A road trip - away, but not for long. . . . . . . .

Father's Day

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Bob and I will be remembering our dads today. . . . . .even though we've been

 without them for quite a while now. They were great men who helped mold us

 into the people we are today. . . . . . . . true hands on, always there for us fathers,

 who made raising their children a priority even when times were tough, and they

 often were. Strict yes, but good, down to earth, hard working, respectful to our

equally wonderful mothers, loving and caring men.

Our dads only met once when mine visited the US from England back in

 the 1970's. They hit it off immediately and enjoyed their time together.

Before leaving home this weekend I was busy doing some late Spring cleaning

around the cottage. Washing china, dusting and polishing woodwork and

 moving things around a bit. I'll share the changes with you later.

We're on an impromptu road trip for a few days - something Bob wanted to do for a while.

Taking different back roads west, visiting several North Carolina counties we've

 somehow missed over the years. . . . . . . . . . .but we'll be back soon.

. . . . . . .there's no place like it!

Cross country covers . . . . . . .

I'm wondering if I've made the right decision!

Last week I took a 'leap of faith' and I'm hoping it will work out fine.

Before committing to a new sofa purchase, I found a company which 

does professional textile dyeing. . . . . . . including slip covers!

After checking them out by phone and reading positive reviews of others who

 have had covers dyed, I whipped these white ones off the sofa and big armchair 

on the right (didn't send the natural French linen slip cover on the small chair by the

 fireplace as I just might dye it later - indigo blue, aubergine, or some brilliant hue),

 and headed to UPS. There they packed my covers in a big box and soon they

 were on their way across the USA.

 Yesterday they arrived in Oregon where, hopefully, within a few weeks, they will

 be turned into a perfect medium dark grey and then travel those

 2,860 miles back east.

When I mentioned another option about the slip covers versus a new sofa,
this was it. It seems perhaps a good way to know if I really want a grey sofa.

Of course I know it still means we will be going through those

 'slip cover battles' for a while longer BUT nowhere near as often as with
 white covers. I'm prepared to try the dye job, hopefully will love
them and be showing them to you later.

Meanwhile this what we're living with for now - a bit of a green mishmash!
I laundered the antique French linen cloth from the dining room table and draped
 it to hide part of the old damask upholstery on the sofa. Although I'm not into
 green decor right now, apparently it's a trendy color this year (Pantone's Color
 of the Year 2017 is Greenery) so I will love it for a few weeks until the grey covers return.

Yes, it's that time of year again. The cottage needs sprucing up and 
I need to get busy.
Sunny Saturday morning here though somewhat cooler - hope your weekend
is full of bright moments.

I'm really having quite a terrible fun time downsizing!  

Yes, trying to remain positive whilst saying au revoir to half my clothes and such.
This week several bags were transported to Retails, the local thrift shop I 
support - they use their profits for animal welfare and spay/neuter programs in the area.  
Also, the clean out of the potting shed last week ended up being a
positive experience. A neighbor's caregiver, when driving by, asked to take
 several items we had piled at the curb for city pickup, for her son to repair and
 paint. We happily loaded them into her car!

Remember, after grabbing the lovely Marie Kondo's newest book Spark Joy

 while buying wine at Costco HERE - in January - I made myself a promise that

this is the year I would start sorting through, re-organizing, and finally letting go
 of stuff which didn't 'spark joy' in my life.

It will be a slow process, perhaps because we actually are tidy, and are not

 true hoarders, so if you came to visit you would not be shocked, or tripping

 over things, well I hope not!  But, in a small home with limited space,

we do need to cut back on storing more than we can use, be it paper 

towels, black socks, or bottles of wine!

We do not live in the countryside isolated from modern life.

We have so many malls, shopping centers, grocery stores, big box stores,

garden centers within a short drive, some within a 10 minute walk, that anything

 we might suddenly need is almost on the doorstep.

Raleigh is close to the top of every 'best place to live' list - you can see the list

HERE and yes, we'll welcome you if you decide to move here along with the 

thousands of new residents arriving annually . . . . .be prepared for great
living and true southern hospitality.

Pottering in the Potting Shed. . . . . .

Last week the potting shed called to me requesting a good old clean out.

I'd been so lazy about getting going with this usually annual job.

In fact, it seems to have been more like bi-annual the past several 

years! I spent several hours on this job on Wednesday when it was 

warm, sunny and so pleasant being outdoors.

Do you love sheds? Like barns passed by on a country drive, they

always capture my attention when I wander through my neighborhood.

Some look quite spiffy, usually the newer ones, others are more like

you'd see in a horror movie, faded, decrepit, even collapsing. I always

wonder just what might be living in or under those little unloved structures!

I want my potting shed to remain a fun place to spend time in.

Although my lengthy productive days in the garden are over, and I'm 

just spending an hour or so with less bending or heavy duty jobs,

I still love to open the door and walk inside to neat and tidy, some 

semblance of order, and NO bugs!

When we had the shed built about fifteen years ago I was thrilled

to have a little garden retreat to make my own.

I painted the entire exterior.

I spent hours on my knees painting and stenciling a 'rug' on the floor.

I had electricity run out there so I can use a small heater or fan, and 

overhead hung a small chandelier which brightens up that

 corner of the garden at night when left on.

It's looking good now - several things have been discarded and were taken by 

the city to the landfill. I vacuumed and cleaned every shelf and corner, removing

spider webs, scattered birdseed which is stored there, and organized containers

of outdoor holiday lights, painting paraphernalia and miscellaneous garden tools. 

The stacked cushions you see were placed in the gazebo 

this beautiful warm weekend. A little get together for wine and cheese with

 neighbors on Friday, and our first 2016 dinner al fresco for we two on Saturday

night. Above us, a slither of brilliant light from the waxing moon shone through

 the tall oaks - all felt good in the world.

The garden is starting to show some color.

Buds are bursting - more daffodils are blooming - bluebell leaves are shooting up.

Bob did the first mowing of the front lawn yesterday.

We changed our clocks.

I really do feel Spring in the air.

Have a fabulous week.

Carolina Chickadees are Spring Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . .

"Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home."

A common bird of the Carolinas who is very friendly and can be tamed
 and hand fed. I've never managed to get one to eat out of my hand, but admit
 to standing in the back garden with it outstretched, full of birdseed, until my
 poor old shoulder ached! 

Our many Carolina chickadees do love hanging out on the front porch, also at

 feeders and birdbaths located in the back garden. Being non-migrators we can

 enjoy them year round in any type of weather.

Both the male and female, also the juveniles, are mostly grey birds
 with a black cap and chin, white face and chest, and darker grey tail. 
They are the smallest birds in our garden, but notice in these photos that they
 have sturdy looking legs and huge feet with which they can hold insects and
 seeds while pecking into them. 

Both male and female construct a nest then 5-7 very tiny eggs, white with

 reddish-brown markings are laid. They have 1-2 broods per year.

Despite not being officially Spring, I believe our chickadees are preparing

 a nest already. They have nested in this same box on the front porch for the
 past couple of years. 

Until this morning I thought they were bringing in building materials during the
 past few days, seeing the clump of soft bits stuffed in the entrance. . . . . . . however
 this morning it's obvious they are taking out debris from last year!

This is one of those decorative birdhouses, so cute, but unfortunately no
door to open which would allow us to clean out the old nest.

Such a huge job for a tiny bird who has only its stubby little beak as a

 Spring cleaning tool!

 I am definitely tempted to give a little assistance to these tiny birds - one swift

 pull and I could help with what appears to be a gigantic job for one or two tiny

 creatures - but we have decided not to interfere with Nature.

What would you do? Do you believe in just allowing them to clean their

house by themselves? 

A sweet, quite feisty little bird which is Bob's favorite - and of course I love them too!

Decor Doldrums. . . . . . . .

Are you feeling like me these long dreary winter days?  
Completely in the *doldrums when it comes to redecorating, or even dusting 
for that matter! Do you like playing in your house, moving your collections 
around, changing up vignettes on tables and shelves, hanging your art on a 
different wall, moving the furniture about. . . . . . . anything to make your home
 a comfortable space for you?

I'm confessing right now - I'm not doing a thing when it comes to any of the 
above - including much housework, other than the truly necessary chores such 
as kitchen and bathrooms. The dust from the fireplace has dulled anything shiny. 
Spring cleaning is on my mind.

I look about the rooms and know I need some motivation. I'm hoping 

it might come today. With the weekend looking up weather wise, above 

freezing, sunshine, no rain, perhaps my energy will return. . . . . 

or I might just decide to take some time outdoors enjoying almost

Spring weather. Clocks go forward one hour here Saturday night.

My weekly schedule now includes two physiotherapy sessions in hopes 

my spine/leg problem will improve without having that nasty surgery any time soon. 

I will also be back to walking more once it's warmer, and I'm definitely thinking 

that some much missed antiquing needs to start up again. This weekend I hope to 

get over to Suzanna's Antiques - watch this space for new treasures 

I'll share with you.

*doldrums ~ a state or period in which 

there is no activity or improvement. . .