Cozy Captures

Having time home this summer is the greatest gift. I am appreciating each and every day taking care of my family and this home. 

Sometimes I see something around our house and it fills my heart with such blessings and joy that I have to snap a picture of it. Lately I've noticed: 

A stack of home country books that are fun to look through and delightful on our coffee table

A huge wall of plants on our screened in porch 

A little peg rack with fresh peaches and a gingham dish towel (I love gingham!) 

My Emma Bridgewater strawberry fields mug with tea, little jars of honey, and peanut butter cookies for my family that night 

A little blueberry 'pie' on my pie cooling window 

Today

I took my Mom to the Padre Pio Foundation of America. (here is a link)  Who is Padre Pio? (link here) 

He is

• a remarkable man and a saint of the church ~ a friar and a priest 
• best known for bearing the stigmata (visible wounds of Christ) for 50 years (other saints did as well including Saint Francis 
• he was born to a huble family in Italy and he consecrated himself to Jesus at 5 years old

My Mom and I enjoyed the bookstore and the chapel where we lit a candle and prayed. 

 

Worth It!

For my Mother's Day Scott painted this room... oh how we really really loved that paint! 

And of course with one newly painted room (and the trim too) we noticed how much our house needed paint. We decided to start with the main color which is the biggest job! It's the entry into our home, down the hall, up the stairs, and the hallway upstairs. 

Within in that we jumped into the molding first. This is a daunting task because it's the spindles going up the stairs... eek! 

This week Scott's been chiping away at the molding. Abigail has been prepping the doors by taping them since there is so much glass. 

It doesn't bother me at all that we have this project going on the summer. It might take a few months since Scott can only work on it in bits and pieces in his spare time but it'll be worth it! 

Huge Hit

Today the girls and I (Scott is away on a work thing) went out for icecream after dinner. I made a really yummy dinner the first night Scott was away but the second night there was so much food in the frig that we decided to have an 'eat from the frig' night. It's not my favorite actually. I'd rather cook and cook lots of parts from scratch than have leftovers any day! 

But I decided to make the evening better with a little trip to Michael's Crafts and then the ice cream! We are going to do some journaling on an upcoming trip and needed some supplies. (BTW, Michael's didn't have anything we liked - no on scrapbooks or journals any more I guess!) 

We might have struck out at the craft store, but these smiles say the night was still a huge hit!  

A Peek In Our Living Room This Summer

Before the new wall color and new trim (doing it all ourselves so it'll be a while!) I wanted to decorate for the summer. I live in a New England colonial built in 1950. And I do believe in staying true to the style of a home rather than follow fads that come and go. 

So our family room is cozy and whimscial (that post back here) but our living room is comfortable and traditional. 

I used shells from a past vacation and I recently added a lovely hurricane lantern for burning candles. I know it will make this room sparkle in the autumn! 

I love the time I have at home in the summer - I really am so grateful for all of these summer days! 

Here's a peek inside: 

 

How I Create 💕COZY💕 in a Crazy World (part one ~ my planner journal)

It is with intentionality that I create my planner / journal. I know without a doubt that in this busy crazy world, home for me is the place where I find joy, creativity, rest, refreshment, and of course the cozy. Sometimes, especially during the school year, when I am in my classroom each day I long for home and cozy feeling it gives me. 

When I started this type of planner about 4 years ago I knew it was the planner for me. Here's why: 

💕 It's blank and so I get to decide and create what I need from a planner - how much room for each page, how I want it to layed out, etc. 

💕 I make it seasonal ~ right now summer images are all over my planner, but come September and all of the fall goodness will charm it's pages

💕 It allows me to look forward to the seasons and look forward to the days ahead. Sometimes I can get a heavy 'spirit of dread/or a spirit of heaviness' (see Isaiah 61:3) and this planner combats that. Instead of looking at what could possibly be a sad or a busy or a difficult week/season/etc, my planner journal is too adorable and forces me to see each day as a gift of seasonal bliss. What is good about January? Well, when I look at cute pages filled with blankets and books, hot cocoa and soup simmering, suddenly I'm excited about all of that! 

💕 Each page has a Bible verses that I have been studying or memorizing or that has simply touched my heart. I also put quotes that inspire me or I'll even write to myself calling things that are not yet, as though they are. (see Romans 4:17). I might write something ahead of time on an August page like this: "You are a patient mama and you bless your family with your life-giving words." or "For each child and my darling husband I carve out time and make it special, different, set-apart, beautiful." or "Blessing Anna and Abigail each night before they go to bed gives them the gift of a peaceful, restful, loved heart." I call things that have not yet happened as if they are true.

💕 It's a place where I write my appointments or places I need to be. For example after my pages are decorated and they have those Bible veres or quotes I am ready for the month/season. But each night before I go to bed I write where I need to be the next and and all of the things I need to do. So it's my whole plan for the day. 

💕 I save room for picutes (I use Canon Ivy which lets me print little pictures right from my phone) 

💕 It become a keepsake

Here are a few pages. I've created my pages all the way through the first day of school. Now I can really enjoy each day. This week I might even start my September planner journal and start adding in apples and cozy fall images. 

💕 I'd love to know what brings you cozy in the midst of a busy world. 

💕 Part two coming soon! 

(check out this post from Chrissy who gave the the idea for blogging cozy ideas) 

❤️July Fourth❤️

We had a fun day celebrating this year. Since the 4th of July was the day after my parents 60th anniversary (that post back here) and it was 105 degrees (feels like temp with all of the humidity), we actually ended up celebarating on Sunday, July 5th. I think we all needed that day after my parents party to just rest. It actaully made me so excited to end the holiday weekend with a bang. 

Scott cooked, I baked and decorated the porch. It was so much fun to be in and among all of that red, white, and blue. 

I am grateful for the precious time wtih our little family of 4 but also time with the grandparents - memory making with family is such a gift I treasure. 

Here are a few pictures of our 4th of July celebration: 

 

Okay, so right now I'm taking all of the flags, red/white/blue down and decorating for the rest of summer. I'm thinking strawberries (so I guess I'm using red again anyway). Not sure, but I can't wait to get started on some decor refresh!