The Porch

In NH you must have a screen porch or be warned, you will be carried away by black flies and mosquitoes.I have a small one that I love and as you can see Oscar loves it too. That is a great nap couch for cats and humans. The couch was a free find many years ago from the basement of the condo my sister and her husband were living in. It was about to go to the dump until I took it and I am glad I did take it.

Next to the couch is a little corner shelf I picked up at a yard sale. On it is some favorite pottery and a couple of jars of sea glass I have picked up over the years at our cottage in Maine. I have lots of sea glass in various places around my house. My daughter and I have had fun times together searching our shore for the bits of glass. On the other side of the porch is an oversized table because lets face it, most of our gatherings involve lots of food and many mouths so you need a big table!

The only other requirement for an enjoyable summer is plants and those can be found beyond the screens just under my kitchen windows. I hope everyone has a wonderful summer!

Construction Update

It seems like a long time ago that this happenned. But there has been some progress, a lot of it happenning this week when the framing crew showed up.The second floor, which will become the family room, is pretty much ready to go up and I expect that will happen tomorrow. Then the inside work begins and that will be fun to see because we'll be able to see that room take shape. In the meantime, hubby and I were out and about yesterday looking at flooring and tile for around the fireplace, and ordering roofing. One thing I found out is that there is a lot of different flooring materials out there so it will be a tough decision. We are kind of leaning towards bamboo right now because of the green aspect and because it looks nice. I'd be interested to hear if anyone has ever used bamboo and what their experience was. The vintage lover part of me wishes I could find some fabulous floor to recycle that would give the room loads of character but that only seems to happen to other people. Then there will be paint colors-yikes! My least favorite job. I want something neutral and warm-anyone have a suggestion? I'm not too proud to beg for help!

Is it a Potted Plant or a Potty Plant?

Sorry for the lack of posts but my camera was being held hostage in my son in law's car until I broke into their home this morning and took it back! Not really-I have a key. Anyways, a while back Kim of Daisy Cottage showed off her wheel barrow that she had so lovingly planted with flowers. I loved it-it seemed her husband was less than thrilled. Mine will probably be bewildered by what he finds on the front porch when he gets home.On the way to my daughter's house was a yard sale so I stopped and found the charming little potty chair for $1 so it went home with me and there is a potted plant in it now. The chair is probably from the 50's and I remember having one just like it. It's really sad when you see antiques and remember having one as a child! I even remember where my Mom kept it-behind the door to the staircase going upstairs. I'm dating myself here!I love the charming little picture on it of a bunny and a teddy on a see saw while the dolls watch. I'm just glad I'm not the one potty training a little one now. Flowers are so much easier but far less fun, but I'm sure I will enjoy watching the process in a couple of years with my grandson-I'll just be watching though.

Pure Sunshine!

I am calling this post pure sunshine because everytime I see this picture that's how I feel in my heart. With permission from his parents, my son and daughter in law, I am posting a picture of my grandson (my first grandchild) taken on Mother's Day. He is only 5 weeks old but so alert and curious already. I was having a conversation with him in my kitchen and my son caught this moment. He looks just like his father did at that age. His father turns 29 tomorrow and I can hardly believe that so many years have gone by. I am looking forward to the years to come, and watching this little one and any others that may come along, grow up.

Happy Mother's Day

I wanted to wish all the mothers out there a Happy Mother's Day. I had a wonderful day here with my family, my husband's mother, his sister and family, my daughter's in laws and of course my beautiful one month old grandson. How he has changed in one month.

I did manage to finish this table runner this weekend from a pattern that I got from The Happy Zombie. It is a very easy pattern. I just changed the applique from cherries to flowers since I am calling this my summer table runner. Please don't look too closely at my machine quilting. It is a skill I am practicing and it will take me a while to get better. But I think it looks great on my kitchen island.

Ah Summer!

It has finally warmed up enough here in New England so we can all start dreaming of summer. I am lucky enough to work at a college which means I get June and July off. My husband and I and any of our children and their spouses who can, retreat to this little cottage in Maine and I can hardly wait.This home was my husband's Grandparent's retirement home and they lived there many years but now it is co-owned by the family and I just love going there. The first time I visited it was before we were married more than 32 years ago. When I first saw the inside I thought the colors his grandmother had painted the walls a little bizarre but now the colors, which we have kept the same over the years, seem perfect. The whole front of the cottage that faces the water is one big room and it is painted a turquoise color much like this. I thought back then it was a strange color to paint a room but it is so perfect for this room that faces the blue of the water. The house has an assortment of chairs and tables, many of which are painted colors like pink and yellow. The first time I saw all these candy colored chairs in that turquoise room I wondered why she would paint perfectly good chairs. Well, if she only had started selling them like this company we'd all be rich! She was ahead of her time! I wish I had a better picture to show you of the million dollar view we have. We are on a salt water river on the coast of Maine-the open ocean is not too far off the right side of the above picture. If you are familiar with Andrew Wyeth's painting, Christina's World, we are just down the road from that famous home. In fact my husband's grandmother was a childhood friend of Christina Olson who is in that painting. So bring on summer. I can almost smell the salt air.

Now You See It, Now You Don't

Now you see it,

Now you don't!

As you can see our construction project has started. We are having a two car garage built with a family room above. That white door you see is the door to the kitchen which will become double french doors opening to a staircase that will go up 6 steps to a big open family room. All the rooms in my house are small so I am excited to have a large room where everyone can gather. My husband is anxious to not have to scrape ice and frost ever again in the morning.

I am looking forward to filling the room with furniture and accessories, none of them new! I have already found a large dining table, a craftsman style desk that someone cut down that I plan on using to put a tv on, and a side table. I know I can furnish and decorate with thrifty finds and I am challenging myself to do that. Now if only the cats would stop scratching at that kitchen door to go into the garage that isn't there anymore!

Who the Heck is This?

My cousins have passed along to me this picture because they thought I would like the antique frame. It has a picture of a gentleman in it but no one seems to know who it is. They only know that it was displayed in their house.

The inscription on the picture reads, "Yours Sincerely, Frederick A. Wilson, in happy remembrance of Sept. 27, 1897". I am intrigued; who is he and what happenned on September 27, 1897? I have Googled the name and date and come up with nothing. I guess I'll just have to make up my own story. Perhaps something romantic.