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heart and home

Hello!!

Change always seem to bring a mixture of emotions.

The bigger the change, the deeper the emotion.

As I mentioned in my last post, we are in the middle of selling our home.

Selling a  house is easy, selling your home is a whole different kettle of fish!!

house

whitehouse

farmhouse

veranda

Moving is bittersweet.

 When you actually build your own home, it is built with blood, sweat, and tears.

Tears of joy….

all of my children are now married, and my family has grown.

Tears of sorrow….

we have lost loved ones

and a beloved dog.

Sweat!!

A lot of sweat!!

Creating a home and gardens out of what was once a bare field, is a lot of work!! I am so thankful that I have a husband who is able to (in his own words) take a pile of lumber and turn it into a house!

We have gone from ‘sticks with leaves’…..to actual trees!!

Grown an abundance of vegetables to eat, preserve and share.

it's complicated

potager kitchen garden

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And flowers…

IMG_0169picnik

peonies and lilacs

bucket of peonies

pink peonies

annabelle

lime and pink

So what makes a house a home, and then back to a house?

Heart

Body, soul and spirit summed up in one word.

So while I pack and reflect on the memories captured while residing here….

remember this….

it’s just a house!

Blessings,

Cindy

the potting shed

Hello!!

A lot has changed since my last post.

Now several things have been running through my mind during the long winter months. Do I open a brick and mortar? Do I include container gardening services? Start an online store? It is amazing how one phone call can change everything!

A realtor friend of mine called and asked “Do you want to sell your house? I have a buyer.”  Whoa!! What? After a brief (and I mean brief) conversation with my hubby I found the word “yes” coming out of my mouth! I had mentioned possibly selling and rebuilding  here

After crunching the numbers, designing and  building 3 different houses in my mind, my first thought was …

What about my potting shed?

(This is the only really decent shot I have of my shed….why didn’t I take more pictures????)

IMG_1984

Any one who gardens, entertains outdoors or just likes outbuildings either longs for, or already has, a potting shed!

topiary

repurposed

I have been working on my shed for several years now, and have been using it for extra storage for French Grey.

white shed

I have added a picket fence…

windows

Climbing roses that have finally reached the top of my arbor ( which is no small feat in Western Mt  zone 4)…

raisedbeds

And getting ready to put in an herb garden, potager style…

small shed

And I still have big plans…. BIG plans!!

shedroof

Hubby installed a french door out the back…

I had dreams of a pergola with pea gravel for entertaining…

entertaning

Maybe a green house attached…

greenhouse

As you can tell, even if you do have a potting shed, there are always more uses and ideas for more!!

I feel like the little girl on the At&t ad… I just want more…  hee hee :)

two story

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA

shingle

two sheds

So My plans have been dashed. However, I now have an opportunity?? to start new plans!

But, a potting shed will not be the first priority…

First will be the….KITCHEN!!

So… stay tuned :)

Blessings,

Cindy

a place to plant

 Hello!

With spring finally here, my attentions turn to one of my true loves… gardening.

Whether you are a gardener or not, there is something appealing about a space to call your own for potting, collecting garden related things. or just puttering.

With so many options to fit every possible need or space, there really is something for everyone.

A simple table tucked along a wall….

benchalotspace

betterhomesandgardens

turn style vogue

A baker’s rack turned potting storage…

house and leisure magazine

klmdesign dk

Even a few shelves above a sink in the laundry room can become a place to pot or arrange flowers.

bhg

viaprovidenceltd

A unique sink adds personality…

And zinc,  in any shape or form, just seems to go hand in hand with gardening!

elle decor

AdC

Atelier de Champagne

pottingbench

Beautiful garden accessories..

potting table

metal orb

garden acessories

Tools of the trade….

theinspiredroom

mllemagpie

notonthehighstreet

Gorgeous stone sinks…

content in a cottage

content in a cottage

pottingbench-gardeningbenchstation-garden-pots-flowers-plantsviapinterest11

Hope you are inspired to carve a place to plant in your home!

Next, I will feature the all desirable….

potting shed!

Hope spring finds y’all well and ready to play in the dirt :)

Blessings,

Cindy

be my valentine

Hello!

In honor of Valentine’s Day I thought I would share some lovely images gathered on pinterest.

Who wouldn’t love to spend the holiday here….

parisvaentine

This is a heart pocket I made a few years ago and shared with you here,

handmadeheart

silverheart

Vintage French grave marker…

heartmarker

The key….

thekey

angelheart

jet’aime

je'taime

garland

tags

I have worked in a floral shop during Valentine’s day and after being surrounded with a riot of color, and mostly red, I prefer the calming shades of pastels.

fluer

In exchange for large and extravagant,

soft pink peonies in a French zinc pitcher (via Dreamy Whites) exudes simple style…

dreamywhiteszinc

fluers

bouque

Hope this Valentine’s Day find you surrounded with loved ones.

“We love, because He first loved us” 1John 4:19

Blessings,

Cindy

Hello friends…

I have had 2 major life events happen these past few weeks, and I thought would share them with you.

First, my youngest son got married!!

A very simple ceremony, with immediate family and a abundance of love. I can’t wait to see them grow together as a family. A beginning.

On a sadder note, our beloved black lab of 13 years has gone on to the “happy hunting grounds”. An end.

Bare with me as I share some beloved memories of my long time pet, companion and family member.

As most pets, she had a plethora of nick names, one of them being Mary Poppins…

mary 5

She was one of those rare dogs that really was practically perfect in every way!! When we brought her home she was 6 weeks old and a little black ball of puppy. We had an excellent training book that we followed to the letter…… however, our maine coon cat is responsible for a lot of her attributes.

First. She was an excellent mouser. That’s right. She loved to get mice, and would root around after them like a pig after truffles!

Second. She would lick her paws and clean her face. Just like her mother taught her. In fact, the cat would pull her face down with her claws ever so gently and groom her! It was several years before I found out that this was not normal for a dog to do!!

Third, she would beg for food for the cat. Momma needs some niblets, and she’ll get them any way she can.

Black labs are water dogs and bird dogs. But you must know you are a dog in order for these traits to be fulfilled! She protected the chickens and choked on water. Poor Katie, she even thought the neighbor dogs would pet her if she leaned up against the fence towards them!

She was a country dog and loved to sit on the porch like a perch and watch the “happenings” of the neighborhood. She never ran away. When you are unconditionally loved and secure in who you are, there is no need to run or rebel.  Hmmm…. there could be a life lesson there….ya think?

And for most of her life she lived in a house with a white couch!

whites

whiteslip

housetohome

whiteslipsslip

whitecoverclassicwhite

Now, I don’t know how many times I have heard that someone could never have a white couch with kids and dogs, but I did. Granted, we didn’t let her on the couch, but the kids (and husband) transfer dog hair just the same.

Washable slip covers are the key. What’s a little extra work to have everything and everyone compatible?! It was worth it for me.

That being said, I will admit, after perusing my pinterest boards, today I might lean towards a grey linen!

potterybarn

greychaisegreylinengreycouch

Some days I just feel a little more dark and dusky!

And I am really loving darker linens for the bedroom.

black linencloser black linenblcklinen

Thank you for listening as I share a small glimpse into my family life.

Life always has beginnings and ends, but the Lord blesses us with grace for living in the inbetweens.

Blessings,

Cindy xo

Hello friends,

Happy New Year!! Hope this finds everyone healthy, happy and hopeful!

Like everyone else, this time of year I try to capture all of my plans, ideas and inspirations on paper before they vaporize!

What do “they” say…… fail to plan, plan to fail!

And, like almost everyone else, I have already failed! (Please say you have and don’t leave me hangin’)

I haven’t been to the gym yet, didn’t start my diet until the 7th, and my first post of the new year is today!

Now that the perfection bubble has been popped, let’s get down to business. This is the time of year I like to organize. Maybe I succumb to the media and merchandising, follow the seasons or strive to live a simpler lifestyle. But some things have been established since before our time, and they just seen to make sense. Case in point, Monday is laundry day, which leads me to this…….

washing_line_001-copy_low

Laundry…. do you love it or loathe it?

laundry

I love washing my vintage French linens, especially when you can hang them out to dry.

hungonline

countryliving

And the beauty of simple objects….

marthastewertlaundry

laundryroom

clothespinsonline

rndclthespin

clothespin

And nothing beats clean, crisp white linens neatly folded and stacked.

white linens

Laundry products can make the task much more pleasant. But when I comes to the mundane things in life, like socks and underwear,

packaging

I think I would prefer to be doing this!!

potting laundry

Of course you could always do this…… but when your the mother, the laundry basket always seems to manage to land in your laundry room!haha

Speaking of which, I best get to the task at hand……..laundry ( and maybe some reorganizing  is in order too!!)

So fail early and get it over with, forget perfectionism, and make your house the nicest place you  come home to!

Blessings,

Cindy

french grey

Reblogged from French Grey:

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Hello blogging world! Better late than never. This is an attempt at my first post. I have been  inspired by many amazing blogs as of late, and I hope to create something of equal beauty and inspiration.

Coming up with a name was somewhat of an inspiration in and of itself. I stumbled across a nice term for the tarnish that gets into the details of silver.....french grey.

Read more… 45 more words

Hello friends, It's hard to believe it has been one year already! I thought it would be fun to repost my first post. I am so grateful for everyone and everything that has happened in this last year! Some goals have not yet been met, and some things have exceeded my expectations! I am thankful for all the people I have met, and the true connections to the online community that I would have never experienced in my little corner of the world. Thank you for being a true inspiration and encouragement to me!
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