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The red bitch is alive and well…
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And driving Lord Dudley Mountcatten crazy.
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She scampers all over the back deck to get his attention…
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Then perches on the back of a chair in front of the window, chattering nonstop to taunt him.
So close, yet unattainable.
It’s a kitty’s worst nightmare.
😉
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Continuing up to the second floor of Chateau Sur Mer in Newport ….
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We had to stop and gawk on the way.
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Fabulous woodwork aside, the hand painted crawling vines, lattice and greenery were quite something.
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No one is allowed on the third or fourth floors…
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But there’s plenty to see on the second.
This is the Butternut bedroom, so named for the light walnut bed and furniture.
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As always, the ceiling was so much more than white.
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Various bedroom and private sitting rooms for the family.
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You realize when you tour these mansions, the first floor is for impressing guests…
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The second is for day to day living.
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This mahogany and white tile bathroom is exactly as it was back in the day.
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With hot and cold running water it was pretty high tech.
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Except for the throne, which looks more like an indoor outhouse.
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Here’s the staircase to the third floor which we couldn’t access, though my husband did try.
😉
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Momma woodchuck has four children this year, and they’re keeping her busy.
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Like any overworked mother, there are days when she just needs a break.
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Times when she wants to ditch the kids who hound her and follow her everywhere she goes.
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On those days?
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She just has to climb a tree.
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Didn’t think woodchucks climbed trees?
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Beleaguered mothers do.
😉
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The very last thing we had to move to get ready for new flooring ?
Was the very worst, hands down.
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Treadmills are big, and bulky, and heavy, and awkward as Hell to move.
Much thinking and strategizing went into the process.
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Yes, the tread itself could be raised.
But it wouldn’t fit out the door… even with the door removed… in its entirety.
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Which is when tools were employed and breakdown occurred.
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Or tried to occur because try as they might… they couldn’t figure out how.
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I spent the next half hour on the phone with Nordic track customer service… who, may I just say?
Suck the big root.
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They didn’t help at all, and didn’t tell us anything we didn’t already know.
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After a lot of hassle, the two parts were separated.
Kind of.
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Annoyingly they were still connected by the electrical wires with no clips or disconnects in sight.
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Which means the top half was precariously balanced on the bottom half and squiggled down the hall.
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Turning was not fun.
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And at one point the husband got stuck. Which, I’m ashamed to admit…
Was a little bit fun.
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Placed on a sheet in front of the den couch is where it landed. Completely in the way of everything.
His Lordship?
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He gave the treadmill a try.
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But exercise isn’t his thing…
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So he found a towel free cushion on which to shed more fur.
🥴
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Next stop… Sakonnet Winery.
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We’re not big wine drinkers but it’s the gift of choice for our cat sitting neighbor… and we have to keep her, and therefore His Royal Highness, happy.
😉
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It was a lovely drive and just when we thought we’d never find it…
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A very large cat.
This winery is way off the beaten path and after a long dirt driveway…
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Another large cat.
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And a large bull.
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There was a barn.
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Some outdoor seating.
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And a tasting room.
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Where we paid $25 for four very small pours.
None of which we really liked.
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But it’s Rhode Island, what do they know about wine?
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Continuing on, we went in search of food.
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Past some lovely old homes in Tiverton.
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Sadly, when we arrived at the much anticipated and highly reviewed Boat House restaurant…
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It was packed to capacity and there was a two hour wait.
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Which is when we turned back and found an unassuming little place called Fieldstone’s.
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It was crowded as well but we snagged a seat at the bar where I ordered a spring Cosmo.
Ketel One vodka, watermelon pucker, fresh strawberry, fresh lime, and a splash of cranberry juice.
Tasty, and potent.
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My shrimp scampi bruschetta appetizer was amazing.
Sautéed shrimp, capers and grape tomatoes in a lemon garlic butter sauce and served over garlic Parmesan toast.
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Husband went with shepherds pie, which was swimming in a rich brown gravy unlike his mother’s bland recipe. I considered that a win, but boys like their momma’s cooking so he was unimpressed.
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On the other hand, my sherried chicken? Ooh la la!
I’d drive four hours from Maine just to have it again.
Sautéed chicken breast with chopped bacon, caramelized onions and crumbled bleu cheese in a creamy sherry sauce, served with mashed potato and broccoli.
Yum!
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With the majority of things emptied out of our office and den, it was time to move the furniture.
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Which in our house is a right royal pain the ass due to the tight hallways and 90 degree angles. The arm chair went out smoothly, but the new couch was another story altogether. It’s big and heavy and had to fit through a small hallway which it did not want to do. After many attempts and many instructions to stay out of their way…
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I suggested they take the feet off.
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Problem solved.
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Until the couch had to turn 90 degrees which it also didn’t want to do. Up and over was the only way and my husband’s poor back was screaming.
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Tight fits are par for the course.
Watch your fingers.
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And no, I wasn’t pleased by the scratched door moulding…
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Or the fricking dent they put in the wall.
😡
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But Lord Dudley Mountcatten was enjoying the temporary high ground.
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There are now two desks in our bedroom…
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And I can’t get to my clothes because the larger one is blocking my bureau.
I’m beginning to wonder if new carpet is worth it.
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Continuing on with our exploration of the Green Animals Topiary Garden in Portsmouth, we left the garden proper and strolled past the house.
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Which was lined with impressively trimmed shrubbery.
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Sadly the home is not open to tours…
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But there’s a big porch with comfortable chairs where you’re invited to sit.
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We opted for a bench under the shade of a giant tree.
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The lawn slopes down to Narragansett Bay, where we spotted another topiary.
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A rather oddly shaped topiary that my husband and I pondered greatly.
I said long legged turtle.
He said hunchbacked manatee.
What say you?
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Walking back around the house we saw some ornate wrought iron and walls in much need of scraping and paint.
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On the other side of the house… a truly magnificent tree.
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A grand old gentleman who no doubt had outlived many of the home’s owners.
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Husband, for scale.
We were so impressed by the tree we asked one the attendants how old they thought it was…. which was when he directed us to the resident expert of all things.
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This charming young lady of 91 actually worked on the estate as head housekeeper for the last living owner. She had some wonderful stories about the place and informed us the tree in question was over 150 years old.
She lives right up the road and walks down to the gardens every day to help the docents …. as well as socialize. She told us she was quite unhappy with the current crew of topiary trimmers. The policeman was too fat, the giraffe was too short and the goose looked like a duck.
Knowing we were talking to the authority, we asked what the mystery topiary down by the bay was supposed to be.
Not a turtle. Not a manatee.
It was a bear.
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Wow.
No wonder she’s unhappy…
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A few random things that have made me laugh this week.
I figure we can all use more laughs.
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There’s a banana missing in New Hampshire.
Please help.
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That’s one chill pooch.
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I love to look at cows… and am that annoying person who yells, “Cow!” on road trips.
Imagine if I had some right in the back yard like these people.
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I could just point.
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Now there’s a job custom made for me.
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New rule – if you sell it?
You have to learn how to spell it.
And yes, they had multiple signs like that.
🥴
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Anyone remember these?
Burning children’s fingers with molten plastic since 1964.
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Very cool.
🤣
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Because everyone loves maps.
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I have never, not once in my entire life, bought a lottery ticket.
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Those are sad numbers.
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Wow.
Texas likes their prisons.
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Trade.
It’s important.
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Mainers.
They love to hunt.
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I’ve always wanted to take an IQ test, but never have.
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For this map you’re supposed to type “Why is your state so..” and see what pops up.
I didn’t get white.
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Not sure what we’re taking so long to do, but I think I’m okay with it.
😉
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Day three of our second trip to Newport, Rhode Island dawned bright and sunny so I snapped another selfie on the balcony while the hubs was off having breakfast.
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My spouse is not a picture taker… and on the rare occasion he does snap one of me? I’m usually headless or walking away…so if I want a photographic memory to take home? I have to take it myself.
And speaking of balconies…
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Not too shabby.
First on the agenda that day was the Green Animals Topiary Gardens in Portsmouth.
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A seven acre estate on Narragansett Bay, it’s the northern most topiary garden in the United States and a pretty spectacular place.
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I’ll quote the history…
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This small country estate was purchased in 1872 by Thomas E. Brayton (1843-1939), Treasurer of the Union Cotton Manufacturing Company in Fall River, Massachusetts. It consisted of seven acres of land, with a white clapboard summer residence, farm outbuildings, a pasture and a vegetable garden. Gardener Joseph Carreiro, superintendent of the property from 1905 to 1945, and his son-in-law, George Mendonca, superintendent until 1985, were responsible for creating the topiaries.
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Carreiro was recruited to design and maintain ornamental and edible gardens as part of a self-sufficient estate. Besides planting fruit trees, perennial beds and vegetable gardens, he experimented with trimming some fast-growing shrubs into unique forms. The first topiaries were started in the estate’s greenhouse in 1912 and later moved.
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Mr. Brayton’s daughter, Alice, gave the estate its name because of the profusion of “green animals.” She made it her permanent residence in 1939. Miss Brayton was an avid gardener and loved to entertain. She hosted a party for Jacqueline Bouvier (Kennedy) in her debut season and for years entertained young Caroline and John Kennedy Jr. at parties to celebrate the harvest.
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She also regularly allowed the public to enjoy the grounds. Upon her death in 1972, at the age of 94, Miss Brayton left Green Animals to The Preservation Society of Newport County. Today, Green Animals remains as a rare example of a self-sufficient estate combining formal topiaries, vegetable and herb gardens, orchards and a Victorian house overlooking Narragansett Bay.
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The amount of work that goes into maintaining this garden must be staggering.
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The teddy bears hadn’t quite filled in when we visited but they were still sweet.
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We can barely keep the shrubs around our neatly pruned…
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So color me impressed.
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River's world..... 