Author Archives: Marcia Ren

”How simple and frugal a thing is happiness: a glass of wine, a roast chestnut…the sound of the sea…All that is required to feel that here and now is happiness is a simple, frugal heart.” -Nikos Kazantzakis Hello, dear friend… Somewhere in the week’s passing moments… as I was doing nothing particularly special I looked around the cottage and thought how good this day is… how good it is to be alive… Content… if it’s raining…to feel the cozy sound of rain… I think about how meaningful & good life can be when I take the time to celebrate ordinary … Read the full blog post →

    ”However big or small your garden is, if you allow nature to touch your spirit, gardening will bring returns of peace, satisfaction, and well being for as long as you continue to wonder the garden path.” -Norman H. Hanson   Hello, dear friend…         Today we took the train to the delightful village of Giverny…      where we then hopped on a shuttle to visit Monet’s Gardens.     Joe and I remembered a wonderful cafe from a trip  years before…     and decided to enjoy lunch there before…       Walking … Read the full blog post →

  ”Good memories are our second chance at happiness” Queen Elizabeth II     Hello, dear friend…     I have returned from my… Saturday walk relaxed a bit…and now headed out for the Seine River cruise.     Since the weather was perfect…and had plenty of time to get there…we decided to walk. However…after about 15 minutes of strolling along we realized that we weren’t as close as first thought so now decided that perhaps we better take a cab.     Oddly there weren’t any available…we started walking faster and faster… a little nervous (p.a.n.i.c.e.d) that perhaps we would miss … Read the full blog post →

  “The wisdom of a learned man {or woman} comes by opportunity of leisure…” -Ecclesiastes  38: 24-25   Hello… I hope you had a wonderful week!   Here are the cheese pastry puffs I shared with you in last weeks post. They were a huge success at my sweet little church’s Epiphany party. recipe         The inclement weather on the Oregon coast has not only  been a perfect opportunity for refreshing up the cottage…but for also refreshing my memory…     by going through my notes about our anniversary trip…there’s still so much to share with you! The Beginning✈️ … Read the full blog post →

       “Life is not graded on how fast you can move through it but rather how much you can enjoy it”– Mary Carlomagno   Hi!   How has 2019 been going for you? so far…         Shortly following Christmas I began packing up the lights and trees…     By New Years’s Eve the bulk of Christmas had been stored away.     Feeling excited about the New Year…     I decided to freshen up the cottage changing the energy a bit… and with Joe’s help…     began moving the furniture around.     … Read the full blog post →

      “There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” -C.S. Lewis             Hello, dear ones…     2018 has been a year with new things…     As the year’s end quickly approaches…     causing much reflection…                                                 I look around to see what was…     what is now…     and best of all…     the wonder and hope of discovering what will be… … Read the full blog post →