Cozy Ridge Newsletter - December 2021
December 27, 2021
Though it is feeling downright frigid up on Cozy Ridge these days, the frosty fields are glistening in the sunlight, making the most mesmerizing landscape! They are also making Pippa and myself thankful to have a roof over our heads and a warm fire burning in the fireplace!
We are making slow but steady progress in renovating our old farmhouse, though we still have a long way to go! Most of the mess-making is behind us, and the ripping and tearing nearly complete! Now we can begin putting it back together again! Our next step is installing the old-style windows, which will help to restore the house to a measure of its former beauty.
We also tried our hand at some homemade Christmas gifts this year, though admittedly we are novices at most things crafty. We did manage to create a handful of birch yule logs to share with our family. And I was able to refinish the rocking chair from my childhood as a gift for our first granddaughter, Zara! All decked out in red and black buffalo plaid, it looks like a brand-new chair!
2021 has been a tough one in many ways—many losses, many challenges, and still too many irons in the fire! Nonetheless, there is so much to be thankful for, including the start of a series of children’s books inspired by Zara! I’m finding that this writing adventure is a perfect outlet for my silliness and my playfulness with language! Nothing inspires us weary old souls quite the way children do!
The Christmas season always gets me sentimentalizing…reminiscing about yesterday, missing those in our family spread out across the globe, and grieving those no longer with us. Yet at the same time, I find myself quickly cherishing every single one of the new arrivals, and can’t even imagine ever being without them! This revolving stage we find ourselves on is yet another of life’s curious mysteries!
Every single day, we have so much to celebrate! We want to encourage you to cherish each moment, to treasure each other, and to celebrate each and every gift you’ve been given!
And again, wherever you are, we hope, through these letters, you feel a hint of the warmth from up here on Cozy Ridge.
From our hearts to yours,
