Quiet Cozy Day.

Last night, I spent some time working on our Christmas gift to each other ~ a vintage signed print by an artist with a vision. I'll share the story one day.

This morning, we woke up with plans to head in to the Big City to visit the Old Antique Mall and to see my mom. But we woke up to large snow falling from the sky and decided not to chance driving down the highway with reports of blowing snow. It seems to have calmed down now but we're settled in after some tidying, showers and comfy clothes, and will now just enjoy being home in our little cottage. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were family focused, Boxing Day was friendship, and tomorrow is our day to welcome our neighbors down the lane in. So today was to be a bit of shopping and visiting. We don't have to work over the next week, so shopping and visiting can happen on another day. We're heading out to shovel, then lunch, then dh is playing some games with our dgs and dd's, and I plan to keep writing to planning for 2025. More family dinner tonight, some favorite shows to watch, and an early night as tomorrow will be quite busy with groceries in the morning, tours at our new centre for families wishing to join in, then home to tidy and make food for the evening. Excited to visit and enjoy the company.

                                  Enjoy the day!

                                      💗 Chy 💗

Wintry Day.

We are officially snowed in today! Yesterday, a heavy snowfall warning was issued for our region and we quickly shifted our day around so we could stay home today and just work, while the snow fell silently outside. One promise we made to each other was that if we moved to the country, we would not chance our lives if the weather was bad. So far, for the most part, we've been able to navigate this each Winter. It was hard when I was at the hospice to travel all the way into the Big City but I managed to work thru it all. But now we have more flexibility and it's made Winter less stressful. The snow started last night and has been falling all day. Road reports have not been good. We plan to venture into town tomorrow for a Christmas breakfast with the Chamber and to visit my mom's new care home as she moves on Monday. But we'll wait to see if the roads get better. Not worth the risk if we can avoid it. 

The one thing I love about snowy days out here is how beautiful our landscape becomes. It's so quiet out here and the snow sits so prettily wherever it falls. In town, there is such a rush to shake the flakes off everything that it's not as breathtaking. We feel so very fortunate to have this beautiful spot we call home. And snowy days means we can be inside, cozy and safe in our little cottage.

Last night, we were at severals events, and in between dh commented how he was loving our activie social life but couldn't wait to get home to the cottage to be cozy and warm! I totally agreed. Loving this time in our lives but home is where we most often want to be. Today, I slept in a bit, knowing I didn't have to travel in, then had a hot shower, put on my cozies and settled in on the comfy couch to work away at several projects. We applied for funding for Summer Students, attended a webinar on marketing our new centre, caught up on emails, posted on Social Media, read a lot, wrote a bit and tonight, I hope to bake a bit for our Christmas Celebration on Friday for all our littles and the parents. On Monday, we'll work a short day, and have a Christmas lunch for our team, then head home to get ready for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We have our neighbors coming over a couple of days after the holidays to celebrate (we have them over each year) but the rest of the time will just be us. We do hope to visit with our son and his little family. Waiting to hear what their plans are, If not before, then after. Love the holidays every year!

Wishing you a beautiful evening and hope you are cozied down in your little cottage, wherever you live and with whatever weather you have in your neck of the woods! 

💗 Chy 💗

Blogtober: Day 22.

I'm going to miss our little office

once we've moved to the new

centre. This space has held so

many tears and laughter. Cozy!

~ Chy

Tiny Garden.

A month ago, I posted this sweet pic of a tiny "Peter Rabbits Garden" with the intent on recreating it in our Secret Garden this year. The story of Peter Rabbit will always hold a special place in my heart as I cast in the production back in kindergarten. I played one of Peter's little sisters. I think I was Cottontail but cannot be quite sure. I recall my sweet costume, complete with the fluffy round tail, and we all got Dairy Queen Dilly Bars once the play was done. We had to be so careful before the production to not get a spec of dirt on our costumes but once it was done, we all had chocolate smeared all over our faces, and I'm sure some on the material. My pink bunny costume with the ears and the white tail hung in my closet for years. So year, the story of Peter Rabbit has many memories for me. I hope I can recreate the tiny garden above. The biggest challenge will be the little blue jacket. I'm going to give it a good try!

We woke up to heavy fog today. It's now burning off because the sun is shining but it was quite eery this morning. Today, for the first time in 42 weeks, I'm at home, all alone, with my thoughts and my worries. Dh has been beside me every day but today, he had a meeting and normally, I likely would have attended too but I have a virtual meeting in an hour, so staying home made more sense. Later today, I'm off to visit a dear friend but dh will come home in between and we'll have lunch together first. Then it's off to her house, then a stop in town to pick up dd who is working at our preschool today, then home for a virtual class, dinner and finally, our virtual board meeting. Many things to keep me busy. Helps when I'm all alone.

Hope your day is going well and the sun is out!

~ Chy

Silent Night ....

Waiting for Santa. And the morning.

The house is silent, the night still. I

love when everyone has already gone

to bed and I sit and just enjoy the cozy.

~ Chy

Fireplace Snuggling.

It's still so warm but soon we'll be

snuggled up by the fire when the cold

finally arrives. I truly wish we could

have snow on Christmas Eve, then

on Christmas Day and on Boxing Day.

Other than that, it can stay away. But

I know there is concern if we don't

get a decent snow level, then we may

have more issues with fires again this

year. We do need the snow. But later!

~ Chy

Cozy Teddy.

Isn't this the sweetest? Dh set up our bed for when I come home from surgery tomorrow. The last time I had surgery, I was 18 years old. Actually, it was my birthday. Not quite the birthday gift I had hoped for. But I was surrounded by family and friends, and well taken care of. It was a bit traumatic as my appendix burst, and my pain was different, so for 24 hours, the doctors in emergency didn't know it was my appendix. They decided to bring in a surgeon to do some "exploratory surgery" but when they started, they realized my appendix was the culprit and for hours, I had had infection running through my body. To this day, I'm still so thankful that they were able to combat this and my life was spared. We were told another hour or 2 and I likely would have developed a dangerous Sepsis. Lucky indeed. My only other surgery outside of this one event was a simple operation to remove my tonsils at the age of 4. Easy peasy, except for the very dismissive and aggressive older nurse who decided once I was awake, shoving banana into my mouth and making me swallow, when I was very loud in sharing that I'm deadly allergic to banana's. My protests were met with force and I ended up having a life threatening allergic reaction. So that was traumatic. I've managed for all these years to avoid any other surgeries but tomorrow, I'll be put to sleep for a surgery that will greatly impact my life, in a very positive way. I've put it off for too long and it's now or never. But I'm full of anxiety as the hours tick by. Scared, no let me rephrase that, terrified to be put to sleep. What if I don't wake up? What if the surgery failes? What if I choke when I wake up? Will someone try to shove mashed bananas down my raw throat? What if, what if, what if?? Oh, the anxiety ....

My surgeon asked if I had negotiated a leave from work so I can comfortably recuperate as long as needed. I'm so thankful to be in the position I'm in now, and not even having to ask for time off has been a blessing in disguise. I'm going to take the time needed so I heal well and don't have any after effects. Dh and the girls keep teasing me that they're not going to do anything other than tease me, though I suspect they are joking .... I hope! I am quite independent, so if they do stick to their words, I'll be just fine. No need for pampering for this mama. But I do have a bit of hope, with dh's actions in setting up the bed so nicely for my return home. Wish me luck as I embark on this new and for me, terrifying experience. I'll update asap. Goodnight!

~ Chy

Cozy for Guests.

As the days begin to get shorter, the sun

is setting earlier and earlier. Our little

cottage is starting to feeling cozy as we

begin to get ready for Fall and cool days.

Our guest room at dusk, ready for guests.

~ Chy

 

Winter Memories.

The sweetest print ~ my favorite from Susan

Wheeler. It reminds me of many cold Winter

evenings when we would light a big fire and

the kids would join us to read or play in the

warm, cozy family room. It didn't matter how

bad it was outside, we were safe and warm

together in our home. Such good memories, 

even when the weather was not great at all!

Do you have sweet Winter memories of cold days?

~ Chy

Evening Fire.

It was a bit of a gamble to put a fireplace in our

master bedroom when we built our little cottage

in the big woods. But I'm so thankful we did go

int his direction. So cozy on a cold and frosty night!

~ Chy

My Cozy Office.

This space that I wasn't sure at first would be a good

move has become a sanctuary for me, as well as for

my clients and even our staff and volunteers. Anyone

who comes in to this space immediately comments

on how peaceful and light it is, which is the key when

our conversations are so dark and heavy. I'm off work

this week but when I'm back, I may move my bookcase

over a bit and put the chair by the window. Right now,

it is in kind of an awkward spot. I'll see if I can make

this change without much work. Loving my cozy office.

Do you have an office space you love?

Or for you, is it just a space to work in?

~ Chy

Cozy Comfy.

Having battled yet another virus over the

last week, I find myself seeking more and

more comfort as I heal. I was looking on

the internet for ideas on dollhouse decor

and look what I found? It is the sweetest,

cozy comfy yet tiny bedroom. I am in love!

~ Chy

Comfortably Cozy.

I love how slowly but surely, out little

cottage is becoming comfortably cozy.

We had to move our new vintage cabinet

into the living room to make room for

the Christmas tree. And it changed the

look in the room. P.S. the couch with all

my snow men on it, waiting to be placed!

I hope by tomorrow to have them all set.

~ Chy

Blizzard Today.

.... after a super long, warm Fall, longer

than we usually have, we didn't get a little

taste of Winter. We got a blizzard to bring

in the snow! Above are the oval windows

in our bedroom around 8 am this morning.

The wind is fierce, the roads ice covered

and a heavy snowfall warning is in effect.

School busses are cancelled and they're

urging everyone to stay off the roads. A

big mess all around. But it is oh so very

pretty out here in the big woods. Our little

cottage is warm and cozy, and as we do

our work day from home, I've added in

a few extras to make today special, like

bake some apple treats and finish up the

tree so we can post some pretty photos.

Are you having a snow day today?
Or a sun filled experience for the day?

~ Chy

Friday View.

A little under the weather on Friday

but after taking some time to rest, I

ended up having a great day. This was

my view that morning. Cozy and warm.

~ Chy

Soon, Very Soon!

I'm truly excited that over the next day or so, our temperatures will hit anywhere from 5 to 10 above ~ in Celcius, our measure here in Canada. After being as low as ~ 48 in the last 10 days, this is going to feel like Spring! March is around the corner and the tiny bit of snow will have will soon be a memory. And then, the green will begin. Covid has been hard but being outside and working in our gardens, or sitting on our deck really helped from March until the snow arrived in November. Can't wait to get back out to the warmth and the green landscape once again. Until then, I will dream of sitting in my favorite chair (or on a window seat), with a cup of tea and my favorite book, gazing out at the pretty flowers and trees blooming. Soon, so very soon!

Today is officially my day off but I have one short meeting then we're off to town to do a few errands. Home for lunch then our radio show at 1 pm. I'm hoping to then head out for a little skate on our rink and then cozy up inside with some hot chocolate and the last few chapters of my book. I think there is a hockey game on tonight (I should pay attention to these details) so I'll likely end up either in a hot tub or in the art studio. Or cuddled in bed watching Netflix. Tomorrow is my kids' grief program in the morning with my team and the rest of the day is open. Sunday we have a board meeting in the afternoon. Not a big weekend but a lovely relaxed one. It's always fun to have lots of plans but it's just as nice to have weekends that are not packed. Do you agree?

                                      ~ Chy

Polar Vortex.

After months of pretty good Winter weather,

starting today, we're heading into a Polar Vortex.

Not much snow is predicted. But very low

and dangerous temperatures are on the way.

By Monday, we could be as long as - 40 C

and with the windchill, it could hit in the

low - 50's. This is rare and the last time we

are told it hit was in 1972. I'm hopeful that

we'll be just fine in our cozy little cottage.

But I worry about others who have no home

or have limited resources. Lots of posts on

FB today with offers of help. Kindess reigns.

Stay warm this weekend! We'll be cozied up

to our fireplace and some long awaited Netflix!

~ Chy

Cozy Comfy.

I've been a fan of Jill Barklem's Brambly

Hedge series since our kids were babies.

And this is one of my favorite prints. It

reminds me of the many mornings when

I was newly pregnant with our 2nd child

and I had morning sickness. I never got

sick and many days thought that would

have been easier. But to cope, I would

set up the bedroom floor or the family

room with lots of toys and books, and

then I'd stay low until the nausea would

pass. It kept our 2 year old busy and so

very happy and I could rest but be very

present. It was the best way to get thru.

Do you have a favorite artist or author?

~ Chy

Cozy Veranda.

A new item for our front veranda for

Fall. I plan to fill it with wheat grass.

The sun shining through the woods at

the right moment. Cozy, warm and sun!

~ Chy

Stormy Day.

This is how I feel today. It's stormy outside. Tons of

wind, rain and dark skies. I want to stay put in our warm

cottage, where it's cozy and quiet but have to venture out

for a short time to meet a couple of new families at our

school this morning. While I'm doing this, dh and dd2 are

going to grab some groceries for the week and then pick

me up to head home again. Looking forward to a cozy

afternoon of working in the art studio on my dollhouse.

And some writing later in a class I'm taking. We'll likely

put the fireplace on for a while. And tonight is movie

night with the grand kid! Always a fun time. No gardening

today. Maybe tomorrow, though it looks like much of the

same is on the way. Next week is chilly too. Hmmmm ....

hope it's not Fall already, as much as I love this coming

season. Just need a bit more of Summer to end the

gardening year off nicely. My hope for you today is

wherever you are in the World, your weather is

calm and lovely. Be well and healthy. And stay safe!

~ Chy