I couldn’t be on this fabulous vacation without sharing some of the awesomeness of the cottage itself. Let me tell you the short version of the story. In 1981, my parents sold a cow and bought a cottage. How cute is that? Three years later, they bought the falling apart cottage next door to the first one. The fixer cottage sat for 15 years until my parents got serious about remodeling it. They decided to fix it up and add on.

My dad, brother, hubby and a couple friends did the huge project that spanned a couple years. There is all sorts of unique, fabulous, authentic cottage charm around this place. I am not going to share the kitchen and living room and bedrooms as those are just what they are. I am going to share the cute unique things that make this place so imperfectly perfect.

I’ll start with the hand built staircase, it’s beautiful windows and a piece of my brother’s artwork being showcased

Moving on up the stairs, there is an area that was cut in and a small staircase leading up to a reading nook was formed. A mattress and a bunch of big pillows and a view out the small window to the lake make it the perfect place for napping and relaxing on a quiet afternoon.

You’ll notice I didn’t tidy up for your visit. Sorry! I hope you enjoy your stay anyway.

Here is the heart of the cottage - a handmade stone chimney from decades ago. It’s the only thing that stayed when the cottage was rebuilt. Well, aside from the fabulous exposed beam ceiling. They kept the fireplace and built around it, installed a gas insert and hearth. We are pretty sure that when the men built it, they were really drunk. My parents and other people from around the lake remember this place from the 60s when they’d break in and drink beer and laugh about the chimney. You don’t knock down that kind of history.

Here is a glimpse of the original ceiling. New skylights were cut in to add light to the living space. In this bedroom, a loft was put in and there is a ladder up to it. Someday, it will be another cozy reading nook or sleeping space. For the time being, it is storage space.

Next, we’ll venture over to the dining area off the kitchen and I’ll show you the amazing table that my dad built (with help). It seats at least 10 and fits the space perfectly.

Another angle from that space so you can see the walls and walls of windows all the way around to the front porch that overlooks the lake.

One more little glimpse into a space that wasn’t being used before and is now converted into a walk-in pantry full of useful shelves and nooks and crannies.

I hope you enjoyed your walk through the cottage. Because it was all do-it-yourself, there are a lot of unique secret little spaces put in to maximize every square inch of the building and windows galore to bring in the sunshine and show off the view.