Creating a Little Romance

Romance is in the air ...

I am starting to plan for a

romantic evening for two ~ well actually three,

because you know Bentley will be with us!

I am on my way to visit these Monday parties

Amaze Me Monday

Making the World Cuter Monday

Masterpiece Monday

Mosaic Monday

Show Off Your Cottage Monday

Bentley ~ would you like to think about giving Thelma a little

Valentine's Day gift? What about heart shaped

lettuce leaves?

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Random Favorites

Pinks and soft pastels just have a way ...

of evoking thoughts of spring!!

Just what we need on these ...

cold gray days!

Have a happy Saturday everyone!!

I am joining:

A Few of My Favorite Things Saturday

Pink Saturday

and

Saturday Nite Special

Bentley ~ Momma will be working on Saturday,

but Daddy will be home to play with you!!

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Do You Ever ...??

Do you ever miss someone you have lost?

Sometimes I miss my Daddy so much.

He's been gone for over six months now ...

but there are times when I hear a song

or I read something

or someone mentions something that

reminds me of him.

Most of the time I am strong ...

but there are times when

I am not.

Has this happened to you?

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Vintage and Sweet

Thrift and antique shop finds ~

so sweet and inexpensive ...

They make me feel like buying a farmhouse!

I am joining

Vintage Thingie Thursday

100 Ideas Under $100

Time Travel Thursday

Show and Tell Friday

Frugalicious Friday

Inspiration Friday

Junkin' Finds

and Feathered Nest Friday

Bentley ~ would you like to live on a farm?

You would ~ but a farm with no chickens!

We'll have to discuss that later.

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

I Have the January Blues

I am tired of wearing heavy sweaters and a

down filled jacket.

I have the January blues and I am longing for spring.

I am going to make myself a cup of tea

and dream about sunny skies and warm days.

Care to join me?

Come sit in my lap Bentley and lets look at gardening catalogs.

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Reds in the Kitchen

So what do you think?

Should I keep the touches of red in the kitchen?

Would it be better with them ~

or boring without?

Taking votes from you Boring to Better Party goers!

and ...

What about it you Rednesday Party goers?

What's that Bentley ~you think it's okay to keep the fake chickens

but no real ones in the garden. Thanks for your

opinion Bentley!!

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Shopping the Cottage ~ Blue and White

As many of you know, I have started a few big re~decorating

projects at the cottage.

I am painting

Installing some new architectural elements

Searching for new fabrics and more.

It all gets a bit pricey ~ so I shop the cottage.

Since I love blue and white, I'm pulling out tea pots,

tea cups, lamps and more to re~arrange

and have some fun creating new vignettes.

Blue and white always looks so clean and fresh!

I am using what I have to be as nifty and thrifty as possible.

After I finish the latest "honey do list", I think I'll relax

with a cup of tea and...

Pay a visit to these fun Tuesday Parties:

Table Top Tuesday

Tea Cup Tuesday

(at Artful Affirmations and Martha's Favorites)

Tea Time Tuesday

Tea Pot and Tea Things Tuesday

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

and

Three or More Tuesday

What's that Bentley? Writing your autobiography was exhausting

and you need a tummy rub??

For you Bentley ~anything!!

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

A Bentley Autobiography

Hi ~ I am Bentley of Ash Tree Cottage.

I have a very busy life here at the cottage and I will

tell you a little bit about me.

I like to drive ~ but I don't have my license

yet!!!

I look handsome in my Mardi Gras beads and my

Momma's gumbo is really good!

I like to ride in my Momma's bicycle basket. I pretend that

I am Toto and she pretends that she is Dorothy!

I don't like baths !!!

Be sure to let my Momma know this and

maybe she won't make me take them anymore.

Momma bought me this "Mini Me". I like to make

Mini Me bark and I put him on my Mamma's tummy

while she is doing her abs workout on her exercise mat.

Ha ha ~ it makes her giggle when I do it while she's trying

to do her yoga workout too ~ especially during

downward dog!!!

I like to help my Momma garden. Sometimes

I run off with one of the flowers she is trying

to plant. I don't know why she doesn't like

me to do that ~ do you???

I found my pink hairbrush ~ this is not good!!

Maybe I will bury it in the garden when Momma is not looking!

That's all for now. Momma told me to

mention Thelma the chicken but I won't do it

because I don't like her.

I do like her eggs though!!

I have a crush on Lucy ~ you can visit her at

Debbie Doos

Don't spread this around though because I also

have a crush on Krumpet!

Love and puppy dog kisses,

Bentley

And The Winner IS!!!

The winner of the Ramsign contest is:

My blogging buddy, barn chick pal and fellow interior designer and

Yorkie owner ~

Karen of Brayton Homestead Interiors!

Send me your address Karen so that the Ramsign folks can create

your special sign. You will need to choose a style etc.

Congratulations Karen!!!

I thought about having Bentley pull a name out of a hat

like my good friend Robin's (That Decorating Tennis Girl)

husband aka Mr Tennis did for her last contest.

I had to resort to the Random Generator because Bentley kept chewing

up the entries.

Thank you to everyone who entered.

Bentley ~ Momma is writing your biography now. Shall we leave out the

part about you chewing up the prize participant's entries??

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Shopping The Cottage

I am doing quite a bit of re~decorating in my cottage.

Before I run out and spend lots of money,

I always "shop the cottage" .

I pull out things tucked away in hutches and cupboards

and use them in new ways.

I incorporate family heirlooms with new things

so that even though the cottage seems

fresh and new, there are old precious treasures

that make it feel like home!

I am joining

Show and Tell Friday

Frugalicious Friday

Vignette Friday

Inspiration Friday

Junkin' Finds

Feathered Nest Friday

Favorite Things Saturday

Saturday Nite Special

and

Pink Saturday

If you have not entered my Ramsign give~away you still have time.

The winner will be announced on Sunday January 23rd.

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

My Antique Doll

My Mother-in-Law sent me this doll several years ago.

Isn't she sweet?

I am joining Suzanne for Vintage Thingie Thursday

Bentley, did you have fun doing a couple of guest blogger gigs for me?

What's that ~ You need 2 treaties now??

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Bentley Says ~ Don't Forget Momma's Give~Away!

There is still time to enter my Momma's give~away

for the enamel sign!

Let her know if you want a chance to win if

you have not already entered!

Hey Momma ~ I think I like this guest blogger gig!!

Love and kisses,

Bentley

Puppy Love

Momma is busy re-decorating

So I am the host blogger

How am I doing Momma?

Love,

Bentley

Big doggie kisses

A New Year and A Bad Pun

Yesterday this blog was "teetering" on the brink of

destruction!

I have decided to stick around for a while

but I'll warn you ...

I am blazing my own trail

I don't care if I never reach 1,000 followers

I play music because I love it

If you choose to visit ...

I promise to entertain and not mimic

I promise to never ask you to vote for me to be on some television show

I promise there will be corny jokes and bad puns

I promise there will be lousy photos ~ more often than not

I promise that Thelma will lay an egg from time to time

and I will too

And most importantly ...

Bentley will still be my sidekick!

Right Bentley?

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

It's A Sign! and A Give~Away!

When I moved into my cottage, I gave it a name immediately ~

just like the cottages in England are named. Of course I had

to have a sign ~ so I painted this one above and it has

been hanging proudly on our front porch for many years.

Now I am offering a fabulous give~away so that you too can

have a sign for your cottage!

The Ramsign Company of Denmark ~ makers of very charming

enamel signs ... is giving away one of their creations to

You!!!

All you have to do is:

become a follower if you are not already a

follower of Ash Tree Cottage.

Or ...

Not ~ Don't feel obliged to be a follower!

Leave us a very charming comment!

Or Not!

And ...

I will name a winner next Sunday, January 23rd.

How easy is that???

I am still oohing and aahing over these sweet signs!

Now ~ please also visit the very talented Cielo at

The House in the Roses for

Show Off Your Cottage Monday!

I know, I know Bentley ~ I sound like a presenter

at the Golden Globes!!

But you must admit ~ this is a great give~away ...

and the first of many during this

Blogversary!!!

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

PS: Bloggers who are critical of the way that I operate this contest or who leave nasty comments on another post of mine will be eliminated. We all left high school long ago.

You've Got a Friend in Me

Next Tuesday, January 18th, it will be one year since I started blogging.

It's been a wonderful year. I have met so many talented people.

I have made many friends.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart!!

You have brightened my days and

filled my soul with so many happy moments.

Starting next Tuesday I will start some giveaways to show

you all how much you mean to me!!

So for this post I am Showing and Telling, getting some

Vintage Inspiration, Embracing Pink Saturday

and talking about A Few of My Favorite Things.

It's been a great year hasn't it Bentley?

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Take Good Care of Yourself

Be good to yourself!

Eat your oatmeal ...

plenty of fruits and veggies too!

Take good care or yourself

because

Bentley and I love you!!!

Right Bentley???

Woof Woof!

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Little Red Hen

We are just crazy for chickens around here!

And ...

Crazy about Rednesday!!!

Hey Bentley ~ say woof to Thelma

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Lovin' Lavender!

Brrr ~ it's cold outside so ...

I'm warm and cozy inside having dreams of spring!

I'm dreaming of white wicker, warm sunny days in the garden

and ...

Lilacs!

While I snuggle under my quilt with Bentley,

I am going to visit

Marty for Table Top Tuesday.

Bentley ~ I hear Thelma next door. Maybe she left you

another egg!

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Thelma's Gifts to Bentley

It's been a few months since Amy put some barriers up to keep Thelma the Chicken

from coming over to visit us. Since then Thelma has molted and has since

re-grown all of her feathers and is back in the coop with her sister hens.

But there has been a very mysterious event happening every day!

One evening a few weeks ago, Bentley was out in our back yard.

He refused to come in when I called him. I went out to see what he was

doing and I found him eating ...

an egg ~ shell and all!

I thought that was strange, but it didn't make him sick so I thought maybe

a cat went into the hen house next store and stole an egg and left

it in our yard.

But ...

It keeps happening almost every day. One pale blue egg left in our

yard for Bentley to find!!!

Of the four chickens who live next door, Thelma is the only one

who lays pale blue eggs!

Maybe she is pushing them through the slats in the fence as a

little gift for Bentley!

A daily free range farm fresh egg for Bentley.

Is it love???

Bentley just thinks they are yummy!!

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Bye Bye Blues

This is the first opportunity I have had to redecorate my cottage in several years

and I have decided to start in the kitchen since it is the heart of our home.

So ... bye bye blues.

When I moved into the cottage many years ago, I was really

into country. Now I am into more of a farmhouse fresh look for the

kitchen. The cabinets are getting a new coat of white paint and I am white

washing the beams and repainting the old hutch.

I will show you more soon. Until then I am joining:

Cielo

Mary

Sally

and

Susan

for a Monday that is Metamorphosis, Mosaic, Blue and a Big Show Off!!

Don't worry Bentley ~ Momma will still be cooking during the big re-do!

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Cottage Pinks

Happy Pink Saturday!

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

Cottage Design Part 1 ~ Architectural Elements

As I have mentioned recently, I am planning some

major redecorating projects in my cottage this year.

My husband is a contractor, so I am going through photos

of his work to get ideas of what sort of architectural elements

I want to add to our cottage.

This ceiling has beams and bead board. Would be cute in the

kitchen ~ don't you think?

Love the idea of bookcases on either side of a fireplace.

I think I would like a bit deeper mantel though.

Here's a close up of the shadow boxing.

Love this look! Charming for a cottage.

I like this too ~ though it's a bit more formal.

Columns add interest

As do arched hallways.

Architectural elements can add so much charm to a cottage ...

and they can be functional too like this back hall storage center.

I am gathering ideas for my own projects. I have lots of ideas. Once I settle

on the trim work, I will decide on color. Stay tuned!

I am joining Show and Tell Friday at Cindy's

Bentley ~ go tell your Daddy that he has a lot of work to

do in our cottage!

Love,

Susan and Bentley

xxoo

PS: David ~ I gave you a plug so does that give me some advantage?