When I came in the house yesterday after working outside because it was so darn hot, I checked the weather app on my phone.
86 degrees.
What the heck? It’s too darned early for that nonsense. Since the window air conditioners have yet to be installed, last night’s sleep was a wee bit erratic. It was so darned hot! Thankfully, today’s temperatures have dropped back to the norm for this time of year. It’s a little rainy this morning and the high will be 70.
That’s better.
The unseasonably warm temps moved some of the plants along. This is what I observed yesterday.
The forsythia is starting to bloom. I see yellow splashes of forsythia all over town, but ours blooms a bit later since it’s on a higher elevation in the woods.
Hello, lilac leaves! They opened overnight.
The hyacinths started to open. We are now in the early stages of spring in the garden.
I cleaned out the memorial garden bed, which was full of leaves, as is/was every bed on the property. Then I went around to the side of the house and raked out that bed. I found a tuberous root that had come out of the ground, most likely due to the ground seizing during the thaws and refreezes that happened in March. I think it might be a day lily. After googling for more info, I replanted it, but whether it takes or not is open to question.
I think I’m going to add some day lilies to the memorial garden. Yep. I going to do that very thing. Scout, in particular, joyously greeted each new day as if it was a miracle. A day lily seems appropriate.
Rounding up the remainder of the egg cups. Many of these are on shelves in the china cabinets or on the bookshelves. On the left, a gift from a reader. This one was hand painted. It is one of the largest egg cups I own. Next to that, an adorable egg cup from Linda. The tail is a salter. Next to that, a Delft egg cup from Holland. Then my newest egg cup, from France. The design includes two groundhogs! Then a blue transferware egg cup. An egg cup from Devon, England – a gift from Mary. An egg cup from France that I found in San Diego. And finally, a goose egg cup – also from France – that I found in an antique shop.
Ta da! We’re done. I seldom buy them nowadays because vintage figural egg cups are few and far between and the ones I really love, I already have. The Disney egg cups are still on my radar – my dream would be to own the entire set from 1937. But they are very, very pricey.
A big old welcome to this edition of Nancy Drew – Nancy’s Mysterious Letter. My favorite illustrations by Russell H. Tandy are the first eight or nine, which were done in the thirties. This is one of them – number 8 in the series. I want those shoes. But not the fur coat. One hopes that the Nancy of 2017 would eschew fur.
One more is on the way, and then seven to go and I will have all the Russell H. Tandy cover illustrations.
Someone asked what I would collect when I had accumulated all the Nancy Drews. I am an inveterate collector, as you know. Don’t forget I still collect McCoy Pottery, Roseville Pottery, vintage books, little sheep and lambs (figurines and otherwise,) egg cups, bakelite, Maxfield Parrish and Wallace Nutting prints. Oh, and wedding cake toppers.
See? There’s plenty to search for.
Yesterday’s email version of the blog post went out in the evening for some reason, rather than earlier in the day. Since I use Google Feedburner (which is free, thank goodness) I have no real control over it. Every once in while, Feedburner has a glitch or two. I’ll keep an eye on it. And I’ll say what I always say, just come to the blog directly. 99.9% of the time, I will have written a post for that day.
Okay. Time to get my butt in gear.
Happy Wednesday.
Wow that is warm for up your way! So sweet to see things starting to bloom. Here in Ga we are way into spring. I bought a Hyacinth plant and it has bloomed and is lovely. As with so many plants like this the fragrance is slight but with my allergies, maybe it’s enough. I’m going to take some photos and I may try to paint it. I know with my collections I reach a stopping point except for something very special which is hard to find and usually pricey. I’m trying to limit things since I’ve really run out of room to display items. Sneezing and coughing today since i was outside in the pollen Saturday. I hope it doesn’t turn into a cold, I’ve got a busy weekend. Taking care of Scout on Friday and church, Easter Dinner and Scout’s birthday on Sunday!! Enjoying a Gentleman in Moscow so far. Lovely writing. Hugs!
I’d try to get a whiff of my hyacinth, but it’s too low to the ground in an already crowded garden bed. Ah well!
Good Morning Claudia,
I have enjoyed your sharing of the egg cups. The one that caused me to look it up was the Fanny Farmer egg cup. I knew there was a Fanny Farmer cookbook which was my very first cookbook as a new bride. Still have the cookbook ( was a gift from my mom) though it has fallen apart from moving so much. From the little bit of research, I did not know about the egg cups came with chocolate eggs. I do think you need a polish pottery eggcup to add to your International collection. The daffodils are gone. They were beautiful while they lasted. So I guess our spring is well on its way. Pollen has been really bad this year. My hold on the book Gentleman in Moscow came in yesterday. Amazing that it was so hot up where you live so early, I think. Isn’t it about mid-July that it gets so warm? At least that is what I think I remember from living up there in NH and MA. Warm here too. The last two days reached 80 degrees. I think that it is hot too early here. I love the idea of the memory garden.
My very first egg cup was a Fanny Farmer egg cup that must have come with chocolate eggs.
Last year I seem to remember a few days in April where it got really hot. It doesn’t last, thank goodness. It should be in the sixties and seventies about now and thankfully, today it’s back where it should be.
86? Too hot…too hot. I’m sure Scout would like the day lilies. Thanks for sharing the egg collection….I so enjoy seeing it. I would love to start collecting something again…but I’m at a loss as to what and why. After all the purging I have done over the last several months…I am hesitant to start. I’m liking this less cluttered version of my home. For the time being, I think I’ll focus on the outside, our gardens…and let the collecting bug simmer a bit more. Enjoy your blooms…I can almost smell your hyacinths! ;)
I’m decluttering, but NOT my collections! Although I do have the wedding cake toppers in storage. And some duplicate egg cups, as well.
I didn’t purge my collections…just a lot of the extraneous stuff that accumulates so that my collections can spread out. But everything can breathe now…I’m liking that part. ;)
Ah! That makes sense! xo
Somehow I’d missed or forgotten that you collect cake toppers. I’d love to see them one day! I know very little about those collectibles. I’m sure I’ve seen them in antique stores but probably just didn’t ‘get’ what they were?!!
Unfortunately, they’re in storage as I had to move them to free up space for the Roseville!
I’m trying to find decent hanging cabinets for displays since I don’t have the floor space…but then the other problem is wall space!
Oh, I know. We are pretty much out of wall space around here. The joy of a lot of windows and light also means less wall space.
What a lovely post. I love to see your collections and the Nancy Drew and egg cups are a delight.
Hey I want to get political for a moment Claudia; am I drunk or was there a big deal about trump and the whole election connection..friendly with Putin etc etc?? Are you catching anything on air about that?
It is maddening when I watch Morning Joe and nary a word. I do not understand how fickle real gosh darn news is from the ones who deliver it. Maybe Lawrence O’ will mention it tonight.
Any ideas? I was following the story like a hawk and then the buzzard bombs a site or two in Syria and all spy and interest in his Watergate type cover up has lost the energy.
Ugh! what gives?
(and by the way, I do not like the new lady on MSNBC who came from FOX, Greta; she worked for FOX so what else do we need to know? Did her character as an individual, her virtue, change overnight. I sound mad..maybe I am.
And yes it has been too hot down here. I am always saying “I’m hot” but I am and it is April. I swear; summer comes so early for NC.
Have a beautiful day and thank you for your posts.
Katheryn
Rachel Maddow and Lawrence O’Donnell are still talking about it. And take comfort, the FBI is not swayed by Trump’s maneuvers to distract us. They will keep investigating. But you’re right – the press can be fickle.
Greta has never been a favorite of mine. And when she joined Fox, that was it for me. So I do not watch her show on MSNBC.
Don’t worry, the FBI and CIA are on it.
I slept with bedroom window open and summer PJ’s last night. Even had ceiling fan on for a bit, I miss spring. In kitchen window box I have yellow tulips and purple Hyacinths, I get a nice fragrance from the hyacinths when the breeze it that way. We finished raking this morning, so I am finished. He does lawn not me. I am not a lawn freak, I have grass anyway. If it grows and is green I consider that a success. Husband obsesses about it not me. I too am a collectors, how do people exist without that fun of finding the one? I have had to be careful am running out of space but what the heck we only live once. I enjoy the fun. Take care
I would be awfully bored if I didn’t collect, Mary!
Your egg cups always make me smile Claudia. Thank you for sharing them (again). And yes, it was wicked hot in eastern PA yesterday. Cooler and damper today, thankfully.
Yes. Even the rain is much appreciated today!
I managed to get a couple of hours cleaning up and planting in the garden, then the rains came again. Indoor cleaning today! Thanks for the egg cup tour.
You’re welcome, Wendy! It’s a challenge to do it every year in a somewhat fresh way!
It seems like yesterday you had snow! Glad you’re enjoying the work of the garden although it’s HARD work (albeit rewarding).
I’ve loved the egg cups so much. You have a beautiful collection, Claudia. Thank you for sharing it all with us.
Very rewarding. Thought right now it’s a lot of raking and loading tarps and bending over, etc.
You’re welcome!
So nice to have garden pictures to view again! My forsythia is just lovely right now. And the lilac leaves are out in our yard, as well. My bridal wreath has begun budding, too. Every day I notice a few more patches of plants and bushes greening up!
It would be fun to see some of your cake toppers again. I think it has been a while since you shared those. Have a wonderful rest of your Wednesday!
Oh, my heart always beats a little faster when I can start taking garden photos once again. Makes me very happy. My bridal wreath is looking green but no leaves yet.
Unfortunately, the cake toppers are in storage! I only have so much room, and I needed the space for Roseville!
Yesterday was RIDICULOUSLY hot!! I took the day off to work in the garden, which was wonderful, but way too early for that kind of heat up here! No forsythia blooming here yet, we are too high up. Soon, though! The lilacs popped their leaves overnight, and it seems the deer left the buds alone this season so I’m hoping for a good bloom.
Crazy hot! Our forsythia just started blooming. There’s even more blooms today. Today is much more pleasant – sane temperatures.
Your egg cup collection is lovely. Enjoy the Nancy Drew book. I agree with you, yesterday was too hot. I do not like it any hotter than in the 60’s . Our Forsythias are blooming,too. Thanks for sharing your egg cup collection.
Marilyn
You’re very welcome, Marilyn!
I have a mourning dove that sits on my deck railing right outside the family room. My parakeets were listening today to her song. So cute to watch
They are so gentle. I’m listening to one call right now. I love them.
Claudia, do you feed the wild birds or just give water? My situation is getting a bit out of control with what seems like thousands of birds, throwing seed everywhere to where I have inferior corn growing out of pavers and bird poop all over everything. (It’s A LOT of poop.) I’ve tried to carry on Mom’s longtime tradition (I’m in her house) of daily feeding but it’s also getting quite expensive. Somewhat (not really) smaller sacks of birdseed at the local hardware store today were $8 a bag and that’s one day feed for my feeder; who can afford this?!! When we go to a fixed income with final-final retirement, forget it! Generally, we go to the bigger pet stores (box stores) to try to get larger sacks of seed for a better price, but my husband is getting tired of lugging bags because he has a bad back, and it’s a long way from the driveway to around the house to the rear/back where the feeders are located although he’s trying to use a dolly (hand truck) now. The thing is, we are surrounded by five acres of somewhat ‘wild’ (untended) private land which includes a hillside but also hundreds of varieties of bushes and trees from all over the world which were planted by a wealthy landowner very early in the last century…so, I’m thinking that this is certainly a better environment for a wild bird than if it was urban and a concrete jungle with an occasional tree struggling through a small hole in the pavement. I don’t mind giving water and I have two stone bird baths for that purpose…good-sized ones, free-standing and very sturdy…but if I can deal with my ‘guilt’ issues, I’m really wanting to stop feeding. I’ve come to this decision so many times and then quite can’t do it; I hate to think of any little wild thing going hungry and dying from lack of food although, of course, there is a cycle to it which maybe I’m even interrupting by human intervention which isn’t natural, but maybe they have enough to forage without me. Just wondering what you do. The bigger birds are pushing all the little ones away anyway. And the jays don’t seem to like the birdseed at all…any variety…and prefer bowls of dry cat food sitting out even if I try to camouflage the bowls. I know that we’re not supposed to abruptly empty hummingbird feeders and I wouldn’t abruptly stop with the seed for the other birds; I’d taper it to gradual withdrawal. Sigh. It’s all getting a little too much for me, although I know that sounds wimpy. Anyway, your thoughts; do you feed or just water the birdies? What’s your routine? Hope I’m not repeating a question I’ve asked of you before…
I would absolutely love to feed the birds, but my neighbors have outdoor cats that freely roam our property. I don’t want the cats getting the birds, so I don’t put out seed. Just water.
Well, I’m glad to know. I was sure I’d asked this question here before and was risking being a repeater!
The feral cats are definitely an issue although I try to keep them well fed. It’s why I started feeding the one feral, so she’d stay away from the bird feeder as the dead birds were upsetting Mom. (Usually, the feral colony in these properties surrounding me are cats that only come out at night and are afraid of people, but she was clearly very hungry to be slinking around in daylight, poor girl. And Mom’s backyard/hillside in those years was very open/unfenced and undisturbed; no activity.) Even though both feral cats are fat cats in these days, the mom will still go for a bird even though she’s in her old age now; she was always a ‘birder’ and I often am distressed to find feathers although sometimes the birds will actually fight with each other and I recently found a dead one, intact, at the feeder.
The obvious question on cost/’labor’ would be to simply feed the birds LESS but I do think I’m going to give it up to ‘nature’ and just do water. Also, if we WERE able to actually travel a little in retirement, a weekly yard guy could easily spritz some water into the bird baths for us as he (at the same time) waters the landscaping. (Dealing with seed and mess would be more problematic for a busy worker; I’d have to pay extra. It would not be cost-wise to have to pay anyone else just to go feed wild birds if we were away. My aging dog [most likely] and these elderly ferals will be dead by the time we’d actually be ‘on the road’ and I won’t be feeding any other wild cats; I’ve definitely decided THAT for sure.)
What can I say as I look to now and the future in my own latter years? I’m like everybody in a complicated life, I’m just trying to simplify. Thanks for answering my question…again. I’m too wishy-washy on the subject! I should mention that I really have to watch my dog around that whole bird feed area as the seed goes bad on the ground, eventually, which is constant cleanup for my husband (and he does NOT like that job) but the dog instantly goes there due to all the smells and intrigue…and, one time, she ate something that made her really sick which entailed a trip to the vet and medicine; I saw her licking her chops and she wasn’t feeding on ‘bird’, so it was either the bad seed mix (some has bits of fruit in it) or bird poop residue. I have to watch her closely and she can never be unattended outside. The cats go to an entirely different part of the yard, protected from the dog, but I have no way to rope off the dog’s area from the bird section; there’s no other place for the setup. All my dogs always also wanted to DRINK from the birdbaths and I don’t think that’s a good thing either; birds carry disease, and they drink and bathe in that water! I don’t want a dog drinking it.
Oh well. But where would we be without birdsong in the mornings?!!
You know, some traditions have to end. What worked for Mom isn’t working for us. In the last 30 years of her life, she had no pets in the rear yard; the birds were her ‘pets’ and she became quite the observer, using her field guides and identifying the various birds. She’d become disabled with auto-immune disease and was greatly confined to home, so it was a good diversion for her. I was always grateful she could look out the windows and see trees, plants, flowers…birds.
And I’ve now waxed on and on about this slightly-garden’esque’ subject ‘way too much, Claudia…so, end of subject. You helped me, though. Thanks.
Feeding the birds and watching them must have give your mother great comfort, Vicki. I understand. But it is expensive and, to be honest, I’ve always worried about what would happen if I was away for an extended period of time – what would they do? And, as you know, both of us are often away for big chunks of time.
As it is, I worry about our sweet mourning doves – they move more slowly and I wouldn’t want a cat to get them. The cats come down near the porch, but usually not until it’s dark because I’ve shooed them away more than once.
Well, I said time for me to end the subject, but…
Yes, I’ve seen more than one dove in my yard come to a sad end because they are indeed bulkier and slower cat bait. Sometimes the dove seems as big as the cat but the cat usually wins. Always upsets me a lot.
You can see how I tied down myself with these two feral cats of whom I mention…the feeding schedule is tricky because they’re wild, born in the bush; wary of humans. The only way I can be 4-6′ from them now is because I’ve been feeding the two for almost ten years. The food has to be taken up at night so as not to attract raccoons or other feral cats. It’s a morning and late afternoon/early eve task. Unless I paid to have someone stay at my home, it’s a hassle for anyone else. (And, for the past 8 years, I had to keep all this out of sight from my cat-hater neighbor; the guy who threatened, and did [I know he did] shoot at them although I think they were maybe in his relative’s yard once or twice, if that, which they were freely allowed to do before he disturbingly arrived on scene and changed everyone’s world here.)
I can’t even leave a water dish down for the cats (trying to keep them out of the bird bath water) or the raccoons wash their ‘hands’ with it (they love a pan or bowl of water on the ground for that reason) and raccoons carry a host of parasites which are bad for cats, dogs, humans. I really can’t abide raccoons in my yard; they can be aggressive and I’ve had times where spraying them with the garden hose didn’t even help with making them turn around and go back the way they came. They can dig up a whole new plant, too. They killed a fig tree! Destructive, with big claws. In the night they almost glide across the yard like a ghost, creeping me out!
Once I eventually hired caregivers for Mother, I tried to score days for myself when I could limit my participation to a phone call(s) and have more time at my own home and for my own life. So, I had to make the cat/bird-feeding chores easier for those helpers of Mom’s. We fed a lot less to make sure all the food outside was eaten by the kitties well before dusk; I only wanted the caregivers to have to do the one-shot activity in the morning because their primary responsibility was of course to Mom. I would have been wise to continue with that schedule/routine and make it easier on myself in the years since…
I tend to worry about, for instance, both my husband and I getting suddenly/temporarily indisposed where, even though a cousin I have elsewhere in the county who I really don’t know very well would at least get my dog to a safe shelter (she actually works for a domestic animal rescue league as a volunteer; I keep a note of instruction and her info in my handbag at all times), she wouldn’t have the time, proximity or involvement for feral cats and birds in the backyard a couple of times a day. It’s just not a workable situation for anybody but my husband and me.
I really got myself into a commitment with the cats and, frankly, I’ll be glad when it’s over as they’re not really pets. (Another way I’m weird…but sometimes I wonder if part of my reason to sell my own house and move in Mom’s was because everything I was looking into, to relocate these wild cats once Mom’s house was vacated for rent or sale, was a BIG problem with a high failure percentage. I wasn’t about to leave them to fate when they’d become dependent upon human help with food and water over so many years. They can die in even very temporary captivity while you’re trying to figure things out for them.)
Animals can really tie you down; well, of course you encountered this with dear Scout, especially in her later years. We’re trying, recently, to take our dog with us on small trips, like being gone for 3-4 or more hours, but she really doesn’t like it much as she’s older now, a senior herself, and I just don’t think a backseat of a car is very comfortable for her (bigger dog, getting somewhat arthritic I think).
If you can find the right person to live at your home while you’re gone for an extended period of time…bring in the mail, bring in the paper, take care of the pets, have a presence in your absence, it’s so ideal; but I’ve just never found that person. There are no professional pet services around here anymore and I looked into one person who left a card at the vet’s office but I became not so sold on the gal in the long run. I guess I’m picky. You’ve really gotta have somebody you can trust! And I sure haven’t had the right neighbors for it, at least lately…
I’ve thought so many times over the years that extended house-sitting/pet-sitting could have been a great way, all the years I was single and on my own, to supplement my income and give me a chance from time to time to enjoy being in a home rather than my small apartments! I love animals and was a very responsible young woman; it coulda been a win-win for me AND the homeowner even with me working at a job from 8 to 5 during the week. As you’ve discussed, of parts of San Diego/La Jolla being ritzy, I once lived in tony Santa Barbara and actually had exposure through my work to a fair amount of well-off people who probably would have been glad to shell out some money for a trustworthy house/pet sitter. I could have seized on that connection. I look back on it as a lost opportunity for my younger self!
We used to use a group called Home Sitting Seniors when we lived in San Diego. They were, for the most part, really wonderful. All senior citizens who were mobile and had cars and they would come stay in our house and take care of the dogs, get the mail, etc. I don’t even know if they’re still in existence and, of course, I’m a Senior now. When we moved out east, there was no such group available and the one dog sitter we hired was conscientious but a little overzealous and would take the dogs up in the woods where they would promptly get ticks. We never took them in the woods, so we had to keep telling her to stop. She meant well, but by that time, both Riley and Scout were aging and we decided we were the only people who could take care of them the way they needed to be taken care of.
Home Sitting Seniors – what an excellent idea. Have never heard of such a thing. Will ask the vet next visit…and do some googling. You’d think in SoCalif, touted as entrepreneurial and ‘happening’ (ha) and with me not living too far from another city which has a 100,000 human population, we’d have better services. But I run into this all the time. There’s not even a branch of ASPCA in my county; no home organizers; no registered dieticians who suit my needs. And in the town where I actually reside (30,000 pop.), we don’t even have a farmer’s market, yet we’re surrounded by agriculture. It’s ridiculous. Gosh, you go any direction where you and Don live upstate there in NY and you’ve got all kinds of great shops and services!
Well, it is a minimum of 20 minutes – more likely an hour until we get to the shops we go to. Our town only has 3000 people!
I want Nancy’s hat!…I absolutely love vintage and antique hats…Flapper styles are my favorite!…Did you get my email about the books?….Their is a beautiful patch of Irises in the garden out back..white with purple on them..so pretty…I can hardly wait for my tulips to bloom…gosh..Spring is so wonderful!
I did – I just haven’t had time to respond yet – I will write you later today!