10 Cuttin Sage

I just realized today’s date.  It was two years ago this past Saturday, that we closed on 10 Cuttin Sage.  It was also two years ago today that Hurricane Sandy hit the Outer Banks.  Imagine what we were feeling when we had to evacuate an island where we had JUST closed on a house!  Our insurance hadn’t even kicked in yet!  It was a real exercise in faith because we knew that God had had His hand in all of it and we knew that He would carry us and Ocracoke through the storm.  We never worried because we put it in His great hands. This blog started as a marketing tool and has ended up a memoir of sorts about life, family, friendships, love of nature and God’s grace.  It has been said (I can’t remember who, perhaps Luther??) that the heart is an idol factory.  My love for a cottage on Ocracoke is not about an idol in my life, but a gift from God to bless people, a means for good stewardship, and a way to glorify Him, which I can do in a blog.  So here’s to His glory and the fact that He

This is actually a continuation of the last blog post.  In the last post I wanted to focus on the outdoor shower project because I felt I should brag about my hubby (The Doer of All Things Well) just a bit.   It is purely the grace of God that He gives us good friends for life. We only have a few of those that we ever get in our lifetimes and I truly feel it’s a present from Him as we cherish times and memories together.  We had a week of fantastic late summer weather with our close friends.  We don’t see them often, but when we do, it’s like we never parted.  That is what makes a true friendship.   The ferry over was beautiful. Last year I posted a photo just like this in the September 2013 blog post.  I have been looking for this Caribbean-like water ever since that time, and I haven’t seen it until this past September.  Evidently, there’s something about the September sun, sky and water in late afternoon that brings out this gorgeous shade of clear blue-green in

Wow. Three months since the last post!  Life has been busy, once again moving two daughters into new places to live for the new school year, entertaining company, keeping up with housework and yardwork, etc.  But all of it is good, praise God!   About mid-September, hubby and I took a trip to Ocracoke.  The trip I took last year with my college roommate was so wonderful, that I just had to return this past September. This time my husband got to go, along with that same college roommate and her hubby, new September traditions. Now, I’ve said many times before that my hubby is the Doer of All Things Well.  My room- mate’s hubby is also a Doer of All Things Well.  Hence, many projects were accomplished on this little September trip, the biggest one being a remodeling of the old outdoor shower.  Before the remodeling, the shower was.......... adequate: it had hot and cold cistern water, a shower head and a hook or two to hang a towel on.  It also had a door and siding that came up abou

We spent last week in Hatteras with my husband’s whole family. There were 20 of us in a beachfront house and this has been tradition for 10 or 11 years now.  It’s a lot of fun but it was also nice for my hubby and I to get away alone for a day and go to, guess where??????? Yes, Ocracoke!  I mean, since we were so close, why not go for the day? So after ferrying over to the island, we stopped and visited people who are now becoming... friends!  The first person we visited was our realtor with Lightship Realty who was a blessing to us exactly two years ago (this week) by showing us 10 Cuttin Sage, a cottage not even  officially on the market yet (the rest is history and you can go back to the beginning of this blog to read about it).  We then stopped by Blue Heron Vacations to say hi to the staff there who takes wonderful care of our cottage and keeps it marketed and rented for us.  We then met with Tom, the Builder, who is going to start renovating the old dock house into a den in a f

I’ve been sitting out here at 10 Cuttin Sage on the screened porch for about an hour this morning having my coffee and quiet time with my Heavenly Father enjoying a cool, strong, and more humid breeze. The weather is changing and I can feel it in the air.  A blue heron has been quietly and carefully tiptoeing (that’s what it looks like) between the marsh edge and canal edge pecking for his breakfast; hermit crabs, minnows, snails?  I don’t know what these birds eat but I know those are what live along the canal and marsh. I photographed it from a distance, but when I tried to get closer, it flew quickly away, along with at least 2 other blue herons I hadn’t even seen yet. So I still don’t have a good photo of a blue heron to post in my blog. But at least NOW I know the difference between the herons and the snowy egrets. Here is the best shot I have right now of a blue heron.  And this is as big as I can get the photo.  Look hard! Anyway, 10 Cuttin Sage is at the very end

My hubby and I left home early Wednesday morning about 7:30 for the looooooooooong, loooooooooooooong drive to Ocracoke Island.  It was kind of nice being just the 2 of us this time.  Two days before we left, it was my birthday and one of my gifts from him was 4 tickets to a Sheryl Crow concert at a summer park festival this July.  Now, I’ve never been a Sheryl Crow fan- simply because I didn’t know much about her music; but now I’m a bit of a country music fan and I had mentioned to my hubby a few weeks prior that a concert in the park would be a fun thing to do.  Hence: 4 tix and 2 Sheryl Crow CD’s! So we traveled across VA and down through NC eating trail mix and listening to Sheryl's greatest hits and a new album called “Feels Like Home”.  (She’s my new fave now and I can’t wait to see her this summer!) The trip flew by because I had to listen to all the songs first just to get a feel for the music and then re-listen to really hear the lyrics.   Country music is the best!

The garden is a peaceful place, I adore the sun upon my face; The gentle terrain, the rolling land, The smell of earth clings to my hands. With the softness and richness of the soil, The work is energizing--not toil. The song of the birds, the cool spring air-- Perfect conditions like these are rare. Sometime between winter--cold and dreary And the summer--hot, dry and weary, I must take advantage of this glorious day And relish the chores that beckon today. Long ago in Gethsemane, Another Gardener was upon His knee, Pleading before His Father above, “Not my will but thine be done”. For hours and hours He cried through the night, Weary, alone, not a soul shared His plight. You see, His friends had forsaken Him,       all fallen asleep; No one to comfort Him, no one to weep. No one to encourage Him, no one to pray As another close friend approached to betray. Beaten, spat upon, belittled and scorned; The ultimate insult--a crown of thorns. The blood He she

When my kids were little, I had my own rendition of the the gospel song, "Soon and Very Soon, We are Going to See the King”.  I awakened them the morning of our beach trips loudly proclaiming (at the top of my lungs), “Soon and Very Soon, We are Going to the Beach.....Hallelujah, Hallelujah, We are Going to the Beach” . Second verse:  “No More Crying Now, We are Going to the Beach......Hallelujah, Hallelujah, We are Going to the Beach”. This drove them absolutely nuts.  They hated it.  Probably because it was 5:30 am. And of course, the older they got, the more they hated it!! So, all the more reason I continued doing it! Some days from now, we are going to Ocracoke. It will be a bit different this year.  I’ve reserved 10 Cuttin Sage for 10 days because everyone has a crazy schedule this summer. Family will be coming and going throughout the 10 days. I hope there will be at least 1 or 2 days when we’re all there together, but I don’t know for sure yet.  Kids grow up and star

Here we are at 10 Cuttin Sage; mid-March. It’s like the Island is slowly peeking out from under a blanket of winter-gray, stretching it’s arms, yawning at the dawn, and feeling like it’s time to get up and get to work! It’s high time to hit the sand and get this island ready for summer company!  Today is Saturday and I can hear hammers hammering and construction tools running; shops are open, but only for cleaning and stocking store inventory for now.  Our favorite restaurant, Dajio, is thankfully open and we had some marvelous seafood there Thursday night! My hubby (The Doer of All Things Well) and I are working, working, working to get our little cottage ready for summer fun. It’s looking spic and span, freshly cleaned, paint touched up, dusted, vacuumed, mopped, polished....... I would love to stay here for a vacation!!! One daughter (The Future Event Planner) was here with her boyfriend (The Future Engineer) and her best friend (The Future Businesswoman) to spend a little relax