I put in a request for some apple pie, as Julian is on the way to Borrego Springs.

Hmmmm. Will I be getting one in the mail?

Happy Tuesday.

Pansies, Bunnies & Cold Weather

May 8, 2017 at 9:24 am by Claudia

A pox on this cold and rainy weather! February was like May. May is like March. My frustration grew yesterday, so I put all the cushions back on the porch furniture…if it rains, it rains, they’re indoor/outdoor anyway!

Then I got in my car while light rain was spritzing my windshield and I drove to our local nursery. I was craving flowers. Surprisingly, there were quite a few people there, despite the weather. I find that everyone is as antsy as I am. We want to plant. We want warmer weather (coming next week, apparently.)

If it was going to stay unseasonably cold, I had just the solution:

Pansies! Confession: I’ve never planted pansies before, though I love them. Due to my frugal gardening nature, I usually plant all my pots once a season and that’s it. So I would normally plant these urns with something that would last through the summer.

But I threw caution to the winds yesterday and went with the pansies. And they cheered me up!

I have other plants-in-waiting. They’re currently waiting on the kitchen table.

And that doesn’t include impatiens, hanging plants, plants for the galvanized bucket, etc.

And mulch, which I will buy today or tomorrow.

In the meantime, it’s cold.

As happens at least once every spring, I looked outside to see a bunny inside the corral, running around in a panic because he/she couldn’t get out. After going outside and to open the gate, I went back inside and watched for a while, hoping he’d figure it out.

Nope. There was another bunny on the other side of the fence waiting for him. So I finally went outside, walking around the outside of the corral, hoping to nudge him toward the open gate. Didn’t work. Knowing he would be even more scared, but also knowing it was the only way to ‘rescue’ him from the corral, I stepped over the fence into the corral – staying far away – whereupon he panicked, running up against the fence a couple of times before he saw the gate and ran out.

Poor baby. But better that than an entire day stuck in the corral, getting more and more upset. I’m not sure why these guys can’t see the opening in the big corral that leads down to the house and the open gate. Let’s hope that’s the last time that happens. I saw him run around the house to the area just outside the kitchen window, where he stopped, collected himself, and proceeded to clean his paws. He’s okay.

Mowing? Mulching? I’m not sure.

Try not to get too excited.

Happy Monday.

Beatrice and Barnaby

May 7, 2017 at 9:23 am by Claudia

A rainy day view of the large garden bed from our bedroom upstairs. As you can see, none of the barrels or pots have been planted. That is partly due to the endless rain, but also because for the next three nights, it’s going down to the thirties, so I don’t want to shock any new plants. As it is, I’ll have to bring in the porch plants (only a few – the ones I overwintered) each night.

What a strange spring it has been. Last night we had a big thunderstorm with pounding rain. This morning, when I woke up, it was still raining. But I think it’s stopped now. I so want to visit a nursery, but if I buy anything, I’d have to keep it inside. We don’t have a garage where we can stash the plants. But I might visit the nursery closest to us today.

Just to look.

Cough.

There’s a new member of the family at Mockingbird Hill Cottage:

Say hello to Barnaby. Yes, I know that I named the other bunny egg cozy Barnaby but when you see the two of them together, you will understand, as I did, that the other bunny is female.

Beatrice and Barnaby. Mother and son.

You will now get different views because, like all little magical animals, their expressions seem to change depending on the angle. A case in point: Monty the Cow.

Barnaby likes to hold his mother’s hand.

Will I make another? As of last night…no. As of this morning…maybe. I made little mistakes in the sewing up that I’d like to correct, though I’m getting better at it. We’ll see.

A good way to occupy my time while it rained and rained and rained.

Happy Sunday.

Bashful

Pansies, Bunnies & Cold Weather

Beatrice and Barnaby

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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