Hunky-Dory At The Cottage

How was your easter? Ours was a delight, just as expected. I did have a mishap with my peasant bread. I killed my yeast, and I had to begin again. But I always say, it's okay that things like that happen, I know what I did to kill the yeast, so no high degree of harm was done. You simply start again.

How To Make A Wattle Fence {For Your Victorian English Cottage Garden}

My dear friends,

Today is being spent indoors; garden planning with my dear ol' spirited friend, Beatrix Potter.

Yesterday, the weekend, and today, I'm using my time wisely, as today marks a week of daily rainstorms. The frogs love it, with their croaking and ribbiting. This is how I imagine the frogs in this type of weather. Dear Ms Magadalene, isn't she a sight with her apron, and bonnet atop her head?

How To Prune An English Victorian Garden

My dear friends,

Won't you pour some tea, and let us have a visit. I have to tell you a short story. So, you know that I am married to a gardener, my beloved gardener. He's really a horticulturist/landscaper.

Why We're Turning Our 1974 Home Into An English Victorian Mermaid Cottage {To Then Sell And Become Homesteaders}

 My dear friends,

I received the news last Wednesday that we were out of the running for the curatorship of Flanders Mansion in Carmel By The Sea. I wasn't devastated or distraught, because I know that just means considerable specific desires that Jeffrey and I have are coming. I deeply trust the processes. I spent over 5 years diligently working with the city, historical research on the mansion, the Flanders family genealogy, and I feel very confident that all of that work was leading me to what will be.

My newest little cross-stitch I'll begin this evening by kerosene light.

My Beloved Gardener and I have a little routine that we do on weekends. After our home chores: we get baths, dress, jump into the truck, drive about looking at homes, land and property. We go to all sorts of little farmers markets, flea markets and charity shops. It's one of our favourite things to do as a couple.  He also knows that when I take my big camera there's going to be many stops for picture taking and picking of wildflowers. {I keep a little pair of clippers in my car, along with a little corked bottle of water, just for those spur of the moment times}.

So, upon learning that Flanders' was no longer in our future, we talked about where we might want to set down roots to create our 'forever home'.

Our plan is to find a substantial piece of property and become homesteading farmers. We have even talked about buying one of those stone cottage kits and build our own little cottage just the way we like it. We are going to get 5 sheep, more chickens {we'd like about 20}, roosters, more rabbits and a few dogs. That will be plenty for us as we will have all the farming to do, especially since we plan to have a large vegetable/ flower garden too. Jeffrey is most excited about the garden, and I can't wait either. I feel a little like Tasha Tudor. I can imagine she was just as happy the day she purchased her property to begin her dream home.

 I will have a stone wall such as this, along with the entire cottage being made of stone. Even the sheer thought of it makes me beyond giddy.

I think of Louisa May Alcott when she and her family finally moved into The Orchard House.  She, too, had always moved around and I can only imagine she was thrilled to bits to finally land at, "The Orchard House".

I am actually a bit relieved to finally know that I can now get on with life~so to speak. I had spent so many years living in a state of uncertainty with Flanders. That feeling begins to take a toll on someone after a period of time~ it did for me, anyway.

I do love the little home that we named Staffordshire Cottage, and it has so many delightful features and a surplus of potential. I had the idea of turning it into an authentic Victorian cottage a few months back as I was speaking with my dear friend. She is the friend of Tasha Tudor's children. We were chatting it up last week, and as usual, Tasha came up. She knows so much about Tasha and I gathered many more intentions from her. I got off of the telephone and thought to myself, " I shall do as Tasha Did." Tasha wasn't always where she desired to be. It wasn't until much later in life that she lived in her dream home that her son built by hand. Did you know for a little over a year Tasha and her children lived in their barn while the house was being built? She went many years living in another home, and while she was there, she sketched and dreamed about her one-day dream home that she envisioned.

The other day I was thinking about how often women, look at other women and compare their lives. We forget~ that artist/author that we admire so greatly has been on their personal journey for decades, and maybe our journey is just beginning. They, too, were where we are once upon a time. I am into my journey of only a few years. There are others somewhere out there, just beginning. Let us be mindful, we will get our greatest desires and dreams, but we must relish and live in the NOW. Each of us is unique and individual, and we mustn't focus on others and what they are doing. Regardless, of how similar in nature someone's life seems to appear, it is not. I think women do a grave disservice to themselves when they compare their lives to other women.

I acknowledge to you that I say this frequently, and the reason I do so is, that what better person to speak of such a thing, than a person that once upon a time struggled. It tore me up mentally, and it's truly no good for our sweet little spirits. Let us cut that out. {smile}

The long end path of Jeffrey and myself will be to spend much effort in transforming our little cottage into an English Victorian Cottage. Our tentative plan is to then sell it, make a decent profit and buy our piece of land. We are going to give ourselves a good year to work on the cottage, and in our spare time, continue seeking a beautiful piece of land. Do you dream of living in the country or are you a city gal?

Most affably yours til my next swim, Raquelxxx

How To Feed Our Little Hen House On The Prairie

My dear friends,

How are you on this lovely beautiful day? It's tea time, my sweet friends. I made some banana bread to accompany our tea today. You're going to love it. I tried a new recipe this time, It's one with brown sugar.

As many of you know, I had wanted hens all of my life, and I can happily say, I love having chicken ladies. They are a year and a half now. My mother grew up on a chicken farm, as that was her gentries livelihood. I am learning every day that despite all the things I'm sure my mother knows about farming and chickens, I am continually researching for myself. I try and emulate the olden ways of homesteading. The Victorian era is my end all to beat all. (smile)

Gardening At Staffordshire Cottage

My dear friends,

Good morning! Might you pour some tea and let us sit and have a little visit.

 Did you have a most extraordinary weekend? Over the weekend I worked mostly in the garden while the chicken ladies strutted about. I let Oliver about in the garden for the day while I pulled weeds, cleaned the chicken coop, and raked up limbs and debris.

My Quotidian Pursuits At The Cottage

Hello lovely friends,

These past few weeks have been full of all sorts of particulars. Let us have tea, shall we? I'm sipping some green tea {I am forever in need of an eensy bit of natural caffeine} with buttered biscuits {nothing fancy, the utmost simple Bisquick recipe} and the remaining bit of my strawberry preserves from last summer. 

I have managed to capture some delicate photographs as I've been really trying to create a much more lovely portfolio of imagery. I think I am well on my way to having never taken any professional photography classes. What do you think? 

I spent several days cleaning and deciding on a few lovely pieces of furniture for the cottage. I love the refinement of the Victorian Ornate era, but I also love the simplistic primitive humility of a little plain cottage.

I spent one whole day cleaning out the kitchen cupboards, drawers, pantry and guest room. I made 3 trips to the donation center. I must say I feel so refreshed and the energy is full and bustling through the cottage as if there's anticipation of wonderment to ensue. 

I rehung several of my iron skillets, revived a few that were rusted. I also found a new one that I picked up at the thrift store. It's the perfect size for a few scrambled eggs for breakfast mornings.

My BG and I spent time at the fresh market. I am always admiring their displays. It has such a quaint ambiance about it. I believe its the dim lighting that creates a moodiness effect.  

I found some yummy Walker butter shortbread cookies for my tea. I am sorely addicted to those cookie biscuits. I can't help myself from eating the package in its entirety. 

I have gardened and walked this little row of pebbled rocks so many times and yet I came upon these three hearts and I was so tickled to know that I was being blessed by the universe with my most favorite of signs.

More playing with my camera, lighting, and angles. I have not a clue what I'm doing but this is my place of creating and figuring it out as I go along. I hope you'll be patient with me as I find my way.

The gardener and I have been sleeping on a certain side of the bed. I have an injury in my right arm and my BG wanted to switch sides to see if he fared better too. Do you have a certain side of the bed you sleep on?

This week I stripped the bed and started fresh. I donated all the old comforters and sheet sets to the thrift store and picked up a new set at TJ Maxx with a high thread count. We now have one sheet set and I have always gone with white, for white is very versatile. I can bleach them and hang them on the clothesline. There is nothing more refreshing than the faint smell of fresh sun-dried linens.

Some brie cheese tossed in the oven with a touch of garlic and olive oil. I also toasted some sourdough bread in the oven with some freshly grated parmesan cheese. This to me is a meal in itself.

I spent some time on the internet looking for a china teapot to match some thrift store plates that I picked up for a few dollars. I am seeking a bone china teapot, and truly want it to match. I love the softness of the pink in this plate. Soft pink is also one of my brand colors, so I love using it for flat lays and styling.

courtesy of pinterest

I kept Jayne Eyre the movie playing in the background for almost a solid two weeks. When I am working I play the soundtrack at nausea. What type of music do you enjoy?

courtesy of pinterest

Blue is another of my brand colors so I like playing with teacups as they are one of my favorite things to collect. I think I shall eventually gather my bearings on a signature style that is all my own. I did some cookie baking this week. Lemon poppy seed cookies, they are not my favorite, but its variety I seek. I won't be making these again for quite a long time.

When organizing and purging, I take everything out and then sort through. I ask myself these three questions as I hold the items: Do I love it truly? Does it hold a negative memory or energy for me? Is it useful?

The Gardener and I went driving and he helped me seek places to scout out for photo shoots for my blog.

courtesy of getty

I wrote a quite eloquent author proposal for the Mercedes Benz dealership. I am shooting the photos for it this weekend, if the weather permits.

Florida weather has a peculiar way of teaching its residents a sense of adapting to the fickleness. Just when we are getting comfortable, the temperatures rise or we get rain showers with an inconsistency. The mugginess is definetly something to get used to.

I hung some photos of precarious gentleman folk in the hall, and painted up a few silhouettes of the gardener and i.

I made the gardener his tea. I love to try all sorts of different kinds. loose leaf tea is my favorite. We have a darling Teavana tea room in the mall about ten miles away from the cottage. I love to go there, smell and taste the samples of the day.

Yard sales and estate sales will never elude the gardener and I, even if we never buy a thing it's still so much fun to window shop.

Our Brandywine tomatoes have finally stopped dropping, but I can say we had the best bounty we've ever had. They were so wonderful. I had sliced tomatoes and cucumbers every day with my black eyed peas and johnny cake cornbread. The most perfect southern meal to be had surely.

This was an image, as well as the one below I found on Pinterest and its a great inspirational piece for a painting I'd like to paint this week. Do you keep secret pinterest boards?

I ripped apart a bunch more fencing and I plan to patch the pieces together and create a makeshift desk so that I can have a surface to sew on.

I'm purely desperate to get my hands back to smocking, embroidery, and sewing some beautiful summer dresses. I found a wonderfully soft weaved Pima cotton, and I'll be making a shirt out of it with ruffled sleeves, pearl buttons, and a peter pan collar. 

Heres my pile of original victorian clothes that I've collected over the past few years that need to be mended. I have such a pile, I think I may be forced to find new uses for them, as they seem to find themselves in the mending pile more so than I am able to wear them. They are in constant need of being tended to. 

Heres another cabinet {below} that holds medicines, vitamins and essential oils. I aged labels from the office supply store and then used my quill pen to calligraphy on the bottles. 

Here's a TTT {Treasure Trove Tip} when I had to start all over from scratch and I no longer had a supply of old bottles, I made sure that whenever we bought new spices, I'd always buy glass. I then would age the lids with paint to make them appear like they were rusted, and soak the labels off. The metal file drawers were one of the few things that my ex-husband mailed down to me so I stamped some labels with rubber stamps for the bottles. The oils and gummy vitamins are always being used up so I keep them in the same bottles and just hide those in the metal drawers.

 I spent many hours working on my book author proposal so that I can afford to pay for my 13 city book tour. I think it's going to be so much fun, that I can hardly wait. 

How have you been spending your spring thus far? Ihope your'e having a lovely time. 

If you havent signed up for my newletter "The Current" I'd love it if you did. I'm working on a giveaway for signing up, but I havent thought of anything spectacular yet. Do you have any ideas? I'd love to hear from you. 

Starting From The Shoreline Again {When You Are Starting Your Life Over}

Hello there Mermaid Junkies,

I hope you're doing well. I wanted to share with you a few TTT {Treasure Trove Tips} that may be of some value to you.

As you guys know, if you're an avid fan of my youtube channel, You know that after my divorce I literally walked away with not one red cent. Not alimony, no money of any sort. The only thing I had was my car that's been paid for over a decade that was in my name {which I got 4 months down the road when the divorce was final}, and the two suitcases full of the things I could take with the weight restrictions onto the airplane. So when I say I literally am starting from scratch, that means literally from scratch.

I will say that because I was living the Law of Attraction, I was very resourceful and I had been a frugal woman all of my life. So I was able to manifest things rather quickly, and that even meant manifesting the money for my airline ticket, and money to pay for my own phone and new cell phone account that I wanted to be put in my own name. Things like that, if you may be specifically wondering.

I am sharing all of this with you; the nitty-gritty details. Because if there's one thing that has always annoyed me is that women talk about their journeys of pulling themselves from the ash, and so often they never tell you about the details. Like, "oh, so you started from scratch, but you still to this day have alimony from an ex every month. Or you got a payout from the ex, or you got the house in the divorce that was completely paid for." That to me, no offense, is not as much of a struggle. Does that make sense? I am not trying to make light of anyone's struggles, but I am just keeping the line of transparency open here on my blog. You guys know I'm one to tell it like I see it. I also want to clarify that I am a woman that is supportive of other women, but I am a woman that expects pure honesty and authenticity. If women aren't super transparent it gives other women that sense of insecurity of feeling like, "Oh man, I cant do what she did. What's wrong with me?" That's all I'm saying. I have been disillusioned by several women in this manner, and I will not do that to you, my readers.

Okay. Okay.

Now back to this post. I wanted to share with you if you happen to be truly working from the shoreline to recreate a life for yourself, I wanted to give you a few tips on how to keep and maintain a few little luxuries while you are starting over.

Because you guys, let's be honest. When we're truly beginning again there are things like wearing makeup, or actually the basics of what to wash your face with, hair color maintenance, buying the normal things like a nice smelling candle to keep you happy to some degree, still dressing cute, or what if you don't have health insurance or dental insurance. What the crap are you supposed to do? I'll tell you. I am going to share with you what I did, in hopes that it might help to serve you if you are in that place right now. In future posts, I'll break down exactly what you can do if you are lucky enough to have your children with you, and are starting over. For instance, housing and support financially from the government {if you live in the USA}.

I know this is not what many want to address or talk about. We often times want to see the pretty flowery stuff in life. I am very much this way on a daily basis, but guys, we all have shit that hits the fan in life. I want to be that voice of inspiration when it does happen, and still inspire women for the pretty stuff as well, once we get back into the flow of joy.

Okay, so my housing was the blessings of having parents that were open and kind enough to let me stay with them. They also provided me with food. So yes, that's two huge things that I instantly had that I am so very appreciative of. I didn't have a bedroom to stay in so I slept on my parent's couch. I was going through a difficult time with not having my children with me. I had no sadness about my divorce, as I am the one that paid for it, wanted it and was super happy about that aspect. The ex wouldn't allow me to take my children, which would have been the two youngest {Zoë Kennedy and Brooker}. I let my children decide what they wanted to do since they were old enough and they wanted to graduate from the school they were enrolled at. They had moved so much, I understood completely why they wouldn't want to move again for the twenty-third time. I was not going to do that to my children. Too often women become vindictive and use their children as collateral to hurt the ex-husband. That my friends will bite you in the ass. Do not use your children to get back at someone, ever.

Now onto the things I was experiencing once I was settled with my parents. Only having the little money that I was able to earn through cleaning a relatives house, a painting job, and some organizing, I used to buy necessities. I did not go on clothes shopping sprees or out to dinner or leisure stuff. The pure basic necessities. My extended family was super generous in that way. I always worked for the money though. I didn't lay on my parent's couch expecting a handout because I was a soon to be a divorcee.

💦So when It was time to color my hair and cut my hair. I cut it myself. I had learned some tricks from my sister in law and I knew that if I needed to I could simply use some scissors from Sally's beauty supply and cut a basic line. No layers, just cutting the dead ends off. For the hair coloring, I went to the nearest Sally's Beauty Supply and bought the color that matched the best. I watched a youtube video on how to color my hair myself. Scissors were $9.59 {with beauty club card} at Sally's Beauty Supply, hair color Clairol $6.29 {with beauty club card}, tint brush 1.99 {with beauty club card}and hair mixing bowl $2.29 {with beauty club card}, developer $3.69 {with beauty club card}. The developer will last almost a year for the 16 0z.

💦My makeup consisted of drugstore makeup and actually still does to this day. I use Covergirl powder,  Cover Girl Neutralizer as a concealer, and lip pencil in "Mocha or "Real Red", Loreal mascara Brown/Black, Burts Bees lip shimmer in caramel. I also use the Burts Bees lip shimmer in cherry when I want a red lip.

💦Instead of using all the expensive facial washes I use ivory bar soap and Neutrogena fragrance-free lotion as a moisturizer. If I ever get a pimple, which rarely, if ever happens I use Melaleuca dōTerra essential oil. My dōTerra oils are going to be a whole other post, as I have a lot to share with you about them and it's going to call for a whole lot of information. Essential oils are my health care plan.😂

💦I use the Dollar Tree candles in fresh linen below even to this day. If you are like me, you love your surroundings to smell nice. I am a big fan of candles and have been since a girl. I have tried hundreds. I used to be obsessed with the gardenia candles from Martha Stewarts line at Kmart. That tells you how long I've been burning and experimenting with candles. My mom taught me all about candles and I used to sell candles for Salt City Candles and Partylite. I know. I am showing my age. Hehh...

I think those are the tips I'll share for today, even though I have a ton more. I'll be sure to keep creating posts for TTT {Treasure Trove Tips Tuesday}.

I hope this served you and be mindful that no matter where you are in your transformational tale, I am right here with you. Everything is gonna be alright I promise.

Yours til my next swim, Raquel

How To Keep A Cottage Bunny & {Sir Oliver Twisty Topsy's Tale}

Upon learning that I have a cottage bunny, I've had several folks ask about how to care for one, as well as, Oliver's story. I'll attempt to tell my story of Oliver as well as give some great information on how to have a bunny as a house pet.

Since my early twenties, I have always desired to have a house bunny. It all began when I had my children, and I would endlessly read them stories of Beatrix Potter and watch all the videos of the tales of Peter Rabbit.

I've had a deep fascination with Beatrix Potter since my youth and had always desired to have a bunny in the house such as her.

Needless to say, without going into the beastly details of why I never got my dream of having a house bunny, I had it written upon the pages of my little Beatrix Potter journal from 1993 and that when I acquired my rabbit, I would give him the name of Oliver. I had wanted to name one of my sons Oliver, but that notion was vetoed with each birth. So I just said to myself, I'll call my pet rabbit Oliver when I acquire him one day.

Bath time...

When I met my dearest Beloved Gardener, and we began talking, we shared our likes and dislikes of life and of all the particulars we've dreamt of. I was madly in love with Jeffrey from the first moment I began communicating with him, and it has yet to wane.

When we started dating, my birthday was fast approaching, and he asked me what I'd like for my birthday. I told him as I've been on a transformational journey {tale} for the last few years, I was eager to make as many of my dreams come true. Now that I was in control of my life, I wanted to embrace all I'd ever wanted without being bridled. I requested to have a house bunny, yes a rabbit living in the cottage with the gardener and I hop-hopping about.

He said, okay... If you seek the bunny out and find the one you want I'll acquire it for you. Now, I would be remiss if I didn't explain to you what that did for my soul.

You see, I have continuously over the years been told as if I were a child what is and is not permitted for me to do. Whether it was my parents, religious figures, ex-husband, extended family, etcetera. You name it... people have always desired to tell me what I should and should not do according to their desires.

I was now with a person that was respectful of me, wanting to give me my greatest desires in life even if it seems minuscule to buy me a pet rabbit.

I sat and cried for quite some time that I was, at last, going to have a rabbit all my own.

I do now understand looking back just a little over two years that we actually train people how to treat us. We are the ones that allow and accept the way people decide to respect or disrespect us. It's our work to be the influential creators that we are intuitive. To create our lives the way we so desire. And as an artist, I can say paint the life you want with each brushstroke representing a choice and decision in your life that you made all on your own. What you will soon realize is the beautiful masterpiece that you've created is the most beautiful piece of art, and it's all your own work,  your own masterpiece with all the colours you decided to use, the canvas you chose, the medium you chose. You are the one in control of your life and no one else. You have to be the one to paint the life you want.

Having a rabbit has been one of the greatest joys my heart has ever known. Rabbits do have sweet personalities, and I manifested the perfect bunny for my soul, and that was Oliver.

I live the Law of Attraction, and I believe profoundly in getting into alignment before ever getting any kind of pet. I was sure to write my intentions about the type of personality my bunny would have, and I really needed a calm bunny. I had initially wanted a Lionhead but ultimately chose a Jersey Wholly instead as I think their demeanours are a smidge more peaceful. Oliver is a Jersey Woolly Blue Tort, and he is a full-grown weight of 3 pounds.

Upon bringing Sir Oliver Twisty Topsy home, beforehand I had my father create a bunny hutch out of an old pie safe that I had for decades which sat at my parent's house being cared for.

I had done an abundance of research about how to care for a bunny, so I felt rest assured that I would be a great bunny owner. There are lots of Bunny videos on Youtube, such as how to bathe, clip nails, keep their bedding, and how to feed them.

I like to feed Oliver a healthy organic diet, and I'll tell you why. Not only because it keeps him in outstanding health, but because I'm not one to take my pets to the vet unless I'm in dire straights and can't do something on my own.

I was the same way with my dogs, and one out of the two is still living 14 years later and has never gone to the vet except for being neutered.

I wanted to create another way that you could house your bunny if you have a tribal style. The dog crate was given to me from the neighbours when they were moving, and I thought i could put it to good use. I found the keyboard stand in the storage room, and just sprayed all of it a gold spray paint. The rug is from five below.

 I will give another piece of advice that I have learned from having a rabbit. If you get their bunny cage off of the floor, it makes cleanup so much better. If not, you will have to spend so much time cleaning. The rabbits are messy little beasts, and the height solution will save you enormous headaches, trust me on this.

At night I throw a blanket over the cage. As you know, rabbits typically live in burrowed out tree trunks and holes, so they love darkly closed~in spaces.

I found a basket at the thrift store and then bought a plastic Tupperware pan (casserole size) then lined it with two grocery bags. Then lay several paper towels inside and then layer hay on top. Just for blog post purposes, I put the litter in, but I rarely use kitty litter. Also, line paper towels around and below the plastic pan, just so there are no accidents. 

If pee happens to get on the basket, take it outside, and spray it down with the hose. I spray Oliver's with bleach and lavender fabuloso that i mixed up in a spray bottle. Let it dry out in the sun. Over time the basket will begin to fall apart, but like I said earlier, I just go and buy another one for about two bucks at the Goodwill. They also love the wicker and will mostly chew it to file down their teeth. So that's two birds with one stone, in my book. {Wink, Wink}

I dry rose petals from my garden, but sometimes I'll give him fresh. He likes new, much better and especially loves the stems. Trust your animal to know what to eat, they are super smart.

My philosophy is that if I take good care of my pet, trust mother earth to provide for our animals, that bunnies are sort of like that even though we have somewhat domesticated them. They are still animals and are absolutely instinctive. A rabbit knows how to do bunny stuff, they don't need to be taught. I take Oliver outside daily to play in the garden, and he knows what weeds, flower stems or branches to chew on. He just knows. Below is a list of things of particulars that I keep on hand for Oliver.

~Timothy Hay {You can get large bags at Walmart for $6.97}

~Purified Water {You don't need all of those fancy drinking drip bottles, just a little ceramic bowl will do correctly. Again, my philosophy is that rabbits don't have decorative containers in the wild, they drink from the brooks}. I do suggest purified water though because goodness knows what can cause harm over a while if we give them water that's not filtered.

I always say, "prevention is best!"

Olivers purified water bottle. I keep it ready to go in the fridge, just in case someone needs to water and feed him, they know his special bottle.

~Some pieces of wood, cardboard boxes, driftwood, old branches, etc. {I watched Oliver's patterns to see what he liked to chew on and then found that he loves his soft wooded box with his hay in it. So I let him eat that to bits. That way, I don't have to have his teeth filed.

~Rabbits are like many animals; they pee and poop in the same spots from where they have left their scent. Another beautiful thing about a rabbit is that they are super clean. They can be box trained like a kitty cat.

~Oliver and most rabbits poop where they eat their hay. So I change Oliver's bed almost every day, sometimes every other day. Many of the sites recommend getting paper cat litter for the rabbits, but I found a few paper towels inside a plastic pan with some hay on top of the paper towels is much easier clean up for Oliver and for me. I attempted the cat litter one time, and it was a total disaster. He kicked it everywhere!

This is Oliver's bunny hutch. He can be comfortable in it as he is only 2 pounds full grown. If he were a more giant 

breed, this surely would not work.

~We grow a garden of herbs and vegetables, so I keep Oliver's diet fresh from the garden. He has his favourites, and you'll have to just give your rabbit samples of things and see what they like and dislike. Oliver's diet is mostly Organic Italian parsley, carrots, dried mangos, cilantro, romaine lettuce, black oil sunflower seeds and some dried food that i homemade from an assortment of nuts, oats and seeds.

~I keep on hand essential oils {doterra brand} Melaleuca, Frankincense, Lavender and a few others. I make my own blends, and if I need to make something special for an ailment, I just whip it up. Fingers crossed, I haven't had to do that yet, and Oliver is 3.
~If Oliver ends up making a number 2 other than his bed box, I will promptly pick up the poop and take it to his bed box. I also recommend getting some Capture and using that to remove any scents, so that he won't keep returning to go to the bathroom in that same spot.

I keep Oliver in his bunny hutch nightly. In the morning after I awake and meditate, I barricade the kitchen and parlour and take Oliver out to roam around. Most rabbits sleep during the day, so they are pretty calm and lethargic during the day. I do take him out in the mornings after the dew has dried and let him bounce around and play. He's used to the air conditioner so he can get boiling really quickly. I then bring him back inside to spend more time with me.

He mostly sleeps beneath my feet in his basket under the dining table or my art desk. I treat him as a child, so if I'm busily painting, I bring him in next to me. He's quite comfortable and will sprawl out and sleep.

Oliver has brought a great sense of joy to my life, and I feel as though a home isn't a home without a bunny rabbit.

Most Affably Yours Til My Next Swim, Raquelxxx