Do you love the thought of a romantic get-away up in the mountains in a rustic cabin?
What is it that draws us to want to go to one, or, better yet, have a cabin of our own?
Is it the thought that cabin life is simple, restful and peaceful? Does that thought of life is better at the cabin make you think of a crackling fire, the aroma of hot chili on the wood stove, the sound of the wind in the tall firs and no telephones? Peace and rest, away from the chaos of modern life definitely calls us to retreat and enjoy a simpler time.
There are romantic mountain cabin get-aways all over the Internet and just perusing the ads can slow your heart rate and let you breathe deeply. But life is better at the cabin is just a thought. Did you know you can mess with your mind and make it think you’re at a cabin when you’re not? Well you can! Our subconscious minds don’t know the difference between reality and fantasy and that truth is so much fun to play with.
I always wanted a cabin, but we don’t have the budget for one, so my husband Terry and I decided to turn our family room in the basement into the cabin we couldn’t afford at the beach or up in the mountains. When we designed our home, I wanted a real, wood-burning fireplace and it’s one of my most treasured objects in our home, especially in the winter.
Having a wood-burning fireplace begged us to turn an otherwise ho hum family room into the cabin of my dreams. With a meager budget of $450 we haunted second-hand stores in a 25-mile radius and with each find, our family room began to transform!
We always refer to our family room as “the cabin.”
“Where’s the deck of cards?” “It’s in the cabin,” or “We need to bring in wood for the cabin tonight before it snows,” or sometimes it’s just fun to add storyline to “the cabin.”
“It’s so stormy outside, do you really want to drive to the cabin today?”
“Yeah, but maybe we should leave a little early.”
“Okay, I’ll pack up some food; you pick a movie to watch when we get there.”
At the bottom of the stairs into the basement, we have this rustic sign, “Life is better at the CABIN.” I have to go through the cabin to get to my office and I love to look at what we created with just a little
planning and a lot of fun shopping. We’ve had our cabin for ten years and it never ceases to amaze me how much it feels like a real cabin and it’s only sixteen steps away.
As I write, our get-away is just outside my office door, and I’m tempted to wrap this blog up, snuggle up in a genuine American Indian blanket, and get back into the novel I’m reading by Anita Diamant.
Ah, life at the cabin is better! Here's the view from the windows out to the patio.
Love,
P.S. If you need a good book to read in your cabin may I suggest The Joy of Being Disorganized?