Friday, January 25, 2013

Winter bound









 
The time for pastels and colors will come - so refreshing after the clarity and relatively blank palette of January...

...but January is where we still are - in the depths of quiet winter.

It's cold outside and we are, now, mostly house bound - only darting out to jump into the pre-warmed car to go to school or taking ages to bundle up just so that a mad dash can be made to the mailbox or to feed the feral cat who has adopted us and lives in our barns or to do the all important chicken chores. (Boy, are the girls tired of being cooped up....!!!) I, personally, am resisting any kind of longing for spring  because it's still a fair way off and, instead of digging in to garden dreams, I am snuggling into the warmth of making home inside - exploring new recipes in the kitchen - reading a lot - and rejoicing in the pretty snow, the bare, sparkling branches and the tastefully jewelled skies that I see outside my windows. How long I can hold out against the yearning for the feel of a balmy breeze again is anybody's guess.


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Money was really, very tight for Christmas this year and so I asked Tom, instead, if he would give me a concession as a gift. I asked for him to finally allow me to paint the bricks on the fireplace in the family room (without, then, asking me to concede to moving the hedge of lilacs in front of our house down toward the road... the fine print is important! ;-)) With trepidation and in desperation, he agreed! Then, in shock, he watched as, with three weeks to go till Christmas, I tore the room apart and began painting. Thankfully, it was an even easier project than anticipated!

What we've started to observe, since the deed was done, is that, nowadays, everyone can usually be found in the family room. Of course, the warmth of the wood stove has always been a draw but, now, we just all want to be in there - all of the time - all of us (including dogs and rabbit) - morning, noon and night.

I think that some other time, I'll post 'before and after' pictures of the room. Anyway, the project is only partly done. A new mantelpiece will come eventually and I still have cushions to sew... Right now, I just want to share the warmth at night and the quiet, wintry stillness in the morning - our life, right now!

Did anyone else feel like this new year, they were really turning over a fresh page?

...still in the quiet womb of new beginnings....


























"May you be blessed with warmth in your home,
Love in your heart,
Peace in your soul
and joy in your life!"













xo



10 comments:

  1. What a beautiful post.....enjoy the weekend Kathy...love you....Ria...xxx...

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  2. Beautiful photos. I like your family room, especially the window seat. It's started me thinking about putting one in my house. xx

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    1. Thank you, Andi! I sat in that window seat in the empty house, the first time we ever looked at it and I felt like I was in a bubble of peace and prayed from my very depths that somehow we could live here. =] (er, obviously, God definitely answered that prayer with a 'sure - yup!';) )

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  3. Hello Katy:
    Well, we should certainly not be wishing for spring to hurry along if we had such a wonderfully warm and welcoming room to be in, lost in a good book and our thoughts. Your 'family room' looks so beautifully inviting, it must be a real struggle to move anyone out of it including the dog and the rabbit!!!

    The transformation which you have effected looks so good. We do like the painted bricks especially and the 'mantlescape' of pretty and unusual objects is very effective and stylish.

    Keep warm, take care and have a relaxing weekend!

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  4. So beautiful Katy - both the comfort and setting indoors as well as nature's beauty outdoors! After having no snow last year, we are expecting to receive a little storm within the hour. I will be so happy to watch lovely snowflakes at last falling. I do hope more will be in the not too distant future. Had to smile when you wrote about your gift of painting the fireplace. My husband and I also didn't exchange gifts. Never wanting to read any type of instructions, I asked him to figure out how to place all of our 8mm home movies onto dvd's and then show me how. Couldn't think of a better present. He's still perfecting the process but I think we'll be watching home movies soon. Enjoy your beautiful winter home and stay warm!

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  5. Light makes all the difference. I love what you have done in there! Missed you last night. Let's get together, shall we?

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  6. I wish you knew how much I truly enjoy your posts. Always full of real, everyday family living but with a touch of poetry. Thank you, and thank you for that super cute image of the "Bunny Rump" Lol. So priceless!!! XO

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  7. love this post! Your home is beautiful and the family room is so cosy! the painted bricks look great and love that big window. enjoy these days with everyone gathered around the fire even the bunny.

    Carolyn

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  8. Your photos say 'winter-joy' perfectly! Lovely home and family!

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  9. Dear Katy,

    Almost missed this post!! I am really happy I did not. It is very pretty. Your house looks very welcoming in the dark winter light. You must have loved standing there, making the photo and seeing the glow :-) Your view from the house must be amazing too, summer or winter.

    When I read your post I feel horrible too. Oh Katy, why did you sent me the parcel....If only I had known... You really should not have done that!!!!!! BUT.....the tea is delicious and I put your collection of sweet cards on my work table in the loft. Every time I see them they make me smile.

    You sound so busy, but happy. What a lick of paint can do to a room. Like your house it looks really inviting. Looking forward to see MORE :-)!

    Have a lovely weekend!

    Madelief xoxo

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