Dreaming of Comfort and Joy

Well friends I had a post almost ready to go but then I looked at the calendar and realized I needed to get cracking on Christmas Decor since these next few days are my only chance at getting them up. SO with that said I set out yesterday and starting hauling Christmas bins and boxes up (10 of them not including the loose items such as posts and trees and such) and started bring summer in (the patio table, fire pit, water fountain and such) Soooooo the house is not looking too good with everything every where. Most of the fall decor is packed up minus the decor I bring over to the church to decorate a room up for our Family Thanksgiving. I am off to the porches to start them so I can make some room inside to start decorating. Its cold, windy and rainy so I am looking forward to some twinkling lights and our home being all cozy and pretty for the Holidays. You are more then welcome to scroll down to see Christmas 2008 on my sidebar to get a sort of sneak peak (it seems like I change things up a bit every year). Stay warm, have some hot cocoa by the fire and I will be back soon with pictures and some more posts.
Blessings to you my friends,
Tress

The Blessings of a Crisp November

Hello Friends,
I have missed you all so much. October was a whirl wind of activity and emotions around The Cozy Parsonage. We all know when the world outside is hectic its our responsibilities as wives and moms to take heart, put on our prayer hats and tennis shoes so we can create a warm welcoming atmosphere at home so there is a safe place for the broken hearted and weary to rest.

We said good bye to our life elder and very good friend this last week as he battled cancer for some time now. My husband spent many of hours with him these last few weeks and he as well as many others are in deep mourning. Carl was such a Blessing of a man, it was his time to go to Heaven but we all selfishly wanted to spend more time here on earth with him. He always said "you may be the only Bible your neighbor opens" and let me tell you he lived up that quote. I hope we are neighbors in Heaven someday. (The flowers above are an arrangement from his service).

Along with October came the whirlwind of rain and storms that left our roof awaiting. It was finally finished last week. The messy part was done already earlier so I started cleaning up so to speak on the inside as far as washing windows and curtains and such. It was a perfect opportunity to dye my curtains in my office and hallway a darker shade.

In this picture you can barely see the curtains but they were just our average off white sheers and I added some tan to them.

These are my office curtains, they are a lace but I was tired of the off white so they went in to the washer w/ the tan dye as well. (Next are the kitchen and laundry room curtains and dollies around the house!)

Its been awhile since I have shown the office, this is also where I home school Abigail and she watches some things on the computer in here as well while I am upstairs doing my tasks. Most of the items that were in the downstairs bath came up here and

they seem to suit the area well.

During some down time last week I did a little shopping at some local stores which also helped in my re purposing items. These baskets I've had thru the years I painted black then finished them
up with these darling little tags from a store and some fabric towels.

While cleaning up the rooms I decided it was time to move the majority of Abigail's toys upstairs to her room, so a little rearranging went on up there as well. I took the wing back chair out of her room (it is set up in the parlor in the church where it looks great!) and made some more floor space for playing to get underway. I am so thankful that I kept the baskets from the changing table, this gives me the opportunity to divide up her toys and store in her closet which also makes it easier for here to tote them out as well.

The brisk air of November makes me just want to hunker down and get warm and cozy. I welcome the crispness of the season in because I know I will be able to cozy up with some of my favorite things (as well family too!).

One favorite is my Cashmina sheets from Domestication's. These sheets feel so luxurious and soft. Its like sinking into a spa every night.

I was inspired by Bed & Breakfast's' when I decorated our room. I wanted it cozy and beautiful as well as welcoming and restful. The blankets I wanted to be soft, luxurious and warm. This is where I end my day with a cup of tea a book or decorating magazines.

With the crispness of the air comes the glow of candles with their scrumptious flavors. I just found some new ones at Kohl's this last week: apple pie and chocolate chip cookies.

They even have the little decorations on the top of the candles, soooo cute. And they smell heavenly, just like the actual scrumptious yummy food, without the calories!

Another favorite are cake candles. I put one in a little iron skillet on the top of the pellet stove. As you can tell I was getting close to the end of this one so a new one is waiting in my little candle cupboard (I have a stash of candles and grubby night lights in our hutch in the dining room, my husband says he never wants to know just how many of either I have stashed in it because I am obsessed with never running out of candles or those little glowing lights-shhhhh!)

So with thoughts of curling up in bed and smelling yummy candles I will bid you a good evening.

Soon and very soon the Christmas decorating will start here as we like to have it done before Thanksgiving.

We decorate early when it comes to Christmas, the decorations are all so pretty that I want to enjoy them for as long as possible, I tend to get them out the week before Thanksgiving (sometimes it hard for me to wait that long!).

Plus we host Thanksgiving off a room at the church and I like to take my Autumn decor there and decorate the room up for family and friends on Thanksgiving.

But, before I get ahead of myself here I want to enjoy the rest of autumn and all of its splendor.

Shalom my Friends,

Tress


solo Gloria Deo (to God alone give glory)

Ahhhhhhh!!!!

No really folks things are going fine.....good things are happening around The Cozy Parsonage. Lots of "BAM.....BAM......BAM". Lots of talking and people driving really slooooowwww by our house. People walking around our house-strange people outside my bedroom windows. What's going on????

A new roof! We had a metal one, which I did love when it rained BUT it was very old, leaking and falling plum down (after storms I would be out picking it off the ground). So we are in the midst of construction here. Lots of black stuff floating around and dust and dirt. The yard....well....it looks pretty bad. Last weekend I spent a whole day washing linens from the porch and wiping everything down.

I can not seem to get in the groove of things when I know its just going to get really messy again but I am trying. Just straightening things up as much as I can for now.

Blessings during this have been a new chimney, it looks REALLY nice and sharp and an extra part of the roof done that we did not expect as well.

We also found out that our top back porch was not connected to the house!

Sooooo please excuse my delay here, next week I hope to be washing windows and curtains and such (yes-I am that sick I said 'hope" in fact I am plum ol' excited about having a spotless (so to speak) house again).

I hope to have more pics posted of it all when all is said and done. Until then here's to keeping clothes on so I do not accidentally flash anyone-lol!

The Autumn Glow of Toasty Nutmegs and Sugary Maples

Ohhhh I just love Autumn and the colors of fall. Let me be upfront with you by saying I am all about nutmeg colors infused with burgundies, primitive golds and browns. These colors can be found every where in our house , on my feet and in my closets. So this time of the year lends itself to my favorite colors.


With fall comes the feeling of warmth and the smells of cinnamon and apples. Our homes start to take on a warm glow and we get the urge to snuggle on the couch with family while sipping our favorite warm beverage.


And with fall comes all of my decorating bins from the basement!!!

I just love opening up the bins to see what is in them, they have been put away for practically 10 months and I always feel like I am opening a present up when I take a peak inside.

Of course my trusty "helper" is always around to move my little piles around and occasionally steal an item to use as a hat-lol! (This is a wire plant holder I painted black and I put my pumpkin in and such-trust me you will see it later but in this picture its a hat.)

I started the fall decorating two weeks ago and wrapped it up with some heavy duty cleaning of steam cleaning carpets and washing down ceiling fans and windows.

I shop all year long at yard sales and bargain discount places for fall decorations and when the bins came out the paint brush came out-Oh no!!!!

I have been having an off and on relationship with the sage green in our home. It was in my main bathroom, my porches and on the first floor and it still is in my daughters room. Now it can stay in my daughters room until she wishes for a different color BUT in the downstairs bathroom and on the porches it was plain ol' bugging me. Now don't get me wrong this is a great cottage color but we are more rustic country people. So out went the sage green and in came the golds, nutmegs and tans and we are all much happier with the outcome (even my husband made a comment on how the bathroom has been "manned" up-lol!)

I painted the decor pieces on the porch a nutmeg color w/ a gold bronze over them as well.

Then I moved on to the porch and painted portions the toasty nutmeg color (the white paint was chipping away and it was in much need of TLC.)

While I was working away I would often find myself doing dishes looking out at the yard thinking how beautiful the view is now and so much better since we added the fence:

I have been Blessed this year by so much and now I invite you to sit back and take a tour of The Cozy Parsonage all done up in Autumn Glow of Toasty Nutmegs and Sugary Maples....

"The sweet calm sunshine of October, now
Warms the low spot; upon its grassy mold
The purple oak-leaf falls; the birchen bough
drops its bright spoil like arrow-heads of gold."
- William Cullen Bryant

Pretty Leaves
Pretty leaves are falling down,
Green, orange, yellow and brown.
Here comes one colored red,
It landed on my head.



Pumpkins in the cornfields
Gold among the brown
Leaves of rust and scarlet
Trembling slowly down
Birds that travel southward
Lovely time to play
Nothing is as pleasant
As an autumn day!




No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace
as I have seen in one autumnal face

Autumn quote by John Donne

Leaves in the Fall come tumbling down,
Scarlet and yellow, russet and brown,
Leaves in the garden are swept in a heap,
The trees are ready for sleep.

A fallen leaf is nothing more
than a summers wave good bye
Autumn quote by John Donne

"Just before the death of flowers,
And before they are buried in snow,
There comes a festival season
When nature is all aglow."
- Author Unknown

Pumpkins in the cornfields
Gold among the brown
Leaves of rust and scarlet
Trembling slowly down
Birds that travel southward
Lovely time to play
Nothing is as pleasant
As an autumn day!
Autumn quote by John Donne

Have a Blessed Week!

Shalom,

Tress

Reflecting........

Reflecting on this day...I believe it should be a national Holiday....we all seem to be glued to our tv's on days like this remembering, honoring and praying this never happens again.

Shalom.....Tress