Just Another Day In The Park...

 

Raymond Visits Alone....

Raymond had headed to the Park, Dear Readers, hoping to find Renee and Mademoiselle O'Malley, her Nanny, visiting with the birds as usual even though it was such a cold and gloomy day. He found the Park was empty. Not even the birds were strutting around in search of crumbs. It suited his mood perfectly. He was feeling sorry for himself. He felt abandoned and shut out of Renee's life. Even after what was it... only five days since Mademoiselle O'Malley had been hired to be the new nanny? 

 He was in the habit of visiting Renee every day just to give her nanny a break. Gabrielle had seemed to know that it mattered more to Raymond that he had time with Renee, than that she needed a break. Renee was not a difficult child to care for. And Raymond had been caring for her ever since she was left in his Office when she was an infant, even though Madame had always hired the nannies. He always checked on her and made sure she had what she needed. None of the other nannies had minded. They were happy to let him"give them a break". But Mademoiselle O'Malley was different.

 

He absent-mindedly tossed the bread crumbs he had brought for the birds.

 Perhaps they would show up if there was food, he thought.

 Although, without Renee there... 

it was not so much fun to feed them. 

 

 

The worst of it was that he knew he had no rights to Renee at all. 

She was not his child. She was no relation to him at all! 

He was only the Lawyer to her Grandparents, and had known the family all his life.

 It was just that when Renee's mother had decided that 

she would not keep her child after all, she left her at the Lawyer's Office.

 And because the Grandparents had been away overseas at the time,

 he had ended up taking care of her for more than a week

 until they could return home and claim her. 

He had bonded with baby Renee and loved her as if she were his own child.

 The real problem was that the new nanny was Renee's natural mother,

 even though Renee did not know.

 Madame had hired her in order to keep her

 from taking Renee away from them.... 

and to his great embarrassment, they, the Lawyers 

had not had her sign the adoption papers

 before she left the child with them all those years ago. 

She probably could take Renee and it would not be illegal! 

 

He wanted to hate her, Mademoiselle O'Malley, that was, 

but he knew he was being unfair.

 Even after just five days it was very clear that she was good for Renee. 

She did things with Renee, and Renee was happier than he'd ever seen her.

 He hated to think that he was being jealous.

 He had never been jealous of anyone before

 and it was a very uncomfortable feeling. 

 

Just then his phone rang and he answered it right away.

 "Good morning, sister ..." he said... "You are calling early!"

 

"Hey, brother of mine," said Fleur cheerfully, 

"I am out in my garden to gather some flowers for the shop...

 Gabrielle is seeing that Juliet is ready for school! 

I am loving having Gabrielle to help!"

 

And I am just dying to know how how our Daphne

 is working out as Renee's nanny!" she declared.

 "I was so shocked to learn she is Renee's mother!" she added earnestly.

 

"She is a veritable paragon... " he replied snidely, 

and immediately felt chagrined.

 "I want to hate her..." he added despairingly, 

"but she is very good with Renee...

 so I have to admit she is admirable" he added reluctantly.

 

"And is this a bad thing, dear brother...?" 

Fleur asked, surprised at his attitude.

 

"Madame only hired her to keep an eye on her..." he said, 

"but I warned her it was a very bad precedent to set...

 it will be impossible to fire her!

 But Madame was afraid she would take Renee away, 

so there was no reasoning with her" he added.

 

"Do you really think Daphne would take her away..."

 asked Fleur incredulously?

 

"That's the problem..." he said, annoyed. 

"I just don't trust her" he added flatly.

 "But she's very kind to Monsieur too, 

so I doubt she'd take Renee away" he said glumly.

 

"Well, dear brother," said Fleur, "clearly she has upset you..." 

 

 "She's just too perfect" he said, annoyed.

 "They all think she's just wonderful... 

nobody can be so perfect..!" he added.

 "They act like she's an angel.... she's so serene,

 she even looks like one with all that fiery hair...." he added

 dismayed at how much he had said. 

"She doesn't let me have any time with Renee..." he added sadly.

 "I haven't seen her in days."

 

 "Oh, dear!" declared Fleur. 

"Not at all?" she added, surprised.

 

"Well, apparently, I can trot along behind them

 like a good little boy, if I want to..." he said sarcastically.

 "It doesn't feel right. I'm not feeling at all like a good little boy" he added.

 "I told you, I want to hate her. 

I have hated her for years for abandoning her child!

 You know that!" he declared angrily.

 

 "Now we have to welcome her into the family

 and let Renee love her!"

 

 "Oh, dear!" said Fleur heaving a big sigh.

 "I am afraid you've got it bad, dear brother she added" cryptically.

 

"Got What..!?" he demanded, annoyed.

 

"I think you really love her too," said Fleur smiling... 

"But you can't admit it" she added.

 "I'm not surprised. Our Daphne is very sweet and lovable.

 Everyone who knows her loves her" she added.

 

"What..?" declared Raymond appalled. 

"You have got to be nuts, sister mine..." he said.

 "Haven't you been listening to me?" he added.

 

"Of course, I have!" declared Fleur. 

"I think you are head over toes in love with her!

 I think you should just marry her.... 

and then Renee would have a family at last" she added.

 

"You're not helping, Fleur," he said.

 "That's the craziest idea I've ever heard!" he declared.

 

"Yeah, yeah, of course you do.... 

it's as clear as day!" she added.

"Look, I gotta go... I have to get Juliet to school...

 but let me know how it goes!"

she called as she hung up. 

 

"Let her know how it goes...?" he thought, puzzled.

Why did his sister think love solved everything?!

 Besides, he wasn't in love.

 Sure, he loved Renee absolutely. 

But marry her mother? That was madness!

 

But he stood there for quite a while, staring off into space.

 Clearly he was going to have to do something. 

He wasn't going to just let Renee disappear from his life. 

But what could he do?

 

Well, Dear Readers, I hope you haven't minded spending

 such a gloomy day in the Park after all,

 At least the birds joined Raymond in his solitary vigil,

 although he didn't seem to notice them at all! 

 

To Those Dear Readers who have only recently joined this blog, I apologize for the very disorganized progress of this story. It began in August of 2013 and has already had somewhere around thirty episodes scattered through the years. I have found it impossible to keep it organized... and finishing it is always another story... If you are really interested you can find most of it under "Daphne's Story" in the labels section.... 

 

 

 

Tree House Improvements....

 

Wall Paper Deja vu.....

I Could not find a can of the right colored wood stain, Dear Readers, at my local hardware stores. The big box store had changed brands, no longer offering the kind of stain I had used all those years ago. I bought the new brand in the "same type of color" and it was not the same at all! It was much too "orange-reddish" for my tastes and would not match the already completed paneling. The smaller old Hardware store chain did still carry the old brand, but did not have it in the old color ("Early American" it was called) but they did have one of those "pens" for fixing small scratches in the proper color of the old brand! I bought it and applied it to the matchstick paneling and the steps to the Bednook on the Nursery Door. And it looks much better than the "wrong" brand. The matchsticks absorb the stain a little irregularly and I will give it another coat, but I think it saved the day! So I applied it to all the other newly "paneled" areas.... chiefly the Balcony interior on the Bedroom Door.

 

As you can see here, it tones down the "new wood" look

 of the matchsticks but is not as dark as the walnut stain of the doors.

 

And I applied it to the bunkbeds too.... 

over the too orange-ish color of the "wrong" stain.

 It did not erase the orange completely, but it toned it way down 

and I think it will end up looking just fine in the Nursery

 when all the rest of the parts are assembled.

 The "stain pen" turned out to be much easier to use

 on these already assembled pieces too!

 No drips, no spills, hardly any vapor. It was a great relief!

 

And while I was working on all those walls in the Nursery,

 I decided to test an Idea I had first had way back in 2014

 for the wallpaper of these rooms.

 

Well, really, there was no question in my mind and never had been!

 That old rose patterned wallpaper was perfect for the Nanny's Bedroom!

 All I had to do was find enough scraps to

 match the pattern across the adjoining wall sections.

 And some of you Dear Readers,

 if you have been hanging around here long enough

 will recognize this wall paper!

 It was also used a few years ago on The Dollmaker's Studio project,

 and way back in the beginning on the 

Dining Room walls of The Cupboard House.

I got right on it...

 

I made my patterns and cut out the pieces and glued them in place!

 

And because the Nursery Wall is on the other side

 of one of The Nanny's Room walls, 

I needed to get that one papered now too.

 

Doesn't it look Familiar too?

 Yes! It is the same wallpaper that I used

 on the other room in The Dollmaker's Studio project! 

And while you might think I am just copying

 the Dollmaker's Studio decor, 

it is really the other way around.

 I have always intended to use this paper

 in The Tree House Nursery!

 It just seems to feel like "Leafy Nature" on the Walls.... 

with its birds and butterflies that the Little Ratlings would love to see!

 And in a funny way, it is a good thing that

 I used the paper on the Dollmaker's Studio first 

because if I had used it in the Tree House first, 

there would not have been enough

 left over for The Dollmaker's Studio

 which needed the larger sections. 

As it is I had to piece together scraps

 to complete the Bednook wallpaper....

 

Here you can see the four little scraps that are needed

 to complete the opening Door Wall....

 

Which looks like this!

 I wanted to make  one of the birds.... 

and while it is not actually "correct"

 it is convincing enough!

 Those Rats had to make do with whatever

 scraps they could scavenge, after all!

 

The back wall has the only "complete" bird in the pattern...

 

And here you can see the Bunkbeds wall in place...

 and I even had to piece together the papers for this wall too.

 

And here you can see I have put the ceiling in place... 

it makes the space look so much cozier!

 

 And The Nanny's Room too....

 I am going to have to get working on the lighting for this!

 

And in the morning with just the natural lighting of daytime,

 I think it looks wonderful!

 

And the Bunkbeds wall too.... 

I think it is looking just as I hoped it would!

 

And The Nanny's Room..... 

a much darker, cozier space...

 But just as I had imagined it would look!

 

So you can see, Dear Readers, 

I have been making some Real Improvements 

And I don't mind at all that it is 

a Little bit of Deja vu! 

Tree House Structure...

 

Growing Upward.... 

In Case you wondered, Dear Readers, the Tree House Structure was deliberately designed from the beginning to be a bit flexible, but based on a few basic principles. The House would be vertical, like a tree trunk with the rooms stacked one on top of the other as far up as would fit the landscape of The Folly Garden, with the opening doors to access the rooms all on one side of the Tree, and hinged to a sturdy post which was attached at the base and runs all the way to the top of the tree trunk. The other "corners" of the rooms, or the tree trunk depending on how you look at it, are made from a sturdy metal wire that also attaches at the base and runs all the way up to the top of the tree trunk. Because the wires can be bent a little and are not rigid, the size of the rooms can vary in shape and dimensions. Each floor, above the ground level kitchen, that is, is made from a piece of thin plywood which has holes drilled through it where the wires go up and can therefore be slid onto the wires forming a very sturdy structure when it rests on the walls of the room below. If you look closely at the above picture, you can see several of these wires as they continue upward between the floors and stick out at the top. The only problem with this structure happens when you add rooms to the side of the main room and then need another hinged outer door on a different side... so I managed to add several other wooden "hinge posts" along the way, notably for the dressing room and the Nanny's Room. They have to be carefully "based" on a part of the floor that can be screwed into from below in order to be sturdily attached. As I was recently reviewing the Tree House structure, I realized I was going to want or need another sturdy corner post at the top for the "branches" of the Tree House to be attached to when we get that high!

 But before we could get to that step, I realized that I would need to have the next "floor" or the ceiling of the Nursery properly cut and fitted, which required making a floor plan or map in order for it to fit right on the wires and around the posts already in place. Here you can see my beginning steps... a piece of paper poked through by the wires and cut to fit around the existing posts. Then I could cut the plywood and know right where the wire holes needed to be drilled!

 

Here you can see the new correctly fitted Nursery ceiling or Attic Floor.

 It will not be glued in place until all the construction and decorating

 for the Nursery and Nanny's Rooms is finished,

 but it can be slid up or down and provides a very sturdy 

alignment guide for the room walls as I construct them.

 

And while I was making new correctly fitted sections, 

the Nanny's Room opening Door inner wall frame

 needed to be re-cut as the first (very old) version

 was an eighth of an inch too short

 and a 1/16th of an inch too narrow. 

 

And another wall section that needed lots of fixing was

 the inner wall of the bump-out that will hold bunk bed

 sleeping nooks on the side wall of The Nursery.

 This had been started all those years ago

 but had very poor shaping to the opening. 

I made the opening more symmetrical by carefully cutting

 a patch to fit the already cut opening 

and gluing them together.

 The crack will be covered by all the future

 construction so it is not a problem.

And Along the way, Dear Readers,

 I was constantly "strengthening" many small parts 

of the previous construction. 

The windows all will need a layer of the "paper twist"

 that resembles a wooden root or something like it,

 as an edging before the paper-mache outer bark is eventually added. 

 

As you can see here with the Bathroom outer window.

 

And along the outer edge of the Balcony structure.

 Because the shape of the balcony roof is irregular,

 the twist didn't want to stay put while the glue dried....

 

 So I had to wrap it with thread to hold it in place

 for several hours as the glue dried.

 

While I wrapped the twist the rest of the way

 around the opening and glued it in place. 

And those bunk beds...? 

I have been planning them forever, it seems,

 and finally just got going on them!

 

I am using plain old corrugated cardboard for the shape of the hollow.

 

Adding the platforms for the mattresses... thin plywood scraps.

 

 

And starting to add the thin

 matchstick paneling to the insides....

 yes, these are cut from match sticks!

 

 

Of course, It has to be constantly tested in place

 in the Nursery to see how it fits and looks!

 

And eventually getting the matchstick paneling all around the bunk beds.

 

The bunk beds have to have some of 

that Twist to frame the openings...

 

And a coat of stain applied... 

although it doesn't exactly match the other walls... 

that old can is long gone!

 

And then we finally get to the point of needing to remove

 all the walls to The Nursery and Nanny's Room

 so I can "engineer" the attachment of the Extra Post

 at the back of the structure beside the stairs.

And in order to be able to use my drill, 

I discover I even have to remove most of the stairs! 

 

And the next steps were so complicated 

and required so much careful focus..... 

I forgot to take any photos...

 but the "operation" was a success! 

The Post got firmly attached (glued and screwed) to the floor...

 

Here you can see it in place at the back on the left side,

 with the Nursery Walls and the ceiling in place to make sure it all fits right.

 

Here you can see the new Post with the 

bunk beds wall in place and the stairs reattached. 

And you can see the tiny little piece of floor I had to attach it to!

 

And here's the view from the front opening side... 

those taller posts can now have the tree branches built onto them

 and the bulk of the weight will be at the back

 of the Tree instead of the front side...

 the Tree does lean a bit out towards the brook... 

it needed to be balanced!

 

And the Balcony also needed the matchstick paneling

 added to the inside of the opening.

 This increases the sturdiness and will look more "finished"

 when the outer bark surface is added.

 

And lest you think I have ignored the original 

sleeping nook in the opening door wall, 

I have added little steps up to the bed level

 and am adding more of the paper twist around the opening.

 These are supposed to be hollow interiors of old cut off tree branches...

 so they need to look cozy and very rustic.

 

And the matchstick wall paneling too,

 to match the rest of the Nursery walls! 

These will be stained to (hopefully) match the first walls. 

 

And even the tiny wall with the tiny window

 in the Nanny's room is getting the matchstick paneling!

 

I hope I have not completely bored you, Dear Readers,

 with this very technical description of the 

Tree House structural improvements, 

But at least we can see it is finally 

Growing Upward again!