Sunday, December 21, 2008

Frozen Charlottes

I've always loved Frozen Charlottes...little dolls with a big lesson in vanity and disobedience. For Charlotte, you see, refused to muss her dress by wearing a coat to the big winter dance and as a result froze to death en route! I've been poking around Etsy's vintage listings for a few months looking at these little sweeties but am having a very difficult time choosing just one! Throughout all of my ruminating on the topic, however, not once did I ever consider the possibility that I could become a Frozen Charlotte myself!

It sure felt that way last week when our power went out due to the big New England ice storm. I have to admit we do loose power quite frequently in our neck of the woods, but with a maximum outage time of maybe five hours. This time it lasted FIVE DAYS!!! We toughed it out for the first 24 hours and even enjoyed our time spent playing games by candlelight. By day two reality set in...it was really cold! Why we ever bought a house in New England without a fireplace is beyond me...what were we thinking? Luckily the power at my parents' house was restored by then and we were able to relocate up to their place for the duration.



The joy of returning home was great but short lived. In the midst of unpacking my eyes feel upon our calendar and the realization that Christmas Eve was only one week away stopped me in my tracks. With oodles of laundry, a barren refrigerator, numerous unfinished Christmas gifts, and two more major snow storms on the way something had to be done. . . or actually, left undone! And so it's going to be a "make-do" Christmas. I've had to surrender to the fact that our cookies this year may have to come out of a box, our Christmas cards will be mailed in time for New Years and heaven help me I'm going to have to step foot in a mall. Many of my handmade Christmas gift projects have been stashed away to finish for next year, let's just hope I can remember where I put them!
Needless to say in the midst of all this I never did acquire the much anticipated December issue of British Country Living. So in the spirit of "make -do" I adjusted. The 2007 edition was dug out, the kettle was put on, and the last of the Dundee cakes (found thawed in the freezer) was sliced. All in all, I must say it was my most enjoyable tea time of the season!

3 comments:

  1. Ohhhh I feel so sorry for you! I know what it is like to be in the cold without power. Although my life was spent along Lake Erie, it wasn't the snow that caused us the most problems, but the ice. When we had ice storms, it was devastating.
    But you sound like a trooper, getting 'stuck in' as they say here in England, and you made it all work out.
    I can identify with losing time, too!
    Most of my hand-made gifts got stashed this year and will hopefully be completed by next Christmas!
    Send me a note and tell me more about your issue of British Country Living!

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  2. Natalie Jo,
    We're in the same state:-) We are in Western MA and miraculously that ice storm didn't get our town. We got rain buy my parents and alot of friends in central MA got hit hard. I was just defrosting my last Dundee Cake and then I came to read a bit more of your blog--how funny is that! Kindred spirits I would say, besides Tasha fans:-)

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  3. We didn't get that storm but we drove up to western MA and saw it the next day! It was beautiful but, oh, so lethal!

    Your "frozen Charlottes" are really special--a Shackman wooden doll and a Ruth Gibbs china, I think. Coincidentally, these little gals live here, too. What a cute photo!

    Your photos are so really wonderful and your blog is so pretty.

    On another note, our furnace went out twice this winter. I love winter but am ready for spring!

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