Dream Big

As the mother and teacher to my 4 growing kids I am always telling them to dream big. Nothing is to big for you to accomplish. This is not something they always believe when I tell them, its hard to believe when your a child that you really can accomplish anything if you put your mind, and passion to it.

That is what I am doing with my dreams, dreaming big! I want one day to own & run a B&B. Maybe it that does not seem like a grand thing to many people but for me it sounds like so much fun. I love the quaintness of a B&B for relaxing in, I have visited many over the years. Some are rather close to home, because as the mother of 4 children we don't like to go to far when they are to young. The first B&B we ever stayed in was in the town I live in, when my oldest two were 4 & 2, my husband and I needed some time alone and this provided a great place to just relax! The Harkey House has great local history and was so much fun to hear stories about the first sheriff of this town we live in. Since then we have stayed at several other B&B's usually for our anniversary. We make it a point to go away together at least once a year, it is so important to keeping a relationship healthy, getting time alone. Our latest trip was a fantastic voyage to Fort Bragg California. We went for 3 nights and enjoyed so much of our time together! We stayed in a lovely victorian home that was modified to a wonderful B&B blocks from the ocean, called Glass Beach Inn. Over the years we have stayed at The Grateful bed, The Riverside B&B in oroville, that seems to be closed now, as well as a wonderful one tucked into a wonderful little town known as Placerville called The Glen Morey house. Each of these visits has only taken my dreams to new heights.

 I want to put my personal touches on things and use my creative talents to allow others a peaceful place to relax in. I love to cook, bake and create. When I am doing those things I find that is when I am my most authentic self. I am Happy in the kitchen, I am happy having a place to create wonderful dishes that please other people. I love seeing people smile when my food hits their pallet and they are enticed by my creative spice choices. I love decorating the home, if I had the finances I would have different fabrics and patterns for each season in my home personally. So taking all these things I love and combining them into one big thing seems like the most logical thing in the world to me.

I dream at night that my B&B is just on the outskirts of some town, where I have a flower garden, and a food garden. I dream that my home will be a relaxing environment to come to and that I can add my homemade touches of crocheted afghans, baked breads, cookies, and cakes, and where there is a wonderful reading library for those who want to to sit and enjoy a good book snuggled under one of those crocheted afghans.

Here are a few of the pictures that I have taken over the years that have inspired me in my love of a B&B...

a flower bed 

 scrabble tiles that included our names

If you have never enjoyed the accommodations of a B&B I would like to encourage you to give it a shot. If you figure in the cost of a hotel room + your breakfast you really are not spending anymore for a cozy more home like feel. In fact I have found you are likely spending less. A good B&B offers week day rates that are less then weekend rates and if you can take advantage of that by getting a Thursday- Saturday stay or a Sunday-Tuesday stay you will spend less and get great service. You also will have a pleasant personal experience then a cold impersonal hotel room. One other thing to remember about B&B's is that they are all locally owned, when you support a local business over a large chain you help out your local economy, or the local economy of the location the B&B is located in. Supporting small businesses is so very important in this economy, but that is a blog for another day...

So remember to Dream BIG!