Well friends, a lot of time has passed since my last post. A LOT. Looking back on 2017, I only posted 6 times. There was plenty going on, but nothing I felt like writing about, except for those 6 posts. So now I'm ready to fill in the gaps and get back to blogging!
As you may have read, my 90 year old Mom came to live with us from Texas at the first of the year, and she sadly passed on a couple of months later. We all loved the time we had together, though not long enough. She was an absolute joy, and not a day goes by without missing her terribly.
My husband Seamus was my rock after Mom was gone. Luckily, he was home and with me every day for the first few months since his work is seasonal. I threw myself into several different projects around the cottage and garden. That helped a great deal. I did this -
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Gravel in place of grass = less mowing!
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And this -
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| I LOVE this rocking bench. |
And planted these -
But somewhere along the way, something happened. My hubby started his tours and I was alone a lot. And then, the big, beautiful spruce tree behind the cottage died and had to be removed. I know that doesn't sound like a tragedy, but after that, I just couldn't find the joy in the things that usually bring me joy.
I stopped crafting. I stopped painting furniture. I stopped walking in the forest. I started binge-watching telly. Oh, and binge eating junk food. You know, REALLY productive stuff!! LOL
And if that weren't bad enough, Mother Nature brought us the first-ever hurricane to Ireland in the form of Ophelia. And this was the result -
I thought I cried when we lost the ONE tree - In total, it was over a dozen large trees, including the huge cypress that came down on top of our new shed. The insurance examiner was quick enough to come out and assess the damage, but due to the widespread damage across Ireland, getting our site cleared took a couple of months. When the clearing was done, this is what we were left with -
And here are a few of the Before and Afters -
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AFTER
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It breaks my heart to see the AFTERS, but it's important to remember how it was before so it can hopefully be again. I am determined to plant more TREES, and lots of them!!!
Once the trees were taken away and the shed was rebuilt, both my hubby and I suddenly got the home improvement bug again - FINALLY!!!
So, at long last, I'm happy to say that new projects have sprung up at Moonlight Cottage! Stay tuned, because I have plenty to show you in my upcoming posts. I try not to leave you hanging too long this time!
