Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Very Big Truck and Bye Bye Ducks


Chaos in the cottage!  Moving boxes everywhere.  I went to the title company
this morning to sign the closing papers on Mom's house and although
I was only gone for one hour,  when I got back the movers  had already
packed up the shoes I planned to take with me on the trip down.
Note to myself ~ if I ever move again, write do not pack on anything
that is not to go in a moving box.  But the movers are the nicest guys
and super efficient.  One of them jumped when he stepped on one of
Bentley's squeaky toys that was oh so conveniently placed directly
underfoot ;-)  We all had a good laugh.




Mom's furniture is already on the big truck that is sitting in front of our house
overnight tonight.  Yesterday we said goodbye to the ducks on the pond
behind her house.  We spent so many hours feeding and talking to the
sweet darlings.  They really were like pets.



We will miss them!  They may not miss us, but I bet they will miss
the dried corn we always fed them.  Ah, but I suppose the new owners
will take care of that.

We are all pooped.  The movers will be back over at 8:00 am 
tomorrow morning.  Poor guys, they were packing all day and still have
more to do tomorrow.  Y'all know how many dishes I have!


Bentley ~ don't worry.  Mama safely packed up some of your
very favorite toys for the trip down to Texas.

Big Hugs,
Susan and Bentley


Saturday, July 27, 2013

Bye Bye Pink



As much as I love the house we will be moving into in Victoria, there is
one room I really don't like and will change asap and that is the ...

pink striped foyer!

Y'all know I like pink, but not in a foyer.  I love to wear pink and to
paint my nails pink, but I don't care for it on my walls.  The last time I 
had pink walls was when I was a teenager.  So, bye, bye pink!

Of course, not being one to accept things the way they are, I also want
to change the front door and add a transom window and maybe a 
side light too to bring more light and openness into the space.



I am thinking something more like this.  Oh dear, stripes once again.  Can't say
I want that, but I love the window over the door.  If I did that I could keep
the existing door.  I love the side light too.  The wainscoting is nice and
how about those blue and white plates above that charming bench?
Is that a church pew do you think?



Here is a pic of the French doors leading to the living room.  Excuse the
quality of the pic, David took this with his cell phone.  Love the doors.
The carpet in the living room is going away as are those sheers and those
valances too.  The windows in that room (there are four of them) are
four feet by seven feet and are lovely old colonial windows whose sills
nearly touch the floor.  



Here is another image I love!  This is so warm and friendly.
More transfer ware.  We love that!  Oh and painted paneling.  I am 
beginning to think that I will want to paint the paneling in the
family room.  Have I mentioned that?  Of course I have not
breathed a word of that idea to David.  I will have to "condition"
him on the idea.  A while back ago I thought I could live with the
dark paneling, but you know how we women are ;-)

Okay, better run.  Busy, busy days right now.

Happily Joining ~


Bentley ~  your daddy will be back home in two days.  I
know how happy you will be to see him (me too).  Better get 
your toys packed before the moving van shows up.  You
can bring a few with you when we all drive down to Texas.

Big Hugs,
Susan and Bentley














Friday, July 26, 2013

I Love My Viking



I love to cook and I love my stove.  I got it several years ago
and it quickly became my favorite appliance.  It is so perfectly
designed.  The gas rings are wide so the heat goes up the sides
of the pan and then down instead of focusing the heat on the
bottom of the pan which leads to burning and scorching.



Although I love the way it looks, I did not buy it for it's appearance.
I bought it for it's function.  The cast iron grates cover the
top so pots and pans are easy to slide on and off burners. Each
burner has a simmer setting which is so slow you can cook a roux
all day long without having to be concerned about it.

The entire top comes off in pieces so it is easy to clean.  And
another feature that is really nice for messy cooks for me, is a
pull out stainless tray that sits under the burners to catch up any
spillage.  This makes clean up a snap.


 Even though my new house in Texas has a generic five burner
gas cooktop, I am pulling that out and replacing it with my Viking.
And since there are already two built in ovens, I will have
three ovens so we will be baking up a storm!

So I can honestly say that my stove is a favorite thing.
In fact ~ between you and me, if I had to choose between
my husband and my stove, it might be a difficult choice!

Happily Joining ~

A Favorite Thing


Bentley ~ let's take a pic of you so everyone can see
how cute you look with your new haircut!

Big Hugs,
Susan and Bentley

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Ash Tree Cottage Tour 1 and New Movie


Here is the first of the tours before we pack up and move to 
Victoria, Texas.  Come on in and take a look around the room
where we like to hang out.  



I hope that you have a cup of tea or coffee for this tour because
it's a long one.





This room reflects my personality (and hubby's too).  It's vintage, a bit English county
cottage and a bit old movie themed too.  Lots of horse prints, books, and of
course slipcovers because you know who is allowed on all of the furniture because
he is family!



See what I mean?  Here he is now curled up in a chair just watching 
me take pics.  When he is not chasing squirrels, Bentley follows
me from room to room.  He's my darling shadow.  Notice he
needs a haircut.  No worries, Tina our groomer is coming over
tomorrow.








Notice one of Bentley's toys on the carpet?  Everywhere in
the cottage you will run across a dog toy or two.



In case you have not noticed, I have a passion for vintage
lamps.  They remind me of old 1940's movies.





Okay, that concludes our first tour.  Bentley ~ would you like to 
say goodbye to everyone until the next time?



Bentley says "bye~bye".  He had to run, an urgent date
with a squirrel.

Don't forget to check out our new video ~




Thanks for your visit.  I have more tours planned.

Happily Joining ~



Big Hugs,
Susan and Bentley









Monday, July 22, 2013

Painting a Jelly Cabinet



This jelly cabinet has been on my back porch for a long time.  I have
been using it to store old linens.  Before it gets loaded onto the moving
truck I decided to give it some updating.





The exterior was barn red with a cupboard blue interior.  
Very primitive.




So to refresh it, I painted it inside and out with a color called
Heavy Cream.  As you can see, I painted the punched tin and
the hinges as well.





It has a bit of a greenish tint in these pics, but in actual fact it is cream.
I lined the shelves with a vintage looking fabric I had left over from
a craft job.





So now I have a fresh new spot to store vintage kitchen linens.
Well that's enough of a fun break for me.  It's back to getting ready for
our move.

Happily Joining ~



Bentley  ~  your groomer Tina is coming to groom you one last time
before we move to Texas.  Be on your best behavior!  I hope that
I can find a groomer in Victoria who is an sweet and as patient as Tina
has been.

Big Hugs,
Susan and Bentley




Sunday, July 21, 2013

Last Peek at Mom's House








Wow ~ we are getting excited now about our move!  The
days are slip, slip, slipping away and before you know it, we will
be in Texas.  I have been dreaming about re-decorating the new 
house and y'all know what that means ~ it means fun!

Bentley ~ Amy stopped by this afternoon and you missed her.
You were too busy watching that baby squirrel up in the tree!

Big Hugs,
Susan and Bentley

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Our First Movie on YouTube


Bentley and I slaved away creating a movie for our new
channel on YouTube.  Well, it's actually my channel and Bentley 
is the assistant producer.

Our new movie is appropriately called ~

Pinks Around the Cottage




We hope you enjoy it.  Stay tuned because now that we have
this figured out we will be making all kinds of movies.  I imagine
that quite a few of them will be featuring Bentley in the
starring role.  He's quite the ham!

Happily Joining ~

Seasonal Sundays

Yes Bentley ~ we can make a movie about the show you put
on every night.  It's always a big hit around our house.

Big Hugs,
Susan and Bentley




Friday, July 19, 2013

The Quick Pink Post





See ~ I told you it would be quick!  Actually, I created a slideshow of 
pinks for you on my iMac, but I could not get it to load up properly.
I guess I will have to work on that technique when I have more time.

I am pretending that moving is my favorite thing.  Maybe I can
convince myself if I continue that mantra.  Attitude is everything so
they say.

Happily Joining ~


Bentley ~ you are pretty smart, can you figure out how to upload
mama's slide show???

Big Hugs, 
Susan and Bentley


Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Birthday Breakfast for One



Tomorrow July 18th is my birthday.  I will be celebrating it without my husband
for the first time in 24 years of marriage.  David has been down in Texas since
June 14th.  He took most of our deck furniture with him in a small trailer and I 
don't have my patio table here anymore.  Since the mornings are the most comfortable
time of the day, I decided that I will have my birthday breakfast for one on the deck
one last time.  





I am using a TV table that I painted a few years ago and a card table chair.  
Talk about elegant lol ~ but hey, one has to make the most of what is
available right?






This has been the loveliest deck.  It is shaded by the most enormous tree
that has irritated my neighbor for the past 20 years.  My neighbor is sweet 
and I do get along with her very well but she hates trees!  When she and her
husband moved into their historic Queen Anne Victorian nearly 60 years ago,
they cut down every tree in the yard!  That would not be possible now as
we live in one of the historical districts and with the exception of disease,
trees may not be cut down.  But to keep our friendship, every couple of
years my husband trims the branches of this grand old tree that overhangs into
her yard.  She is always happy when it's done, but she would prefer if we
cut it down.  Of course that's where I draw the line because I am a bit
of a tree hugger.





David will be back here at the end of the month.  I miss him so much.
This has been a very difficult separation for us both, but we are 
on the tail end, so we will get through it.  



Yesterday ~ July 16th was David's birthday.   We always have a
three day celebration, so when he returns we will celebrate together.





I painted this TV tray in honor of our cottage which turned 100 years old this year.
Now in keeping with that tradition, I will have to paint another TV tray for our house in
Texas which was built in 1948.  I'm a sentimental, sappy kind of girl.

Happily Joining ~



Okay Bentley ~ what should we have for breakfast?
I say we because I know you will want to share some with me!

Big Hugs,
Susan and Bentley





Monday, July 15, 2013

Freshly Painted Kitchen Cabinets



Finally finished painting my kitchen cabinets.  It has been a very long 
process that actually started a few years ago.  For a long, long time I have
had the care giving responsibilities for my parents.   During my Daddy's long
battle with Alzheimer's I was my Mom's helper.  Doing all the grocery shopping,
filling in to give my Mom breaks and more while holding down a job.  My dear
sweet little cottage that I love so much always took a back seat to other more
important duties.  After my Daddy died, I continued to help my Mom any way
I could.  When things were finally settling down, I thought that I would be able to 
find the time to finish all of the projects I had either begun, or had planned in my
own home.  But then ...




David came home one day and talked to me about the idea of selling our business and
moving to Victoria, Texas.  Although I had always planned to keep this dear home, I
realized that the opportunity that the Texas move was offering was just too good to pass
up and that if I said no, he may always resent me for it.  

So I said yes.



When he gave me the time schedule for the move, I became really nervous.
How could possibly get the projects done around the house that had been
left uncompleted while also selling my Mom's house.  She did not want to 
use a real estate agent, so all of the advertising and showing of her house fell
on my shoulders.  Fortunately, I was able to get a good offer for her house in
only five days, and the official closing date in July 31st. 

But what about my own house?  How would I possibly get everything 
done to get it ready for sale too?  Then we had a business to sell as well.


Well, fortunately the business sold quickly and David was able to leave
for Texas to move into the new house we bought down there while I have
remained up her tying up all the loose ends.  





Every time I think of selling this place I hold back the tears.  But the good
news is that my neighbor of many years has an elderly father who is now widowed
may be a possible new owner.  Amy's dad is widowed and living in Illinois
but his three daughters live in other states.  Amy talked to him about buying my
house and he is very interested.  And Amy said to me, "and one day you could
buy it back."


The thought that Amy's dad may be living here makes me feel far less sad to
leave this sweet home behind.  I know how helpful it is to have an elderly
parent living close by.  In fact, my Mom is moving in with us down in Victoria.





So I have been working hard to pass on this cottage to someone I hope will love it
as much as I do.  I must say though that painting kitchen cabinets is a monumental job
and one that I do not plan to do any time soon!!!  Thankfully I will not have to paint
the kitchen cabinets in Victoria as they are lovely.  Oh, and I will have a big 
window over by sink which I never had here, so I am excited about that too.

Okay, that's enough chit chat for now because it's onto another project!
I will be taking more pics as I go along, so stay tuned.  Until then I am
happily joining ~


Bentley is so cute!  He runs outside and plays for a while and then comes
back inside just long enough to see how I am coming along.  He's the 
best little buddy!!

Big Hugs,
Susan and Bentley


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