Friday, January 18, 2013

I Paint Furniture

In case you haven't heard me say this before, "I paint furniture."

The following is a piece which went from "great aunt drab" to beautiful! I wanted to share it today because I am participating in Miss Mustard Seed's Furniture Feature Friday.

This Chest is Painted with Robin's Egg Blue by Maison Blanche

Finished with a Dark Wax Also by Maison Blanche


Slight Distressing Around Keyhole & Brown Paint Spatters


 It's a beautifully sunny day here at Hillcrest Cottage. I am thinking I might have to check out some neighborhood estate sales in a few minutes.

Happy Friday!

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

The Word of the Year

The Hillcrest Cottage "Word of the Year"
While I have been choosing a year Bible verse for a long time, this is only my second year to choose a "word for the year". I have found that the word is very helpful for making the verse stick better in my memory. Duh... why didn't I discover this years ago?

And... a new picture of Lucy... just because she hasn't been seen in a while.




Do You Fear the Unknown?

Do you fear the unknown? I do.

Tick. Tick. Tick. The unstoppable, continual cadence of life's clock.

Good-bye to another calendar, squares filled with scribbles, check marks, and x's. Hello to a calendar, white, shiny, and blank enough to fill my thoughts with fear, hope, anticipation, and mystery.

Fear: Empty squares could be filled with hard and unexpected circumstances. 
"My times are in Your hands." (Ps. 31:15)

Hope: Empty squares could be filled with blessings and goals achieved.
"God be gracious to us and bless us." (Ps. 67:1)

Anticipation: Empty squares could be filled with opportunity and enjoyment.
"Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart." (Ps. 37: 4)

Mystery: Empty squares equal the unknown. Even in the midst of some fear, I don't want a boring life filled with predictability. What I do know is that God has already prepared a path for me this new year, and I get to discover this exciting path with every new step.
"We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. " (Eph. 2;10)


Loudly, my father's last words to me echo. Strong and wise words powerful enough to alter my life's course.

"There are only two things in life which really matter: God and family."

I embrace you, New Calendar. 

With boldness, enthusiasm, and confidence I step into 2013's unknown territory.































Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Finishing Strong in 2012: The Report

This year of "finish" and "finish strong" has been completed. I finished a lot in 2012; some things remain unfinished. Hillcrest Cottage still has many remodeling projects left half-done.

 However, I have to say I deserve a huge pat on the back for the things which were finished well.

This is the official "Finish Strong in 2012" Report.


Finished...The Selling of My Childhood on Ebay

I am very proud to report that the de-cluttering of Hillcrest Cottage has been accomplished. The work of removing clutter is never quite finished, and I still have some fine tuning to do. But, for the most part, I have sold everything there has been to sell, donated the worthless, and given a good chunk to my now-married son and his beautiful wife. 

"Good-bye, Buffy from Family Affair! See ya in my mind's eye."



"Un" Finished... Floor...2013?
Okay... so I have a closet which still needs sheetrock, a floor half-tiled, and a kitchen half-painted... I can't beat myself up for these incomplete finishes.




Finished... 21 Years of Middle Son




Finished... 17 Years of School Lunches



Finished... 17 Years of Private School Tuition Payments


Finished... 7 Years of Hillcrest Cottage Basement's Weekly "Imagine Student Ministry"



Finished... The High School Graduation



Finished...The Graduation at West Point

 West Point graduation was everything I had imagined it would be... exciting, filled with pride, emotional, and fun. My only regret was that my youngest son graduated on the exact same day. How can a mom who has never missed a minute of her son's life miss his high school graduation... tore my heart out. So, imagine our delight when we were able to fly our high school graduate to South Carolina for a rendezvous and huge family celebration... one of the highlights of the Hillcrest Cottage year!!! 

Thanks to Uncle Danny and Aunt Rosanne for making this celebration possible!

Congrats to BOTH Graduates


Finished... Cadet-Turned-2LT Leaves West Point




Finished...The Wedding... Me & My Stuart
Finished...The Wedding...Cousins with Grandmother "Dee"
Finished...The Wedding...Me & My Davis

Finished...Last Son Leaves Hillcrest Cottage & Begins College




Finished... A Wild Summer '12... Two Boys Leave Hillcrest Cottage

The whirlwind of activity which swirled through Hillcrest Cottage from April to August left as quickly and violently as it had arrived.
Finished 2012...The BEST Christmas EVER at Hillcrest Cottage


Epic. Wild. Emotional. Awesome. I can't comprehend ever having another year as full as this year of "Finish". This year was truly the wildest ride imaginable. This year  has left me tired, but extremely happy and thankful.

On this first day of 2013 I am anticipating the new year. We have another graduation soon appearing on the horizon. 

"Didn't I just send that second son to college last year?" 

Coming soon Hillcrest Cottage's 2013 word and verse will be revealed.