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.... 

 

 

 

Endless Summer.....

The Beginning Of The End.....

I am Keenly aware, Dear Readers, that the Summer is drawing to a close. The School year is starting, the nights are getting longer and alarmingly chilly, and the deadline for my personal goal of completing the Summer Lilac Shrub is nearly upon us! And what better way to understand this Seasonal Shift, than to be stitching on a Tiny Christmas Stocking? The very essence of cold Winter to come is embodied in the Starry Winter Night! As you can see in the above picture, I have finished stitching the blue sky. I have made one artistic alteration to the original design, in that I have left a little bit of snowy "ground" behind the topmost house and tree, rather than have it terminate at the foundation as in the instructions.

I think my adjustment makes it feel

 a little more three-dimensional,

 and  tiny bit cozier too!

Now all I have left to stitch is the

 endless expanse of cold white snow! 

And as for the Summer Lilac Shrub and the

 Endless application of leaves and leafy stems... 

I did complete another batch of ten leafy stems.... but only barely!

I ran into a problem with the paint.

I have been using one tube of the chosen Chromium Oxide Green

 for all the lilac leaves and have been running low on the paint.

I have been trying not to switch to a new tube

 because I was concerned that the pigment would not match exactly

 and would be noticeable on the shrub.

But the tube is really nearly empty,

 so I finally pulled out the new tube.

 It is not the same brand but is the same "pigment". 

Yes, I can see a difference in the new paint....

The new paint is the green blob at the lower right,

 it overlaps the small patch of the original green paint... 

and I can clearly see a difference.

But I thought I had better give it a try....

 

I could tell it was not going to work at all!

 It has a much less opaque quality... 

leaving streaks of the paper showing through on the leaves.

Here is a comparison of the regular paint on the leaves.... 

no streaks and a lovely dense coverage.

(Yes, the paint I have been using is of a higher quality....

 I will need to get more!)

But could I squeeze any more out of the tube.... 

just to complete this batch of leaves?

Oh, the Drama....!

I dug into the cap with my brush, 

and into the pinched tube as well....

 gathering enough paint to finish this batch..... 

and maybe even next week's too.......?

Here are this week's at any rate... waiting to be shaped and glued....

And I did manage to attach about fifteen more leafy stems... 

or was it twenty......

You can see the improvement to the shrub.

 But the left hand side still needs a lot more added!

(Hence the Endless part of this summer....!)

And lest we be the only ones who are feeling the Chilly air and the change of the Seasons, you might be happy to see that Daphne and Renee had decided to show Grandpere the quilt they were making, even though it was still so incomplete.

"Grandpere..." said Renee earnestly

 "It is to keep you warm when we go to the Park!"

"Ah...!" replied Grandpere.

He really thought he had never seen anything so Beautiful...

 but could not find the words.

 

 

"Madamoiselle O'Malley says we can use it today

 when we go..." added Renee excitedly.

"Can we go now..." she added?

He could deny her nothing.... so off they went.

It was a chilly and overcast morning....

I should have worn a jacket... thought Daphne....

 and found a sweater for Renee!

(She was still getting used to this thinking of the child's needs...!)

But Renee did not notice, she only wanted to play with her friends the birds!

Daphne wheeled Grandpere closer so he could watch...

What was it about those birds that fascinated her so?

Perhaps it was the same fascination as he felt watching her....

She was so young and quick and Alive!

She grabbed the bread and threw it again and again....

The birds did not mind!

She is so young.... thought Grandpere.

And growing so fast...

 soon it would be time for her to go to school....

She is so Beautiful... thought Daphne....

 I could watch her Forever and never get tired!

"School..." said Grandpere suddenly.

No! thought Daphne..... 

She is not ready... 

I am not ready....! 

Although she did not speak aloud...

 it was not hers to decide.

But perhaps there would still be some Time,

 Dear Readers, before that came to pass.

We are, after all, talking about Endless Summer.... 

even though we know that such can never be,

 and is perhaps already Truly

 The beginning of the End!

Sew Little....

Patches..... And Other Little Things....

I almost didn't think there was Time, Dear Readers, to pull out my camera and show you what Daphne found with the Sewing Machine! But then it was Raining again, much too hard a rain to go to the Park today, and certainly not with Monsieur Guillaume. The excitement of the wheel chair the day before had chased all ideas of the sewing machine from Renee's attention. So Daphne waited until Renee was asleep before she dragged the old machine across the hall to her room. It was dusty and very old, but the parts all moved smoothly when she turned the wheel. The only thing missing was thread and cloth to sew!

She realized she would not be able to show Renee 

how the machine worked if there was nothing to sew!

But if there was a sewing machine stored away, she thought,

 then surely there should be a sewing box somewhere! 

She went to have another look in the attic storage room... 

There was a huge old wardrobe.... so she looked inside...

Aha! Just as she had thought.... 

here was the old sewing box!

She pulled it out and carried it to the Nursery.

And there in the bottom drawer, all folded up... 

were some pieces of cloth......!

"Look what I've found, Renee..." she said excitedly.

"What is it...?" asked Renee.

"They are pieces of cloth..." explained Daphne.

"They look like patches...." she added.

"What are Patches...?" asked Renee.

"They are cloth that has been cut into squares 

for making a Patchwork Quilt!" said Daphne.

"What's a Patch Quilt...?" asked Renee.

"Well.... " said Daphne...

 "We will spread them on the floor to see what patterns we like....

 and then we will sew the patches together to make a Quilt!"

"Oh." said Renee, as she looked at the patches.

"We can add as many patches as we like..." said Daphne,

 "Until it is as big as we want to make it!"

"Oh!" said Renee, getting excited... 

"Can we make it big enough for Grandpere...?" she asked.

"I don't see why not.....!" replied Daphne.

"I will go to the machine," she said

 "and you can bring me the patches..."

Daphne sat at the old machine 

and pumped the treadle with her foot....

"Here's the patch ..." said Renee.

"I have to finish this one first...." said Daphne.

"Make sure you bring them in the right order..." she added....

"One row at a time...."

Well, Dear Readers, I hope you don't mind

 if we leave them here, happily sewing patches together!

Because I wanted to show you that I managed to finish 

adding the final pieces to the Castle framework....

It was not easy!

The Chapel Tower had not enough room for me to pivot it around in place,

 because it sits right next to the dresser which holds the Cupboard House,

 and there was no room to squeeze in beside it to reach the back of the Tower.

The only solution was going to be pulling it forward

 and in order to do that I need to find something to perch it on

 that was close to the same height as the base....

And fortunately I found just the thing! 

A sturdy oak artist's storage chest!

I slid the Tower onto it... 

where I could pivot it to reach the back side!

Here you can see it from the other side... 

it shows the stained glass Chapel Window...

and the postern door...

But all this work was just so I could drill the holes 

for the last support beam on the back side of the

 Lady's Bed Chamber at the top of the Tower...

Three holes....

And the beam glued in place.....

(And yes, I had to undo the proscenium...)

And then I remembered that other pesky floor support that would be

 blocking the stairs on this side... when I get them built that is.... !

But it would be Wise to fix that beam now while it was all pulled apart!

I thought that maybe I could get away with just pulling the floor out,

 and not having to also remove the proscenium for the lower floor....

But it turned out I had to undo that one too...

 in order to be able to pry the beam off the wall...

(Chisel and hammer not shown....)

Here's a closer view of the beam that is

 in the way of the path of the future stairs.....

The beam has been removed, and cut.... 

and one end put back in place....

And both ends are reattached,

 leaving a gap where the stairs will pass.

And I cut the hole in the floor too!

Here you can see I have put the prosceniums back in place.... 

and this is the Lady's Bed Chamber without the inner wall, 

showing where the stairs come through.

And with the inner wall notched to fit the beam.... 

Oh, look at that gap along the ceiling!

That will need to be patched!

So many little pieces, Dear Readers, took all my Time!

And lest you think I have forgotten.....

Blossom number twenty-five!

And with its buddies in the box!

 

 

And as for Daphne and Renee.... 

I think they will be sewing for a while...

to Sew many little patches will take some Time!

 And while they are sewing, Dear Readers,

 I will be traveling to visit my family out West! 

I probably will not have time to comment or post until I return...

But it will only be a Little Patch of Time!