We’ve been having a lot of ‘Grateful Days’ lately.
Grateful that we found this cottage, which would be considered by many to be too small, too lacking in storage, too funky. But to us? It’s simply perfect. The sunlight pours in its many windows, the open plan downstairs flows beautifully. The kitchen has a high ceiling, perfect for my over 6′4″ husband. The den, which is sunken, has become one of our favorite rooms. Somehow, the addition of the bookshelves put it over the top. Our bedroom is tucked away under the eaves. There’s a big old wrap-around porch.
We’ve been nomadic in the past. For many years, Don’s home was often on the road. When I met him, he didn’t own much, having shed a lot of his possessions. Just a few boxes. I had lived in many apartments, adding and subtracting possessions as the current living situation dictated. I’d lived in Detroit, Philadelphia, Boston and San Diego, big cities all.
We rented for years, separately and together. Not until we moved out east did we consider the possibility that we might be able to buy a house. Our mortgage payment is hefty since we bought at the height of the market, right before everything went south. As freelancers, that has been a challenge. But it’s been a challenge that we’ve met and I’m very proud of that.
To be honest, there are times we miss renting, simply because everything is the landlord’s responsibility. That was a nice little perk, although it’s easy to look back at that with rose-colored glasses, isn’t it? There were good landlords and not-so-good landlords. Repairs that were made promptly and repairs that were never made. And always, I had the niggling little fear that we might be forced to move, that the rent would increase, that the owner would sell and we’d be searching for a new place.
In the end, the challenges of owning are worth it for us – for now. This is our place. Our little haven. The little cottage in the country I dreamed of for most of my adult years. Who knows? Maybe someday we’ll want to sell and rent a little place somewhere else. Maybe we’ll want to be rid of the constraints of a mortgage.
But for now, we are grateful. Grateful that we have this roof over our heads, that we have this little cottage to fill with lots of color and collections and well-loved furniture. Grateful that our little family seems to thrive here. Grateful to have a place where guitars are strummed, where music fills the air, where books are read, where laughter is the best medicine, where sweet dogs can trust that they safe and loved.
Our little girl turns 16 tomorrow. I hope you’ll stop by then and say Happy Birthday to her.
Happy Saturday.
Doris says
Claudia, this morning’s note is very calming and reminding me that I have lots to be grateful too. My worries that I have today I should be able to handle and work out . Thanks and I hope your day is wonderful. Doris
Claudia says
Yours too, Doris. I know that for me, reminding myself of what I’m grateful for always seems to put things in perspective. xo
Tammy says
My husband’s birthday is tomorrow, too. +40 to Scout’s age. :)
I love your little cottage. It is perfectly perfect to me.
Best wishes,
Tammy
Claudia says
Although if we calculate Scout’s age in human years, she’s over 100!
Sue Silva says
Sixteen! How wonderful is that?
Claudia says
Pretty great!
Missy says
I always told “youngsters” that they were throwing money away by renting!! I did my share..There was a blurb on TV this AM about rents in SF..5,000/month !! I can’t even imagine!! Guess we can be grateful for what we have…
Claudia says
Indeed, Missy!
Susie says
Claudia, Looks like Scout is not letting Don out of her sight. That’s a good photo of them together. I love sun light in our home too. I do not even have curtains on the kitchen window…it faces the woods. Blessings for a cozy fun weekend. xoxo,Susie
Claudia says
She likes to hang out with her daddy, Susie.
Chris k in Wisconsin says
When we feel peace in our home, there is truly nothing much better than that! We are so lucky when we say “Home Sweet Home” and mean it. For me, there is no where I would rather be. And, those we share that home with are what truly makes it sweet! :-) Happy Saturday!
Claudia says
I agree. No place I would rather be, either!
Debbie says
You home looks inviting & cozy! Give your girl a birthday hug from me!
Claudia says
I will. Thank you!
Hedy King says
Happy New Year, Claudia. I like this picture too. So comforting, a music man and his dog. Your home is similar to mine, I believe. Hedy
Claudia says
I find it very comforting to hear Don playing in the next room. There’s something very restful about it, Hedy.
Wendy TC says
There’s a lot to be said for the serenity of gratefulness, and this post says it all. Happy for you to have found a peace (sic) of comfort that fits you at this time of your life. Early birthday scritches to Scout!
Claudia says
She is sleeping at the moment. I wonder if she has any idea what we’re celebrating tomorrow?
Janie F. says
I love our little home too Claudia. We have been here for almost 24 years and we both love it more than any place we have ever lived . It was run down when we moved in but had possibilities. Now it is just perfect for us. This time of year the oaks losing their leaves keep us busy but our trees are so wonderful the rest of the year. I love the picture of Don and your girl. Hope you all have a wonderful celebration tomorrow.
Claudia says
Thank you, Janie, from one fellow home lover to another!
Pat says
You have a darling little home that may be as you said “too funky” … But more than anything it’s home.
We too have a high mortgage– bought at the wrong time, maybe. Refinanced at the wrong company — definitely ! We have put ourselves in a sticky position- having to move. Some days, I’m saddened by it because I love our house in the country with all it’s QUIRKINESS; but I try and think of our next home as our next adventure.
I think the idea is be GRATEFUL. No matter where you are, as long as you’re together.
Claudia says
We’ve refinanced here in NY, but closing costs and everything else that is lumped in with it (NY is a pain in the tush) makes it a not very worthwhile effort.
Janet in Rochester says
Great post, Claudia. When you talk about your house, it could be me talking about my apartment [always rented myself]. Since I was very small, I dreamed of my own home, how I would furnish it and fix it up, what it would look like in every season, things I’d do there, parties and gatherings I could have etc. Fortunately, ownership was never a factor for me. As you said, when you rent, the big problems are always management’s, and for a single woman, that has a lot of appeal. I love seeing the workmen come, fix the issue, and scurry away. And luckily I’ve always rented where there were responsible, customer service-smart owners and managers, so I’ve had good experiences for the most part. But in Scoutie, Riley and Winston, you’ve had the one thing I did miss out on. I would have loved having a pet, another heartbeat around the place. Just never lived where this was allowed. So here’s wishing Scoutie a very happy 16th birthday and whatever treats she loves to get… Enjoy your day!
Claudia says
Oh, there is definitely something to be said for having someone take care of all the repairs for you. It’s been a thorn in our side at times. We just have to keep being grateful and trusting that all will work out – “Trust the Outcome” — I’m glad to hear you have responsible property managers, Janet. What a relief that must be!
Nancy Blue Moon says
Beautiful post Claudia..Scout looks like she enjoys Dad’s music..
Claudia says
She does. Riley really loved hearing the guitar and the piano. Miss that boy.
Laura says
Your little cottage seems perfect to me, Claudia. It seems to be filled with serenity and love. xo Laura
Claudia says
Well, thank you, Laura. It’s a pretty happy place.
Sue says
Claudia I just finished my post today ( on the SMILE) and I popped over to visit.
You made me smile today ( and tear up a little). You and Don are a couple of amazing, inspirational people. You are doing what you love to do even when it has been difficult, you keep on going. We have been on your journey with you through the ups and downs, the losses and the wonderfully funny times.
Thank you so much for making me SMILE today. Thank you for sharing your beautiful life and thank you for being such caring, loving parents to sweet Scout. I will be back tomorrow with Birthday Wishes….shhh….don’t tell Scout.
hugs
Sue
Claudia says
Oh Sue, now you’ve made ME tear up! Thank you so much for your kind words. I cannot tell you how much they mean to me. We have had our ups and downs and fearful times and happy times and it means so much to hear you say that we are inspirational.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
xo
Vicki says
This may be the first whole-room photo I’ve ever seen of this part of your cottage and it does not disappoint. You’ve decorated it beautifully. So cozy.
It seems we, my husband and I specifically, do everything backwards and have made many financial mistakes but, more than once, income/jobs forced a relocation or some other kind of change. I’m sure we all have our long stories; it’s life. I can say that I’m a Californian, and I’ve fought to get back to California, even knowing the market would be hard to overcome…real estate what it WAS in the day before The Great Recession…so then lost the privilege of owning, returning to renting. Of so many things I hated about renting…and I rented for an aggregate of 16 years…was the lack of privacy. It happened on more than one occasion with different landlords…that I came to know or sense they’d been inside my apartment without my knowledge which is not only illegal without notice unless an emergency, not to mention downright creepy. Also, once married, we became pet ‘owners’…multiple dogs and cats, sometimes as much as four dogs at one time…which then also makes it harder to find a landlord who will take you on, so one place we lived in was a total dump (owned by a slumlord, although she had her doctorate!) but it had a half acre of land which suited our needs.
I don’t like living with fear, but I definitely would get uneasy when a landlord would start asking too many questions about ‘our plans’ for the future. I wanted to move on MY terms, not theirs. It was a control issue that always made me squirm. The cost of moving and then new rental deposits, done too many times, can be strangling. It was one thing in our 20s as single people…but we married late into our 30s and started accumulating more possessions; moving became a royal pain.
I’ve envied friends who seemed to do everything in the correct order…married fairly young, had kids at a good age, stayed in the same house they bought years ago when prices were lower, wound up with stable employment; have 401Ks, IRAs and other investments; are retirement age now with paid-for mortgages…and a few I know, right at this point of beginning the ‘senior’ years, have also inherited substantial wealth from their Greatest Generation parents, who were savers, having grown up in the era of sacrifice in The Great Depression of the 1930s. As a consequence, those parents have left their adult (baby boomer) children in the enviable place of never having to worry about money for the rest of their lives.
This is not us. Both sets of our parents were broke when they died due to their money being drained by health-care needs. We have had lots of jobs, some freelance. I had to stop working early because of my own health issues…and I got sick when I wasn’t employed, so there’s been no disability aid. I was lucky to inherit a 1920s falling-down but charming bungalow from a beloved relative but it cost too much to renovate it and our payment got too high even though we did no frills. We knew, once retired, the high payment could prove too much of a struggle on a fixed income. What we’ve done now is barely scrape together enough money to buy my parents’ long-time home (drab 1950s cooky-cutter; less square footage, house and land…I inherited it, but with a big reverse-mortgage loan against it; equity mostly gone) in a not-so-great part of town, we’re slowly remodeling, the monthly mortgage payment is about equal to rent…so we’re very lucky, truly-truly lucky…but we will have a mortgage payment til we die when, instead, the common sense situation is to have no mortgage payment at the time you retire. It is what it is. I am grateful for a roof over my head. My childhood home is familiar and comforting; it will become less of a wreck. My husband cut his salary by half a decade ago, leaving the volatile and stressful (although more lucrative) private employment of his career…to become a school teacher but at least we’ve now had no break in employment and, importantly for me, we have good-enough medical insurance. He’d wanted to retire earlier, but he’ll be taking it to the max age and we will live sensibly and carefully, with wee treats or rewards along the way, but dreams of big travels or adventures in the retirement years will be tempered.
You’re so right about the grateful part. Too many people ‘out there’ are having such a hard time. It’s so important not to compare ourselves to others. I work on not coveting. I try to sit back and ‘listen’ when there are too many obstacles. What is the situation trying to tell me? I saw an old interview on Charlie Rose with the comedian Bill Murray and Murray seems to be peaceful with the idea of waking up each morning, saying “God, what do you want me to do today?” I took it as a sort of letting-it-flow, see what unfolds, how about making it GOOD. Where did I read this recently…was it here?…”Sometimes I need only to stand wherever I am, to be blessed.” I must have read it here; it’s Mary Oliver!
(I don’t know what has gotten into me but I have to stop these long reader responses once and for all. I know I need some other outlet for expression. I’ll whip into shape, promise.)
Claudia says
You need a blog, Vicki! You write beautifully and I love reading your responses. So don’t worry about their length. (I’m not joking about a blog, by the way.)
We have run up against many of the same situations you mention. We bought later in life, when many of our friends were heading toward the end of their 30 year mortgages. We took on a hefty mortgage payment. We wonder what will happen when we get older and money is tighter. Fortunately, actors can work well into their eighties, though Don might not necessarily want to do that.
I, too, have to work on not comparing myself to others. It’s very easy for me to observe how my friends are doing and be jealous of their comparative stability. But in the end, that does no good. We are unique. Our path has been a different one. And, because we rented for so many years, we are mostly grateful for this opportunity to work on home ownership.
Neither of us have wealthy parents. Don’s parents are both gone and my dad is still here. Even when he passes away, which I pray won’t be for a very long time, I won’t inherit a great deal of money. Just a modest amount. So…it is what it is. I’m glad you have that home to work on and make your very own cozy abode. And that, even though you will have a mortgage, you will know that you are taken care of.
Donnamae says
My reward for putting the Christmas decorations away, was reading your post. It took a long time to put everything away, but your post was so worth the wait! Such a happy post! Grateful Days…perfect! Yes…you’re living quite the idyllic life right now…and I know you two are enjoying each and every day. Keep it up! ;)
Claudia says
Thank you, Donnamae. Christmas decorations are still up here – probably until Monday. We think Scout needs some sparkly lights for her birthday.
Linda @ A La Carte says
Such a sweet post! I love how you enjoy where your path has led you now! You also seem open to where you might go in the future. I love feeling content and my little place is giving me that more then I ever dreamed. Quiet times with books and Charlie. Rowdy times with my energetic Grandson. Life really has blessed me.
hugs
Linda
Claudia says
I am so glad that you feel blessed and that your new home feels cozy and welcoming! xo
Ruta says
Claudia, the photo of Don and Scout says it all, gratitude, happiness, love and home. And a beautiful post to boot!!!!! Looking forward to Miss Scout’s birthday celebrations. Had she been a citizen of Britain or the Commonwealth she would already have received a birthday card from her majesty the Queen, a royal gesture for all those loyal subjects who reach the magic age of 100.
Claudia says
I can’t think why she didn’t receive one, Ruta! After all, my mother was born in Canada!
Ruta says
Oh gosh that’s right. Definitely an oversight that needs to be rectified by royal decree!!!!!!!!
Claudia says
xo
My Little Home and Garden says
What always strikes me about your beautiful home is the light pouring through the many windows. I love that about a place. Happy Birthday to Scout.
Karen
Claudia says
It makes such a difference, Karen!
Debby Messner says
The sun is shining at your cottage today. It’s was perfect before and the sun pouring in is the icing on the cake. A big birthday tomorow……..yeah Scoutie.
Claudia says
Thank you, Debby!
Martha says
Claudia, I just received my “Country Living” magazine, February issue, I thought you might be interested to take a look. The article is on page 23, “Thrill of the Hunt, the collector’s guide to Dollhouses”. I just thought of you and your sweet dollhouse. It talks about the dollhouses at the Great American Dollhouse Museum in Danville, Kentucky. Just thought you might want to look at the magazine. I think your dollhouse is much prettier than the ones I see. Your dollhouse is so tastefully selected. Treasures, treasures! Homes big or small reflect who we are!
Claudia says
I will definitely go out and buy a copy, Martha. Thank you so much for the tip!
Melanie says
I love your cottage – I think it’s beautiful, cozy, and full of charm. When our house is paid off (less than 4 years), we’ve talked about renting again for all the reasons you listed. Seems easier to think that you don’t have to be responsible for the cost of repairs or property taxes. But, like you said, there’s also a lot of risks with renting. My friend that moved into that lovely townhome last summer is renting and she doesn’t have to lift a finger. However, she’s not renting from an individual – it’s more like a company that owns this little subdivision. They even cat-sit for her on weekends if she goes out of town! But then I remember back to when Brian and I once lived in a townhome and how I disliked the lack of privacy and not having my own decent-sized yard, etc. And, of course, it all depends on how the real estate market is doing in a few years, too. Right now, our house is only worth what we paid for it almost 25 years ago!
Claudia says
I shudder to think what our house is worth – much less than we still owe, I think. Yikes.
Debbie in Oregon says
Your comfortable, funky, beautiful cottage is what drew me to your blog initially. Loved this post!
Claudia says
Thank you, Debbie!
JP says
I love what you’ve done with the coffee table! Coffee tables have fallen out of favor lately and have been replaced with ottomans, which is a great way to decorate as well. But I love how cozy (and functional!) that big, low coffee table looks encircled by seating and a piano. Thanks for the inspiration!
Claudia says
We thought that the coffee table, which we used in San Diego in a bigger room, wouldn’t work in our small living room, but in reality, it works beautifully. Thank you, JP!
Rebya Falk says
I have read your blog for years. I think your house is beautiful. Enjoy all of the beauty you have close to you.