Daisy Cottage

Bliss

It doesn't take much.

A back porch and a quilt will do.

And of course coffee.  Ahhh coffee.  How I love thee.

Add some toasted raisin bread dappled with a little pat of butter or two ...

And a bucket of daisies ...

And don't forget my sweet baby ...

And I have myself a little bit of bliss.

Actually a whole lot of bliss. 

Now, what is the one word that I would use to describe myself?  Well gosh that is hard! There are so many that I could choose.  YOU did great.  I loved reading the word that you chose.

LOYAL.  That would be my word.

So you know what that means, right?

You are stuck with me.

Love,

Kim 
  
  
 
 

So Tell Me ...

Come on in, I'm almost done with my dusting ... 

 

 
  
  
 
And since you know me, you know that if I am dusting that means I am also pondering something.  ;-)

So tell me please ..

If you had to describe yourself with only ONE word, what would that word be?

xo,

Kim

  

Flower Girl

Over the past weekend, while Maggie sat back and enjoyed the spring breeze, her Mommy and Daddy worked VERY hard on their Daisy Cottage garden.  Well, actually, her Mommy needs to be honest and say that Maggie's Daddy was the one who worked VERY hard.  While Mommy did make a very good assistant, she also got easily distracted and took photos too.

;-)

I couldn't help it as I wanted to capture these LIVE blooms while they were - you know - ALIVE.

We are pretty much starting over with the flowering plants after our very cold winter and we are hoping that all of these flowers will indeed BLOOM WHERE THEY ARE PLANTED.  That would be SO lovely.  Please please little flowers - be happy here!  You make me so happy! 

Here are some of the red impatients that we plugged in everywhere ...

(remember, if you click on my photos they will open up in a larger size for you too)

See - Mr. Daisy Cottage got right to work ...  (he is AWESOME about that)

I wish you could see these azaleas in person - their colorful blooms are SO pretty. 
 

We also planted jasmine, pintas, daisies, hydrangeas, and allamandas.

I potted a bunch of flowers including these sweet ones...

Now originally I was only using the red table on the porch as a work surface to pot the flowers.  But when I was through I decided that I liked how they looked all gathered together in one place.  And so I left them there.  What do you think?  This is what greets you as you walk up to the front door ...

Well we have a whole bunch more to do and I promise that I'll show you the whole garden soon. And what can I say?  I'm definitely a flower girl.  The more flowers the merrier to me.  Oh and next Saturday our neighborhood is hosting its annual historic home tour. Daisy Cottage is not on it this year, but I am looking forward to hosting one of the houses.  I can't wait for home tour day as it is such a fun and exciting time. The tourists are always so nice and appreciative too.  And speaking of hosting, Daisy Cottage and I will be hosting the local MOPS (mothers of preschoolers) in a few weeks.  I can't wait to meet them! Oh those were the days... wasn't it just yesterday when I was a mother of a preschooler? Sigh. No, I guess not. Anyway, I think there are about 60 women stopping by. They had kindly asked if I'd like to come speak to their group about decorating on a dime.  I shared that I'd rather have Daisy Cottage speak for me.  That is so MUCH easier for me to do.   ;-)

I hope you have a gorgeous day.  I'm off to water the flowers.  Maybe if I sweet talk them they'll stay alive. 

"Hi my beautiful ones.... don't you look so pretty?"

xo,

Kim 
  

Dear YOU ...

As I dug in the dirt and worked in our garden ALL weekend side by side with Mr. Daisy Cottage, I thought about you. 

As I listened to the playful birds and felt the cool spring breeze on my face, I thought about you.

As I held my little Maggie when she begged for attention, I thought about you.

I hope you know that when I say that I love you, I honestly and truly do.  I can't imagine my life now without YOU in it.  I always read every one of your comments and whisper a thank you to each of you as I do.  As far as I am concerned, this blog would not be THIS blog without YOU.  I wouldn't be here if YOU weren't here.  What you bring to this little space in this moment and time is something that cannot even begin to be described.  I can make a feeble attempt and say that when each of you share of yourself with your comment, you share your own unique spirit that is absolutely, without a doubt, BEAUTIFUL.  Whether you are Sheila, or Nancy, or Ann, or Linda, or Sue, or Cindy, or Dan ...  EACH OF YOU are precious.  Time after time and again and again YOUR WORDS are by far THE LOVELIEST PART OF THIS BLOG.

Thank you SO very much for your generous comments, support, and for your friendship.  I wish that I could give away a million dollars and more to each of you.  I wish that I could give you the moon and the stars and anything that your heart desires. PLEASE know that I really appreciate you more than you will ever ever know.

The Random Number Generator picked the winner of my Giveaway to be: 

Oh to be lucky enough to have you visit and photograph their house for the day. Plus be featured in a magazine in an article written by you? I would be in heaven. Your giveaway is just beautiful. What a lovely gift for some lucky blogger. I think I will have to run out and get this magazine just for your articles. I don't seem to have much luck with giveaways. I think they are very lucky to have someone as talented as you on their magazine team!

Posted by: Maggie | March 11, 2010 at 08:48 AM

 

WooHoo Maggie!!  I love your name.  ;-)

Thank you so much!  Please email me your mailing address and I will get your box off to you right away.  

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So ENOUGH about me.  I'd like for us to sit down now and indulge in a yummy blonde brownie ...

And help our friend, Diane, who so sweetly shared her thoughts and asked a question on this post when we all exclaimed that we were "free to be me"  ...

Free to be me is a lovely goal, but how to get there? I'm in my fifties and I don't know what the real me is. I've always been so influenced by what is in style and from the decorating magazines that I find myself thinking what would look good. Of course, that means what would look good to others. How do I uncover what I really love? Help Kim!

Posted by: Diane Price | March 10, 2010 at 02:57 PM

Dear Diane,

You are at a fabulous age!  As you know, I am 50 and I have only just begun!  ;-)  How do you discover the real you?  By giving yourself your undivided attention too - just like you have given to your loved ones your whole life.  Take the time to really pay attention to when your heart skips a beat and you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  What made you feel that way?  When do you feel your happiest?  What environment makes you feel at home?  When it comes to decorating - what look really makes you swoon?  When you determine that then you can study the pages that you are drawn to in the decorating magazines, books, and blogs, and go from there.  And never ever sway from what you have uncovered about YOU.  Stick to what won your heart and don't look back.  Don't second guess.  Don't worry if someone else doesn't "like" it. Dont worry if what you love isn't "in."  YOU ARE IN!  You are HERE.  Right?  So if you love it - so be it. Be true to you.  If you practice this it will soon become second nature.  I promise.  The wonderful thing about being this age is that HOPEFULLY we have all realized that NOW is the time. This isn't a dress rehearsal. Each day is a gift.  We can either unwrap it and play or we can fuss.  I hope that you unwrap the beautiful gift that YOU are and show it off to EVERYONE. 

Most importantly Diane - have FUN discovering who you really are.  I bet you are going to REALLY like her.   ;-)

Love,

Kim

Okay my oh-so-very-wise friends - YOUR TURN.  PLEASE help Diane with her quest to find herself. How did you uncover what you really love? You may share YOUR advice and experiences with her in the comment box below.

In the meantime, more brownies are coming right up.  Now who wants cream in their coffee?

xo,

Kim

Enjoying the Moment & A GIVEAWAY!!!!!

Once upon a time, oh let's say WAY back in November, I was sent by a VERY SPECIAL SOMEONE to a BEAUTIFUL store in St. Cloud, Florida.

I had the honor of photographing Vintage Soul for Romantic Country magazine.  The lovely and VERY talented owner's name is Debbie - you may visit her here.  While she describes herself as an "old soul," I must tell you that she also has the SWEETEST soul.  What a joy it was to work with her that day.  I will remember her warm personality and her dreamy store forever.

 

 

Not only did I have the opportunity to photograph Vintage Soul, but I also had the privilege of writing about the store and Debbie's gorgeous creations too ...

 
 

My story is in the new issue of Romantic Country!

If you are ever in St. Cloud, Florida, please treat yourself to visiting this store. You will be so glad that you did. Tell Debbie that Kim of Daisy Cottage sent you.   ;-)

Now remember when I went to Mount Dora - when was that... oh yea, that was in November also ...

Well there were SO many treasures to be found and I was able to photograph AND write about the antique market for Romantic Country and it is in the new issue too!!!

I was SO excited to work on these two stories.  And that's not all...

In December I had the most wonderful and INSPIRING time when the same very special someone sent me to the home of Laura DellaPorta so that I could photograph her home studio and lovely creations for Romantic Country.   

And I was given the wonderful honor of writing her story too and it is ALSO in the new issue!

Laura is beautiful, inside and out, and a VERY creative soul. You may get to know her more here.  Speaking of "energy" - the energy in her studio is AMAZING.  I wish I could have taken all of you there with me.  It was, indeed, magical.  And so is she.

So, yes pinch me please!!!  Do you know how excited I was and AM to have been given these opportunities?  

After I finished the above stories I was given another FABULOUS assignment to write.  I was to write about this ADORABLE California designer and her gorgeous home ...

My story is on page 56 of the new issue!

You can get to know Stacey when you visit her blog. She is delightful! Stacey was SO wonderful and easy to work with.  She truly is an inspiration.

Yes, it was a busy holiday season as I know it was for each of you too.  And I am so very excited about this new issue of Romantic Country because it is the first time that I was able to contribute as a writer, a photographer, and as a stylist.  ME?????  Seriously - ME???????

NEVER EVER EVER give up on your dreams.  NEVER EVER EVER let someone tell you that you can't do something or won't be able to do something.  NEVER EVER EVER think that you are too old to accomplish something that you'd like to do.

I owe these wonderful experiences and opportunities to my dear friend and mentor, Fifi.  And you know that because I've told you this over and over again, but I can't help it - it is true - I owe everything to her.  She's one of a kind - she's truly amazing.  She is one TALENTED girl.  And no one works harder than her.  If you haven't visited Fifi yet, you can do so here.  Please stop by and say hi - she will love to meet YOU.

So I am happily celebrating this new issue of Romantic Country and that means that I want to celebrate with YOU as you have been with me every step of the way. 

I am giving away a copy of the magazine and it is a BEAUTIFUL one!!!

And I'm giving away a vintage glass heart perfume bottle ...

And a sweet floral serving tray from Italy ...

And a little egg with a message from me to you ...

And a vintage pin ...

And a glass dish ...

 

And a box with 50 one dollar bills (because 50 is a GREAT number) BUT there IS a small catch.  I want you to have fun spending it at a yard sale or your local thrift shop.  I want you to treat yourself to a little something-something that not only catches your eye but wins your heart.

Okay?

Will you do that for me?

If you'd like to have a chance to win my Giveaway, please leave a comment below and I will be back on Monday, March 15th, to announce the winner.

Thank you for letting me embrace and share this moment with you.  After all, you ARE my family too.

Love you all,

Kim