It seems that all around us things are changing at a very rapid rate. The major contributing factor to all the change seems to be the increase in the number of people that live in the United States. With the increase in numbers in the population the metropolitan areas are spreading our further from the core of the city. As the city areas grow more and more of the population expands into the rural areas. Soon development follows the people and rural areas turn into small towns. Less and less land is being used for farming; instead it is being developed into housing.

A few years ago my husband and I noticed wealthy individuals were buying up lots on lakes. They would find cottages for sale along the lakes area and would demolish the cottage and replace it with a huge new structure. We noticed several smaller lakes that we liked fishing on where suddenly surrounded by huge homes. One lake in particular we noticed this happening on. The large homes took away the north woods feeling from the lake. My husband and I had talked about finding cottages for sale that we could fix up and have as a get away. We decided that the way properties were moving we had better make our move for cottages for sale while there were still some available.

We decided one Saturday afternoon to go for a drive around two lakes that we have always enjoyed. One of the lakes is very large and the other was smaller, but there is a channel that goes from this small lake into a larger lake. A great portion of this lake and the surrounding area where in a state park. We had been cross country skiing in the state park during the winter months and we had noticed that there were several privately owned cabins adjacent to the state land. We commented on how private the area was. We went back to the area to see if anything was on the market. We turned down one small road that we had never been on before. The road led to what had been a small resort. There were signs listing cottages for sale. The resort had been closed for many years. Most of the buildings were in need of repairs. Two of the cottages for sale had been updated within the past six to seven years. The cottages were close to thee edge of the lake and were surrounded by pine trees. It was a very pretty setting, but we were concerned about who would do the upkeep on the road when it snowed. We are still looking at cottages for sale. I know that it is only a matter of time before we find the perfect place for us.

Now that I have reached the middle years of my life I find that I am more opened to learn new ideas when it comes to decorating and cooking than I was when I was younger. I guess the main reason is simple maturity. When I was younger I was important to me to seem as if I knew all the answers, however now I realize that if you stop learning you stop living, so I now welcome new ideas and methods for decorating cooking, cleaning and any other tips I can pick up along the way.

There are many places and people to turn to learn different techniques and ideas for creating a warm welcoming and comfortable home. One of my favorites is the Country Living magazine. I have bee a subscriber for many years. I started receiving the Country Living Magazine as a present from my brother and his wife. They gave us a subscription to the publication when we moved to our home in the country. I thought this was a great house warming idea. The Country Living magazine is filled with great ideas for decorating the inside of your home as well as wonderful gardening and outdoor decorating tips. Each issue also features many wonderful recipes that have a country flair to them.

The idea of giving a subscription to a magazine as a gift was something that I had not received before and I also had never given one as a gift. It is a great idea. My mother is getting to the point where it is very difficult to think of gift ideas for her. She lives in a small assisted living apartment and does not need anything more for it. She receives one meal a day as part of the services with the apartment, so she does not need a great deal of groceries. She has always enjoyed reading. They have a book exchange in the apartment complex. I decided it would be fun to give mom a subscription to a magazine. When she was done with it she could share it with other residents. My mother lived in the country her entire life so I thought the subscription to Country Living magazine would be perfect for her. I talked to my sister-in-law and asked her if she would mind that I would reuse her wonderful idea of giving the magazine as a gift. She agreed that this would be a great idea, and we decided to pay for a two year subscription and give it as a joint gift. My mother loves the magazine and also shares it with others in the apartment building.