Winter at the Cottage

Happy winter! I view Jaunuary as a quiet month. The holidays are over and it is a time to rest and reflect. Cold winter days tend to force us inside. Today was a cold, gloomy day for us and it rained in the afternoon. I have not felt well, so I have stayed in. Eric has been sick with a bad chest cold so he has been staying in as well. Tomorrow is our last day of vacation. I am not looking forward to the stress of starting school up again. The end of the semester is coming and there are projects to finish and reports to write.

Above is a picture of my winter decorations. I found the blue dish and the snowflake at my favorite antique mall called "Country Roads". I also have glass birds on the shelf that were my Grandmother's, but they are not easily seen in the picture. Below is a picture of a winter arrangement I made for the living room.

I changed the look of the guest bed for winter, where Dusty is enjoying an afternoon nap.

On another note, since I have lost so much weight, my clothes are too big, so I have been putting them into storage. There is not much left to wear and I have had to go buy some clothes. I shop at the discount stores so it can be hit and miss. I get what I can. I am finding that I rather enjoy having less in the closet. Here are a few excerpts from "The Charm of Simple Things" that express what I am meaning to say:

One cannot collect all the beautiful shells on the beach.
One can collect only a few and they are more beautiful if they are few.
Anne Morrow Lindbergh

We can choose to be rich by making our wants few.
Alexandra Stoddard

I hope that having less will help me to enjoy more fully the clothes I do have and stir a greater attitude of thankfulness in my heart.