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Monday, August 29, 2011

It's Only a Bird . . .

I found Henry in a shop called Ingeborg's Cupboard, downtown Waupaca. 


He was sitting high on a shelf in the store.

I asked the store owner to bring him down for closer inspection.  Wow, he's a pretty bird. 

I call him Henry, after the previous owner's son, and because I like the name.

Henry Wrolstad 1882-1903

I put Henry the Bird in the kitchen, on top of the east wall of cabinets--about the same height as he appeared in the store.  Every once in a while, someone noticed the bird looking down at them. 
Time to give Henry some attention.


Henry is sits on a 12" post, mounted on a piece of plywood. 

This month I moved Henry to the red dining room.  Gathering some fern, and fall colored orange-gold leafed brown branches, I covered the plywood base with moss and foliage. 

Henry takes up a heap of space on the mantle,
but all dressed up here he is center stage in the dining room.


Henry Makes Special Appearance for House Guests:
I hosted a group of 70 guests August 13, welcoming the Wrolstad Family Reunion.  Their ancester John Olsen Wrolstad built our house in 1893.  The dining room table was filled with hydrangea, accompanied by trays of butterscotch oatmeal cookies, and iced lemonade made by my mother Lorraine.
I was so busy with guests, I forgot about photographing the event.  What was I thinking???

I want to thank the Wrolstad Family Reunion for taking time to tour our house, and for the kind words about the whole house restoration. 


I want to say hello today, to a new friend Junelle. 

Hi Junelle, 
When will you come visit us at Wrolstad-Quien Victorian? 

7 comments:

  1. Henry looks right at home. He does make an attractive feature.

    How wonderful are you to open your house to the relatives of its historic owner!

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  2. I have loved reading your blog of redoing the old home. What a huge undertaking, but how beautiful it is. I love that you have collected photos and keepsakes from the two families who lived there before you. What a nice tribute. I am sure their decendents love to see it open and redone so beautifully. Junelle

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  3. I like so much that you keep alive the memory of former owners of your house. I've always believed that houses retain energy from past occupants and past events. When I bought my own house, I retained one small porcelain from the last (deceased) owner, just so there would be some continuity.

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  4. Henry looks magnificent on your mantle!! What a grand vignette!!

    Hugs,
    Debbie

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  5. Hello Linda,
    Henry is one handsome fellow. He's perfect for welcoming autumn colours. Your photographs have such a warm glow to them. You are so multi-talented.
    Anyes
    XX

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  6. Love you site, love your house! I recently bought a 1889 farmhouse with a fancy round porch. I created a new website with photos and am in the process of renovating. Please check it out and comment if you like.
    www.quiettimes.webs.com

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  7. Henry was well taken care of apparently...he looks wonderful there in your home.
    I thought our family was the only one who asked to see our old homestead after all these years....at our family reunion this summer.
    The same woman who bought the house from my parents 50 years ago..let all 39 of us "troop thru" her house...it was so gracious of her.
    Many of us wrote notes to thank her. It was fun seeing my old room again after all these many years.
    Everything..... looked SO much smaller than I remember it.
    What a treat that was for us..my great grandparents built that house and my mother was BORN in that house...and all five of us kids grew up in it..it holds a special place in our hearts.

    As I am sure.... that family felt coming thru your house again.

    Rose
    http://delightfulcluttertoo-byrose.blogspot.com/

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