I'm Changing Direction

Good morning to all! Hope that you are having a wonderful and productive day so far, no matter what your chosen activity of the day might be. I posted last week about my return to sewing and I want to thank everyone for your kind and encouraging comments. I am starting on my first project this week and have decided on making a new window treatment for my soon-to-be-defunct design studio. Yes, after much (MUCH) prayer and evaluation, I have decided to end my focus on in-home consultations. I am packing up my fabric books and my wall-paper sample books to be shipped back to their suppliers. No, this does not mean that I am giving up my WAHM business, it just means that we (royal "we" meaning ME) are taking a different approach to the focus and primary business of Cozy Home Designs. I have been under conviction about this for some time and the New Year seemed like the perfect time to take the plunge! The office will become my craft room and also a more suitable school room for my sweet little Caleb. He is 10 now and requires more room for projects and lessons than just our dining room table. I will hang maps and posters in there for him and he will also be learning to sew later on this year. The business will still have plenty of room for my crafting of the following: custom lamps, small painted signs, table runner and placemat sets and whatever else comes to mind. I will be setting up at a few craft fairs and special events starting in August of this year, and hopefully a few more next year. I will still be selling my beloved Celebrating Home both at the events and online at my personal web page (see the link at the right). I will also keep the personal web store for those nifty Oddity accessories (also has a link on the right). My husband will be making some of his wood crafted items for me to sell at the fairs. I am so excited right now, I could just about POP! Pray with me that all will go well for us. I will post some pictures of my projects on here from time to time as I finish them.

HUGS to all and Stay Cozy!
Charlotte

Sew What???

No, this is not a smart aleck-y remark, it is more like me making a challenge to myself for the New Year. I use to sew a LOT way back when I was in High School and then as a young wife and momma. Then, well, I just QUIT! Dropped it like a hot potato and have never returned--sigh. Yes, for those of you that have followed me here and on my other blog, I have been threatening to pick it up again for a couple of years...my procrastinations skills are endless, or there have been extenuating circumstances beyond my control at times to make myself sound more justified. Nonetheless, this year for sure!!! I have the sewing machine all set up and a couple of prime projects already lined up; now the only question remains---which one gets started first or "Sew What"? I will be posting as soon as I figure it out.

Until next time, Stay Cozy,
Charlotte

Snow, Snow, Snow

I am thinking about doing some re-decorating in my dining room. Right now I have dark green Cape Cod curtains up at the two long windows in there and they make a bold statement, but I am really TIRED of them (they have been up for close to 10 years (you see what I mean). I am thinking of replacing them with a pretty valance and panels made from the Moire Plaid at the left. The colors would complement the hues in the adjoining living room. I am also looking at adding the cute chair pads to our dining room chairs. I am just needing some inspiration around here since we have been under a white blanket of SNOW for close to a week now--it was fun at first, but VERY cold (in the teens and twenties-not good "play-in-the-snow weather) BBBRRRR! My spring decorating catalogs started rolling in on Tuesday, just in time to add some wonderful color to my gray-drabby WV winter day! I have been really pouring over them and am convinced that this is the year for something new. What do you think?

Happy New Year Blessings to You!!!!

May the new year bring
The warmth of home and hearth to you.
The cheer and goodwill of friends to you,
The hope of a childlike heart to you.
The joy of a thousand angels to you,
The love of the Son and God's peace to you.
- The Hearth

We are having a cold snap here. Not as cold as some other parts of the country, it is 22 degrees here. But it is still cold enough to keep me in my Cozy little Home this morning with my cup of coffee near by and my fuzzy little slippers on my feet. I am so glad to be blessed with such a sweet retreat from the weather. I just wanted to take a minute to write a New Year's greeting to each of my sweet bloggin' buddies. I hope that each of you have a blessed, happy and healthy 2010 and that your lives will be filled with all sorts of wonderful surprises in the coming year!!! Hope to spend more time getting to know all of you better this year here in Blog Land. For now I am sending BIG WV Hugs your way!!!!

Stay Cozy,
Charlotte

Ta-Da: The Latest Member of the Family

I am just taking a minute this morning to post the promised photos of my daughter's sweet new son. Introducing Wyatt Lee (last name withheld at the request of my daughter and son-in-law) hope you enjoy the pics:

From top to bottom and left to right: The new momma with her little one, my sweet hubby (aka pawpaw), me and our son, Caleb (aka Uncle Caleb) and my mom and dad at their house. We are all so glad that he is here and so healthy! Hope everyone is having a wonderful week!!!
Stay Cozy,
Charlotte

Back to Regular Posts

     Whew....has it been a long time since I have posted anything! Sorry about that. I have not forgotten my sweet little blog, I have just been busy around here with a multitude of STUFF! I have been busy with our son and his homeschooling, my daughter had a new baby (pictures will be coming soon), my Celebrating Home business has been on a steady increase, I have a couple of design projects that I am working on, my mom has been in and out of the hospital with a venous leg ulcer that just does not want to get well, and, of course, there are the chores that come with every day living.
     I had one other new and very interesting opportunity come my way a few of months ago. I am now writing a monthly column for my favorite local publication, Two Lane Livin'. My column is titled "Feather Your Nest" and it is also included on the web version. I love writing the articles for my column and try to keep them short, sweet and informative for my readers. This is true of the other columns that you will find there, also. The best part about Two Lane Livin' is that there is no "bad news" reported there. No politics, no murder or larceny, just good news and lots of good ideas for every day living from every day folks. Kind of like taking a minute out of your busy day to visit with your neighbors. Stop by and check it out. You will love the wonderful down home appeal that editor, Lisa Hayes Minney, maintains in this "little jewel" of a paper from Central WV.
     I do plan to get back to putting up regular weekly posts here at my humble little blog starting this week. I have some pictures to share from around my cozy little cottage as well as some ideas to share to help you with decorating your cozy cottages, too. It does seem good to stop a while and visit with each of my blog buddies here. Hope that each of you are having a wonderful week!!!!

Big Hugs and Stay Cozy,
Charlotte    

Something New

I have just discovered that I can send new posts to my blog by email!!! I am too excited over this. I knew that the blogs were set up to receive postings sent via mobile blackberry, but did not know that I could type one in by my humble email application. I am testing this out right now and will leave the post if it looks satisfactory to my ever discerning eye ;o) If you are reading this, then it passed my inspection. I also wanted to take a minute to say thank you to those who posted such kind comments to my last little garden post. You are all just too sweet. Hope you are having a lovely evening.

((Hugs)) Stay Cozy,

Charlotte

---

My Little Garden Spot

Hello again to everyone. I am trying to get back into full swing with all of my online postings and business. I have been released to drive again and to go back to most of my household chores (sigh) so much for the leisurely life... Seriously, I am glad to be getting back to my normal routine and could not wait to run my vaccuum for the first time. There is just something theraputic about pushing it along and seeing my carpets become all fluffy again. Robin does a good job when he has to take over the chore, but there is just something personally gratifying about doing it myself-aaahhh!

I had a few pictures of that little garden spot in front of my house that I thought I would share with you. I have had some of them in the camera for a while, but just did not get them posted. Here are a couple from April:

The Azalea bush was really full this year

My little garden helper, Caleb My sweet kitty,Zoot Caleb at the park

Happy Independence Day!!!

Hope that you are getting ready for a day of wonderful celebration with family and friends. My hubby is fixing a variety of meats and I am taking care of fixing some yummy veggie dishes. We have invited our children to come and eat with us. Caleb is excited about the fact that there will be fireworks in Charleston tonight. I love the 4th of July!

I love to wish everyone that I see a Happy Independence Day! I specifically use that term even though it seems old fashioned today. I love to remind folks that this is what we are celebrating today. The signing of the Declaration of Independence that lead to our freedom from England and the tyranny that the King was imposing on our American Colonies! A freedom that has its roots in the Bible and the promises of Christ: Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. John 8:36

Samuel Francis Smith penned the words to the song "America" in 1831. The tune is that of the British National Anthem, "God Save the King" (or Queen). We know it better as "My Country Tis of Thee". It was first sung at a children's Independence Day celebration in Boston at Park Street Church that same year. I am posting it for you and hope that you will pay close attention to the last verse. I am glad that my Liberty comes from the Lord and that no one can ever take that from me! Hope your Independence Day is full of Freedom, Fun, Family, Friends and Food!!!

America

by Samuel Francis Smith

1

My country, 'tis of thee,
Sweet land of liberty,
Of thee I sing;
Land where my fathers died,
Land of the pilgrims' pride,
From every mountainside
Let freedom ring!
2
My native country, thee,
Land of the noble free,
Thy name I love;
I love thy rocks and rills,
Thy woods and templed hills;
My heart with rapture thrills,
Like that above.
3
Let music swell the breeze,
And ring from all the trees
Sweet freedom's song;
Let mortal tongues awake;
Let all that breathe partake;
Let rocks their silence break,
The sound prolong.
4
Our father's God to Thee,
Author of liberty,
To Thee we sing.
Long may our land be bright,
With freedom's holy light,
Protect us by Thy might,
Great God our King.

Until Next Time, Stay Cozy,

Charlotte

A Quick Note Just to Catch Up

Good day to all!

It seems like a lifetime since my last post here. I am thankful to all of you for continuing to check in here from time to time to check on me. You are all so dear to be concerned about me. Those of you who are also Facebook friends know by now that I have had my surgery and am continuing to recuperate and am gaining my strength back day by day. I am just so very relieved that it is over and that I will not have to deal with any of that any more!

So far, I have not started back to doing any regular design or decorating work. I still have 3 weeks until my doctor will release me and I intend to take every minute of it to rest. I want my body to heal to its maximum potential. I am doing light housework, taking phone calls, scheduling appointments, working on some writing projects and promoting online sales with my three online stores. This is keeping me busy and interested for now. I do have some new photos of my little garden that I will be posting in a day or two and some thoughts on a couple of new projects that I am getting ready to start. I just wanted to stop in for a minute to let you all know that I am OK and to say thank you for being my friends.

Hugs to all and Stay Cozy,
Charlotte

Busy (and a little tiring) Month

Greetings Dear Bloggin' Buddies,

I have decided that my last post probably should have been entitled "The MONTH Ahead" instead of "The WEEK Ahead". This past 4 weeks has just FLOWN past me and I realized that I needed to stop by and give this Cozy old blog a minute or two of my time. I have been by most of your beautiful blogs and do apologize for not taking a wee minute to comment to let you know that I had been there to visit. I promise to at least try to do better in the future.

My days have been a mixed bag as of late. I remain busy with Design Consultations and Celebrating Home business, but I have been plagued with fatigue from this condition that has me in its grips. I will update you a bit and let you know that I am dealing with uterine fibroid tumors. Not a pleasant condition and less pleasant to talk about in polite society. I am looking at a hysterectomy sometime in the near future, probably by the end of summer. I have a couple of other friends that have had the same surgery for the same reason, and they all assure me that I will feel so much stronger once it is done. Right now I often just feel "wrung-out" all of the time and have to just stop right in the middle of doing things to sit down and re-gain my strength. My blood pressure meds are working and have brought me back to a more acceptable range. At the peak, about 2 months ago, it registered at an entirely unhealty 210/100-YIKES! I have never had anything but normal range my entire adult life, so this has been quite an adjustment for me. But I am trying to keep on going and not complain too much, I do have this beautiful family and business to think about. Just keep me in your thoughts and your prayers that the Lord will give me the strength I need for each day.

I also wanted to share a little note about an award that was sent to me from Melanie over at New Creation Cottage a while back. I am truly so very sorry that this did not get posted right away as she is so dear and this is the first time that anyone has sent me a blog award of any type.

This was just such a special surprise for me, and such a sweet sentiment. I do often feel like my blog friends share a sisterhood, even though most of us have never met anywhere else but here on our computers.


The Rules Are:



1.Put the logo on your blog or post.

2. Nominate up to 10 blogs which show great attitude and/or gratitude!

3. Be sure to link your nominees within your post.

4. Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.

5. Remember to link the person from whom you received your award.

There are a few special ladies that I would like to send the award to as they are always so kind to share a kind word in their comments to me, or with something nice written on my Facebook wall. Some days they just "turn on the sun" as their comments warm my heart and add a smile to my face:

1. Shiloah Baker at Homemaking Cottage Blog

2. Stephanie Withrow Woody at Providence Handmade

3. Tina Lawver at The Artful Life

4. Susanna Holstein at Granny Sue's News and Reviews

5. Violetlady at Violetlady at Home

Thank you to all of you that leave comments and I hope that over time we will build wonderful "kinships" with one another through our blogs. Thank you again to dear Melanie for this very special award to me. I will close for now as I must make the rounds to your blogs to see what is new in your lives.

Blessings to all and Stay Cozy,

Charlotte

The Week Ahead

Spring is in full swing!!! My calendar is showing that to be very true. This week is shaping up to be a very busy one for me with people wanting to spruce things up around their houses for the spring season. I am looking forward to things getting even busier over the next couple of weeks. We are also finishing our school year with Caleb and I am hoping to schedule his portfolio review sometime this week. I have an upcoming doctor's visit that may, or may not result in getting a bit of surgery scheduled (more about that later, depending on what the doctor says-just know that we are not talking about anything life threatening, just something that needs to be taken care of). WHEW-you can see that it might be a while before I am back at blogging. I love to come here and share what is new around the old Cozy Home, but if you don't hear from me for a couple of weeks, just know that I am "up to my eyeballs" and will get on here again as soon as time allows. Hope that you are all having a wonderful spring season!

Hugs and Stay Cozy,
Charlotte

The Flowers that Bloom in the Spring (Tra-La)

I finally stepped outside yesterday to snap a couple of pictures of my dear little daffies. I do now have a large flower garden, only one modest little bed. However, it brings me much joy to see things starting to bloom there once more. I am looking forward to the little azalea bush popping out in blooms sometime later this month. The Hostas should follow behind somewhere in early May, and I am thinking of planting some wildflower perinnials to fill in the rest of the year with color. Here are the pictures that I snapped:

Check Out the Coupon

I don't know about you, but whenever I see that cute little Snuggle bear I just have to smile. This morning I placed a neat little widget on the right offering readers of Cozy Home Cottage a two dollar coupon for Snuggle Creme fabric softener. Snuggle creme is a new product that adds two luxurious aromas to laundry time while softening your clothes. To me, there is just nothing cozier than fresh, clean, soft laundry coming out of the dryer ready to be enjoyed and these two new scents are wonderful and calming to the senses-aahhh! Click on the widget and snag the coupon for yourself. I don't often place offers like these on my little homey blog, but this one was just to much in the spirit of Cozy Home to pass up. Hugs to all and hope you are having a wonderful day.

Charlotte

Erin go Braugh!!!!

I have heard it said that, "On St. Patrick's Day everyone is Irish". This thought makes me smile! I have always loved Ireland and anything associated with being Irish (though I don't partake in the whiskey-save for some cooking or a good cup of Irish Coffee from time to time- or the Guinness-not to my taste). Sadly, however, my family history does not contain one drop of Irish blood. Mom's family is made up of good Virginia stock-Smiths and Austins with origins in England on her mother's side and Muellers and Handels (mis-spelled Hendel at Ellis Island) from Switzerland and Germany on her dad's side. My dad was born in North Carolina to parents from the Hancock family with some Welsh history on his mother's side and the Davis family with English heritage on his dad's side. Going back even further still does not reveal any Irish relatives on our family tree, not even any wayward branches. But, for today anyway, I am as Irish as any lassie born on the Emerald Isle. We will be having Corned Beef and Cabbage today, I will be listening to all of my favorite Celtic music (especially my Danny Doyle cd), the homeschool lessons will be about Ireland. This is just one of my favorite days of the entire year. Hope it is special for you, too.

Until next time, Stay Cozy,
Charlotte

Sweet Fellowship

We had such a nice week-end here in our Cozy Home. On Friday we had friends over for an evening of dinner at 4:30 followed by a wonderful evening of good fellowship. My husband made his famous "Hobbit Stew" (we are Tolkein fans-can you tell). I can't disclose his recipe, he has sworn me to secrecy,but if you love fresh mushrooms, it is quite a treat-YUM. I made a few loaves of homemade bread to go with it. My friend brought fresh baked gingerbread with sour cream topping for dessert. It went wonderfully with the fresh fruit that I had cut up earlier in the day. After we ate, the boys, including Caleb, retired to the family room to watch a movie together. We ladies decided that we would rather have some good ol' girl time talking in the living room. I tell you, I have not talked so much and laughed so hard for quite some time. We covered everything from the Bible to granny's recipe for fried apple pies and more. Caleb felt quite grown up and important watching the movie with his dad and our friend, D. They also had a great time talking and laughing. It is such a blessing to have good friends. We ended the evening around 10:30 with much hugging on the front porch. It was a wonderful evening and the house still seemed to be full of their voices the next morning.
On Saturday things were a bit quiet here, but pleasant as everything was still all cleaned up from our cleaning frenzy of the past few days as we got ready for our company. Robin and I watched movies together most of the day and Caleb joined us occassionally in between his time playing upstairs with his Legos and downstairs playing games on the computer. I really love quiet days!
Sunday morning we got up and went to our church and enjoyed time with our church family. After lunch, I went to the St Alban's library for an afternoon with The Mountain Women, a local storytelling group. They were GREAT! I have just taken an interest in this form of entertainment and love to go and listen as these talented performers weave their tales, especially when they are about my favorite great state, WV. We have such a rich heritage of folk lore, family stories and history here in the Mountain State. I really enjoyed my afternoon at the library. I came home with every intention of venturing out again for evening church, but was too tuckered out and so I stayed home with my hubby and had a pleasant evening with he and my little one, instead. The Lord knows my heart, He gives me rest when I am weary. I am thankful for that. By the end of the evening I was ready for some sleep so that I would be rested to start a fresh week on Monday. Back to the drawing board, back to our homeschooling, back to creating Cozy Homes for others. It is a good life here. Hope you are having a wonderful week.

Hugs from WV,
Charlotte

ANNOUNCING: The Latest News

Good morning Blog Buddies,

By now you all know how I feel about accessories and pretty things for our homes. I have a wide assortment of things handed down, things found, old things, new things; etc, etc and so on. You also know how I enjoy working from my sweet little cottage home in Wild, Wonderful WV. I have a number of companies that I use to order accessories and decorative items for my clients, family and friends. Anything from the most fru-fru frilly florals to items that are no nonsense clean-lined contemporary pieces for those that prefer more fuss-free interiors. I also love the idea of direct sale companies as they provide beautiful products for very reasonable pricing as well as the chance for others to work from their home-sweet-homes, if they so desire. Two of my favorites (and ones that I have sold for quite some time now) are Home Interiors and Gifts as well as Home and Garden Party. The two have now combined into one TERRIFIC company:

Home and Garden Party, along with Home Interiors and Gifts, is now officially known as Celebrating Home and our tag line is “Bringing Families Together,” perfect descriptions of what we do as a company and what we do for you, our Customers and Hostesses. We are so excited that we have been able to bring the Home & Garden Party and Home Interiors families together and provide spectacular decor and significant income-earning opportunities for thousands of women across the United States. With the combination of these two great companies, Celebrating Home is now the largest party-plan home décor company in the nation! Our official NEW web site will open on March 8th with updated product information, specials and more!!! I will be posting more details about the site as the date draws closer. I want you to keep the date in mind so that you can stop by to check things out. Don't forget, there is also a 20% off candle sale in FULL swing for the entire month of March. I just had to share the news. As always, it is my pleasure to serve you as you create your Cozy Home!

Hugs and Stay Cozy,
Charlotte

Another Friend's Giveaway

That talented Tina Lawver over at The Artful Life blog is having her own giveaway in celebration of the opening of her Etsy shoppe. She is giving away her beautifully hand painted pendants to four lucky winners. Stop by and check out her beautiful work and sign up for your chance to win. She will be drawing the winners on Sunday, March 1st and announcing them on her blog on Monday, March 2nd. You will want to take a minute and hurry on over there!

Hugs for now,
Charlotte

Spring, Spring, Spring!!!

Good morning to all and Happy (well almost) Spring!!!!! This is one of my two most favorite times of the year (any guesses as to the other: hint, it is also very colorful, just warmer deeper values, and our WV mountains display their most spectacular hues ---hmmmm). In our little flower bed there are daffodils just starting to sprout, the azalea bush has some new green starting to show and the trees have the first sign of some buds that are just on the verge of bursting forth their first hint of wonderful, pale green newness. I went out on our front porch yesterday and washed down the rockers, they are now white again instead of grey-YAY! I am starting to look at some of my fabric books to find the perfect fabric for new cushions for them as well as the porch swing. My mind is on fire with all kinds of new little decorating and organizing projects for my home as well as for my dear clients. I find myself humming my favorite spring songs over and over as I work around the house. I will share one of them with you, if you don't mind. Here is a little "ditty" from Seven Brides for Seven Brothers that you can hum in your head today. The perfect tune to get you in the mood for some spring cleaning and organizing:

Oh, the barnyard is busy in a regular tizzy,

And the obvious reason is because of the season

Ma Nature's lyrical, with her yearly miracle

Spring, Spring, Spring.

Hope you have a gloriously sunny day!!!

Stay Cozy,

Charlotte

A Giveaway at a Friend's Blog

Kay over at The Rustic Cottage is having a giveaway! Stop by and check it out:

http://therusticcottage.blogspot.com/