come for an autumnal visit to shady cottage

hello, lovely reader.

welcome to a little glimpse into our home as we have just finished decorating for autumn...

well, we're almost done. a few more bits and pieces to put out in their special places.

i hope you enjoy this peek into our beloved shady cottage...

(before the tour begins, please excuse the darker lighting in these photos. our home tends to be a bit darker as we are quite literally nestled in the trees, hence our home's name, shady cottage. for years, this lack of lighting bothered me, for no reason other than i had it in my head that it needed to bother me. dumb, right? well, i have actually always loved the lighting in our home, and have decided to just embrace it in the photos i take...so i hope you like them, too. just real life, unfiltered, unedited photos. ♥)

one of my favorite things is decorating our mantel for each season/holiday.

we pretty much use the same decorations every year, with the exception of maybe purchasing one or two new things every year or two for fun. most of our decorations have been part of our traditions for years and years. even though we use the same things year after year, we switch up how we use lots of pieces...sometimes on the mantel, sometimes on bookshelves, sometimes on our kitchen shelves, etc., so it always feels like a new creative process when we decorate our home for the seasons and holidays. the same is true for our winter and christmas decorations. it's such a fun, creative process...this year we celebrated with pizza take-away from one of our favorite pizzerias in town. 

our kitchen is feeling very festive with leaf cutouts and bows on all our cupboard doors. 

for our first day of autumn celebration meal, a tradition i began when we moved into shady cottage 8 years ago, we had grilled cheese sandwiches with apple, bacon, and smoked cheddar on sourdough. 

oh my goodness, was it delicious. we paired it with soup and pie for the perfect autumnal feast.

this corner of the kitchen is by far the most used corner when i cook. 

it's on the right-hand side of the stove, and i do a lot of chopping on the cutting board here,

mixing in bowls, measuring seasonings and herbs, and so on.

i also love having a couple lamps tucked in on the counters...

it makes cooking feel even more comforting and cozy.

broccoli cheddar soup...a real fave this time of year, especially when paired with crusty bread, or the sandwich we had this time. so comforting.

more leaves and bows on cupboard doors...and do you see that little black cat on the kitchen door?

my sister found that last year at the dollar store, and it makes me so happy every time i look at it.

one of the best purchases for $1.25 ever!

homemade pumpkin pie...seriously the best recipe that we got from a neighbor last Thanksgiving. absolutely never going to try another recipe. this one is sheer perfection. a bit more whipped cream plopped out of the bowl then i had intended, but i'm not complaining...i added a blip of maple syrup and a good drizzle of vanilla extract, so it tasted heavenly with the pie. {{smiles}}

more leaves and bows on cupboard doors.

a bit of magical whimsy in the window over our sink.

our tea kettle sits on a stand right below this sign that i wrote out...

this corner gets a lot of use, especially as the weather gets cooler.

every nook and cranny gets a touch of cozy...

even above the fridge. 

one of the coziest corners in our house...

our eating area in the kitchen.

perhaps i'll share a photo of the entire eating area later in the season,

but for this post, i wanted to highlight these shelves that i love decorating for each season/holiday.

our tea corner...yes, we like trying new teas and finding new favorites. 

we do drink a lot of tea in our home. {{smiles}} 

our front door and front steps have a variety of pumpkins on and around them, but we also enjoy putting a few decorative touches in our yard. we got this scarecrow our first autumn at shady cottage, and the mushroom is from last year...a random find that delighted us at dollar general.

even though we have real pumpkins by our front door, a few metal pumpkin decorations in front of one of our (many!) trees makes us smile when we pull in the driveway. can you see the leaves starting to fall? {[squeal}}

and, finally, this little tucked-away-corner gets a festive touch...this is where we grew some of our herbs over the summer...the pots are now empty until next spring. i love this little corner, nestled in the ivy.

i hope you enjoyed this little home and garden tour of some of our autumn decorations. i didn't share the little knick-knacks we have on our bookshelves, because my sister is doing a major reorganization project with those shelves, but i may share some peeks once she gets done. and i hope to share a tour of my room later in the season.

 i hope you enjoy these last few days of september...

may they be magical, cozy, and gentle.

see you next time!

come on a summertime garden ramble

Come join me for a little late summer ramble through our garden...

I've got a mason jar of iced herbal tea in hand, a wide brimmed sunhat on, and my old worn-in sandals that feel as comfy as a dream on. It's stifling hot and the humidity is so thick you could cut it with a knife. However, thankfully, our many, many, many trees are providing lots of much-appreciated shade as we mosey along and poke around to see what's going on in the garden these late summer days. Fortunately, we've had lots of rain, so we haven't needed to water the plants hardly at all this season. They love the rainwater! And I love the rain, too. {{smiles}}

The monkey grass is beginning to showcase these gorgeous purple flowers. I've noticed each year that these purple beauties come up in late summer, and it's a sure sign that the season is s l o w l y starting to wind down. I absolutely love the soft violet color popping up among all the green.

Purple has come to be the color of summer's end for me. I wrote a post sharing some of my thoughts on that here a few years back...you'd be most welcome to read it.

As I was crouched down to get these photos, a little buzzing sound surrounded me. I looked around and there it was...this little friendly bumblebee friend. It buzzed around and visited many of the blooms. We have always believed in and strived to keep a natural yard...no poisonous sprays or chemicals, pesticides or fertilizers or weed killers. We very much believe in letting nature be nature and that nature is perfect as it is...and that weeds are simply flowers that someone decides are in the wrong place, to quote Sister Monica Joan from Call the Midwife.

After we moved into Shady Cottage, we had no idea what the previous owners did to the yard in terms of chemicals and such. It's been eight years now, and they say it takes five years for a yard to detox from those poisons, so if they did abuse the yard and garden (as most everyone around us loves to do), it should be well cleared out now. Over the last few years, we've noticed more and more bees, butterflies, moths, squirrels, birds, and lightning bugs in our yard. And hardly any anywhere else in our neighborhood. Just goes to show that nature really is just fine as it is...a perfectly manicured yard is doing absolutely nothing for the environment and pollinators, which we all depend on for our food.

Each spring, we fill two big planters with impatiens...in a variety of colors. They last all season long and sometimes, well into the autumn. The bright bursts of color really make a cheerful entrance to our home.

Rewild your yard.

Bee happy.

Be pesticide free.

Leave the leaves.

Restore the balance.

Lose the lawn.

Bee the change.

Slow the mow. 

Grow natives.

Weeds are just unloved flowers.

Let it grow.

Leave the trees.

Be pollinator friendly.

Build a butterfly haven.

(I saw a garden flag with those sayings all over it, and I absolutely loved it. I want one for our yard! They perfectly say what I feel and believe!)

Our basil is growing and flourishing beautifully. We use it regularly to cook dinner and I've also already made one big batch of pesto...some for dinner one night and two more containers for our freezer. I'd like to make another batch or two to freeze for the autumn and winter before the season ends.

And our sage is doing well, too...the rosemary is just okay. I've used both to make roasted chicken and bone broth, and oh my, did they make the flavor pop!

Our corner of the world is still quite lush and vibrant green. Soon, though, as with every year before, some mid-to-late August, the trees and plants will begin to have that worn out, weary sort of look...green fading to yellow as the leaves begin their change to autumnal tones. It happens every year like clockwork. Sure signs of the seasonal change. The grass begins to grow slower and for that, I am always grateful. Ever since my dad passed away, I've done most of the mowing, and with the intense sun and heat, it really drags me down. So I'm always glad to see mowing season end until the next year.

What are your gardens looking like these late summer days? I'd love to know if you're doing any preserving for the autumn/winter months. Do share!

when the winter storm came . . .

Happy Sunday, readers!

It's hard to believe that just a couple weeks ago, we were snowbound. Completely unable to leave our home for eleven straight days. Thankfully, we didn't lose any power or have any trouble with our water or pipes, nor did we have any damage. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about other parts of my state. 

I admit that I had absolutely no problem with being snowed in for almost two weeks...in fact, I loved it. (I was thankful for the arrival of the big thaw as our fridge was looking quite sparse by that point, and I was looking forward to getting some groceries.) I thrive at home, so being snowed in was just my cup of tea. We did go outside every day, despite the frigid temps, for a walk around our neighborhood, all bundled up and toasty warm. We cooked comfort foods and enjoyed many mugs of hot cocoa and chai lattes and herbal tea. I crocheted and worked on my first quilt top and read...a good book and a rather disappointing read, too. We watched movies and stayed cozied up with our kitties. The older I get, the more I realize just how much of a homebird I am. I've always been a homey sort of girl, but as I get older, it becomes more and more evident to me...and this snowstorm proved it yet again. We were one of the only houses in our neighborhood without tire tracks on our driveway for almost two weeks...everyone else was getting stir crazy and restless and decided to take the risk of driving on very dangerous roads. Most workplaces were even closed or working remotely, schools were closed, no trash pickup or mail service...all for two straight weeks. It's funny because I always realize just how little our neighbors are actually home, but this really showed that. I honestly feel sad and quite disturbed by how miserable people are at home and how little they value such a sacred, special place. Anyways, I digress...

The snow we received was a rather icy sort of snow, as it was very wet and literally froze solid to the ground. With fluffy snow, your feet sink down into it and with this snow, we literally walked about a foot above the ground on top of the frozen packed snow. And almost two weeks later, even with much warmer temps than single-digits, and some rain, there is still some snow in places that are more shaded. 

For this week's post, I wanted to share some photos from our snowstorm of January 2026...

I've also compiled a collection of quotes for the homebird,

for a snow and winter lover and homebird like me, these are sheer perfection and I hope you enjoy!

Some people wonder why they rarely see me out. I wonder what's so bad at their house they always find a reason to be out.

Home isn't where I hide from life. It's where I actually live it.

I love being home. I love wearing my comfy clothes. I love doing absolutely nothing. Or doing the things I absolutely love. I love the silence. The solitude. The peace. The warm and calm feeling of being safe and content in my own comfy space. I just love it. I love it all.

I will add a side note here of my own...I love the "solitude" of being with my people...my dearest ones, people who I choose to be with, people who get and understand me, "my" people. So, no, it's not the conventional definition of solitude. But I'm not a lover of being alone...I like the "solitude" of "us". When you're with the right people, it's peaceful and calm, and lifegiving, and perfect.

Not everyone dreams of escapes. Some find magic in quiet corners, comfort in stillness, and joy in the rhythm of ordinary days. Home isn't a cage -- it's a sanctuary.

She's happiest at home doing ordinary things.

♥

There's nothing like staying home for real comfort. 

- Jane Austen -

Some strive for big vacations every year. I strive to create a home that I don't want to escape from.

 The power of finding beauty in the humblest things makes home happy and life lovely.

- Louisa May Alcott -

His house was perfect, whether you liked food, or sleep, or work, or story-telling, or singing, or just sitting and thinking best, or a pleasant mixture of them all.

- The Hobbit, Tolkien -

♥  ♥  ♥  ♥  ♥  ♥  ♥

Thank you, lovely reader, for joining me on a little snowy excursion through our garden...

wishing you a beautiful week ahead!

our whimsical winter kitchen

Some people dread being cooped up in winter. 

Me? I'm happiest tucked right in.

(Unknown)

Welcome to our whimsical winter kitchen, reader friends! 

Our kitchen is one of the most important rooms in our home...along with our living room. Our kitchen is also one of our most used rooms. It is not a room that is meant to just sit there and look pretty. We have a thoroughly working kitchen. It gets used for three meals a day, along with other baking and cooking, food prep, non-food-related projects, among other things. It's also one of our most favorite rooms in our home, and we do, indeed, spend a lot of time in here. As soon as winter arrived in December, we set to making it a whimsical place to be during the winter months. 

In the dining area of our kitchen, we have a shelf that hangs on the wall, and each season, I enjoy decorating it with some of our collected pieces to fit that particular season. We've collected these decorations over a long time, and it's fun to pull them out each year and remember what all we have. The winter shelves look very cozy and seasonal, if I do say so myself. I went with lots of snowmen and a few other bits here and there. And, of course, you simply must have twinkly fairy lights!

And for an extra whimsical touch, we spent one December afternoon...and evening...and into the night after dinner cutting out lots and lots of paper snowflakes. Some were out of paper doilies from the Dollar Store and others were out of brown paper bags. We added crepe paper strung from the ceiling in wintry colors of dark blue, icy blue, and light purple. Those colors just seem to say snow to us.

Lots of snowflakes went on our window as well...I will not deny that I am obsessed with just staring at this view. Especially when there's snow outside...it just adds to the whole ambiance.

Winter is the time for home...♥

And not only do we enjoy our kitchen view from inside with the hanging snowflakes and crepe paper and fairy lights and decorated shelves, but the view from outside is quite lovely as well...there's nothing like the soft glow of light peeping through windows on a cold winter night. There's something so inviting, so welcoming, so homely, so warm and comforting, so "this is my favorite place in the whole wide world" about it.

Ah, yes, there's no place like home.

Thank you so much for visiting our whimsical winter kitchen. And yes, we have plans and ideas for a spring/summer vibe that we want to go for. When you have a kitchen and you're in it all the time, you might as well make it a fun, whimsical, wonderful place, don't you think?

december 13: magical sunset

december 13

This photo is from Thursday evening...I stepped outside to get ready to hop in the car to run some errands, and everything was glowing in the most magnificent pink. It was like something out of a fairytale...and for certain, the most gorgeous sunset I'd seen in quite awhile. A beautiful reminder that magic is everywhere, if you look for it and pay attention. Nature sure is a wonder.

december 7: sunday feasting

sunday feasting.

tonight i made this delicious baked ziti from the beautiful book. glad and golden hours. i served it alongside roasted asparagus, and it was the most perfect, comforting meal for a chilly december sunday evening. and it was the perfect fuel for taking down the autumn decorations in our home in preparation for decking the halls this week.

what did you have for dinner tonight?

may photo journal ♥ day twenty ♥ haven

haven ...

my room. my quarters. my chamber. my lair. my space. my burrow. my hobbit hole. my haunt. my cave. my hideaway. my sanctuary. my hidey-hole. my nest.

my haven.

haven...a place of safety, comfort, and peace.

how thankful i am for my cozy little haven. how much it sparks J O Y every time I walk through the door. how much fun it is to make it into a space that feels, looks, and embodies little ol' me. 

i love my little space. it's where i go to read, ponder, write, create, relax, rest, and have a moment. it's taken me quite some time to find what felt like me when it came to my space. all through my teens and early twenties, i wasn't sure exactly what i wanted my space to be and feel like. as my twenties began to roll on and reach their end, it finally became clear...i wanted it to feel warm and cozy and like some place i never want to leave. i wanted it to have colors and textures that made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. i wanted it to reflect me in many different ways. and just like how i can't narrow down my interests or hobbies or passions to one or two, i don't need to narrow down my style to one aesthetic or color scheme or look...social media can make you begin to think that sometimes. i learned that i could embrace all the things i love and bring them into my space in various ways. and, finally, in my late twenties, something just clicked. i know just who i am and what i like and how i want my space to be.

i want it to be a haven that feels like i just stepped into a hobbit hole or a little hole in a tree where the mouse-folk of brambly hedge dwell or a bit like the weasley's burrow that feels all cozy and magical and warm inside. i want it to feel like a scrapbook, a collection of all the things that make me happy and that i love. i want it to be a place where i can just be me and where everything i love and delight in is held and shown in all sorts of ways, whether it be my patchwork curtains, my reading chair and the lumpy pillows on it, my desk and all the knickknacks on my shelves, or the hundreds of books that i have read and want to read. it's all me. and it suits me just right. it's a goldilocks sort of room. and i love it.

may photo journal ♥ day fifteen ♥ relax

relax ...

"Having a home where you can relax without ever wanting to escape is truly underrated. I love my space and being in it."

~Unknown

may photo journal ♥ day six ♥ outside my window

outside my window ...

One of my most favorite things about my room is the view...especially in the spring and summer months. As soon as the leaves start filling out the tress, I have a green haven right outside my window. And despite living in a neighborhood with next door neighbors, I have pretty much 100% privacy. It's an introvert's dream! I love looking out my window and seeing nothing but green....no houses, no people, no roads, no cars. Just nature. Yes, please and thank you. Our kitties love our windows, too, as there are tons and tons of squirrels and birds and the occasional wild turkey flock that come visit out garden daily. We say that our windows are like a big screen TV for a cat, and they have so much fun perched on the windowsills looking out to see what they see. As 100% indoor, house cats, that's about as much nature excitement as they get...aside from when we put a bird video on the TV from YouTube. {{smiles}}

Do tell me...how are you doing? Are you enjoying a lovely spring where you live? Let's chat!

my quiet life at home . . . the comforts of wintering

a celebration of all the comforts of wintering 

before springtime begins . . .

{{ dark chocolate chip scones }}

All i really want this winter is to be a hobbit. 

I want to stay home, eat lots of comfort food, 

and read lots of books in my cozy library.

~ Unknown ~

{{ Valentine's Day chicken pot pie }}

In winter, I often spend all day in the kitchen, it is in winter that I love it best, and it is then that I most enjoy my own particular sort of cooking best, too, for one of the richest pleasures of domestic life is and has always been, filling the house with the smells of food, or baking bread and cakes, bubbling casseroles and simmering soups, of vegetables fresh from the garden and quickly steamed, of the roasting of meat, of new-ground coffee and pounded spices and chopped herbs, or hot marmalade and jam and jelly.

~ Susan Hill ~

{{ Valentine's Day chocolate strawberry cheesecake with dark chocolate covered strawberries }}

All the kitchens along Brambly edge were warm and busy. Hot soups, punches and puddings bubbled and in the ovens pies browned and sizzled. Clover and Catkin helped Mrs. Apple string crabapples to roast over the fire. 

~ Jill Barklem ~

{{ a cheesecake close-up ~ a little plus is that each of the desserts I shared here today are sweetened with either coconut sugar or maple syrup }}

It's winter. Slow down and embrace the quiet. Wrap yourself in a cozy blanket.

Enjoy a cup of chai as the snow falls. Light a candle and let warmth fill the room.

~ The Motherhouse ~

{{ a chocolate fudge caramel cake to celebrate a snow day...because, why not?!?! }}

{{ poetry that just gets me }}

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What home comforts are you savouring these last weeks of winter?