Welcome to Our Cottage

I have always loved cottages. Maybe it was from story book reading of those adorable little cozy houses in the woods surrounded by a picket fence and flowers.

Our little house in Bridgewater was a dream come true for me. I had always wanted a little place to "get away to" for weekends. Unfortunately we don't get there as often as I would like, but when we do it's so relaxing.

Happy Kitchen

I love vintage kitchen relics from the 40's & 50's.

I've decorated our kitchen at the "Lake House" in all these brightly colored "Happy" Kitchen treasures. Every time we go to the house I just love to look at all the displays.

They always make me so Happy!!! It just reminds me of a simpler time when women spent lots of time in their kitchen making homemade meals for their families.

Lake House Decorating Stuff

Isn't this little book adorable??
I love these bright red vintage wood water skies.

I love to find little lake house treasure to decorate the house with.

I love the red, white and blue of this band hat... it's just fun.

Vintage Kitchen Memories from my Childhood

I love vintage kitchen stuff. Our lake house kitchen is a showcase for many of my vintage kitchen collections. Remember Wonder Bread??
Growing Up we only used flavoring from Kitchen Klatter... which is from Shenandoah Iowa. That only about 25 miles away from Bridgewater. They were famous for Iowa farm wives with their Kitchen Klatter radio show on KMA radio during the 40's, 50's and 60's.

Keep that Kitchen sink clean with Bon Ami.... Notice the wax pencil price of 15 cents.

Colorful and Bright Kitchen towels. I love any thing with red polka dots!!!

I found this great vintage piece this summer... it's a kitchen sink pad... I think it's amazing that it was never used and that the original label was never ripped off. Notice it's received the Better Homes and Gardens Seal of Approval!!

A Short Visit to Bridgewater for the Church Supper

These are pictures of the Kid's Bed Room at our Lake House in Bridgewater. John and I made a quick trip there this past weekend. It was one of the first times we've been there by ourselves without kids. We were hardly there as we left early Sunday morning, but it was so rejuvinating for me. I got early and took a lot of picutres.

John and I decided at the last minute to drive to Bridgewater Saturday afternoon, so that we could go to the Bridgewater Methodist church Fall Supper and Auction. We drove in rain most of the way, but it was so worth it.

Of course I forgot to bring my camera to the church, but the meal was most wonderful. Fried Chicken, ham, green beans, mashed potatoes and gravy, sauerkraut and wieners and lots and lots of homemade salads and desserts with choice of drink all for only $7!! It was worth the 3 hour drive.

Later John and I helped out in the kitchen before the auction. The Auction is so wonderful everyone pays more to help the church. The Church ladies always make a beautiful quilt every year and there is a big assortment of hand made and home grown treasures. One of my favorites is this "ugly" rug that gets sold every year and then is returned again the following year to be sold again. This year it brought over $115! The auction is always worth a few laughs.

We left early Sunday morning so that we could get back to Iowa City to hear Jessica sing at our church. Even though we were hardly there... it was so relaxing to me. I got up early and took a bunch of pictures of the treasures in the house. I still love all the little vintage things everywhere. They just make me happy.

The Lake House It's All About Fun

This is an old real estate sign.. It thought it was fun since many time we spend our Sunday afternoon there and typically get ready to leave around 3 since it's a 3 hour drive back to Iowa City.

The Lake sign actually points to the direction of the Morman Trail Lake which is about half a mile from the house.

It's a Wonderful Life is one of my favorite movies of all times and one of my most favorite sayings. This sign is about the doorway going to the kitchen.

The is a huge Iowa Map. It's about 4 foot by 6 foot. I sent for it from the Iowa Dept. of Transportation and best of all it was Free!! We have it on one of our walls in the bedroom. It's really neat and we really use its. Especially when we are exploring the new southwest Iowa area around Bridgewater.

We we bought our little "lake" house in Bridgewater. I wanted a place where our family could go to relax and a place where I could decorate to show that spirit of relaxation and whimsy. Most of the rooms have signs that convey fun little messages.

Kiwi at the Lake

Our little dog Kiwi got to go to the Morman Trail Lake near Bridgewater on our visit to our house. She is actually a native of Bridgewater. We got her from a local breeder in Bridgewater.

Cottage Style

The Bicycle Built for Two.. A Lake House Tradition

Our little Yorkie "Kiwi" gets a ride in the basket by John & Nathan on the "Bicycle Built for Two". We love the bike. It's a tradition that we ride it every time we're at the Lake House.

Simple Pleasures at the Lake House

Our daughter has friends come and stay at the Lake House. It's always fun to do such simple fun things like sidewalk chalk, blowing bubbles and dressing crazy. These high school girls had a great time.

Christmas Open House "Lake House Style"

he first Christmas that we bought the "Lake House" we hosted a Christmas Open House for the people of the town. It was fun to decorate it in all my vintage Christmas treasures. I hope we can do that again ... maybe this year.

Putting on Red Shutters at the Lake House

We decide the house need a little color, so my sweet husband John built and painted these shutters to add to the windows of the Lake House. I thinks some people in the town thought we were crazy, but I think it looks fun... just like the house ...nothing too serious.