The Month of September

Hello everyone.  Are you having a good month so far?  We just returned on Saturday from six days at the beach; it was a much-needed break for us.  

      

Hello August!

Hello again everyone!  Thanks to those of you who commented on my last post, and especially those who are/were having the same problem as me.  We'll see how it goes in the future.        Gosh, I have not done well keeping up with my blog this summer.  I think I can be forgiven with everything that's been going on around here.  My Bell's Palsy did clear up (thankfully) but it has caused some pain and difficulty of movement in my right jaw.  I'm hoping that will repair itself, too.  Our air conditioning system, which we've only had for seven years this summer, was leaking coolant and had to be repaired.  It had actually started to leak last summer, but we didn't get around to having it fixed then.  As Murphy's Law would have it, the weather got really hot and humid here (after what had been a very mild season) before we could get it fixed.  A new part had to be ordered, which was quite pricey, and once that arrived, we finally got everything repaired.  😰   Do you ever ask yourself how in the world people did without air conditioning years ago?  I'm constantly wondering that in the summertime.  

July Already!

Wow, is this year ever flying by!!!  I'm just trying not to get left behind.  😳  Before I forget, I want to say "Happy Canada Day" to my dear blog friends in Canada!       For most of this Fourth of July week, I'm planning to share photos we've taken over the years in the summertime.  A lot of them have the American flag in them, and some are just images featuring red, white and blue.  I love those colors together -- have you ever noticed how many countries have flags with red, white and blue?        

       Southport, North Carolina
  

First Post on New Blogger

Hi there and welcome to my blog.  I'm glad to see you!  I'm running out of time to get acclimated, so I'm just taking the plunge and trying a post on the new Blogger forum.  Like most folks, I don't think we'll be doing any traveling this summer, although I hope we'll get to spend a few days at my in-laws' beach house.  I imagine they'll be putting it up for sale before too long, and we need to spend some time there, if possible.  We have so many good memories from our times there.      For this post, I thought I would share some links to places we've visited in previous years; if you happen to be a new visitor to House at Forest Manor, you won't have read these posts.  I imagine we'll be mostly doing armchair travel this year.  :)    

A Stroll Through Southport

   "An early-morning walk is a blessing for the whole day."~Henry David Thoreau         On the last morning of our visit to Southport back in April, I got a chance to take some pictures of cottages that I haven't seen before, as well as a few pics of the marina.  This was the trip I took with my mom, sister, and niece; would you care to stroll with us?   

    

Tour a Southport Coastal Cottage, Part 2

Hi all!  As promised, I'm sharing the rest of this charming cottage in Southport, North Carolina.  I posted Part 1 of the cottage tour Here, and today we'll be seeing the bedrooms and the bathrooms.   

 

Tour a Coastal Cottage in Southport, North Carolina

   Last week, I enjoyed a girls' trip to Southport, N.C., with my mom, my sister, and my niece.  A good time was had by all.  😊  My mom rented a little cottage for three days and wouldn't let us help her pay for any of it.  She said this was a gift to herself, but she generously shared it with us.    So, without further ado -- meet B & K Cottage.  You can find the second part of the cottage tour Here.        

Easter at the Beach

Happy April!  Are things in bloom where you live?  It seems that everything has burst into bloom here.  Our Redbud tree is covered with blooms, and so is our Dogwood.   We spent the Easter holiday at the beach this year; it was the first time we've ever done that.    

Treasures from Southport

One of my favorite things to do when we go to the coast is to shop in the town of Southport.  We've traveled there almost every year for the past 26 years.  When I see that in writing, I can hardly believe it.  The time feels like it has passed as quickly as those gulls skimming over the water.

When we were younger, Mr. Forest Manor had no interest in checking out the shops in Southport.  I can hardly blame him as he was working full-time and going to graduate school at night and just starting out in his career.  I also think most men really like a good bargain, and when I discovered thrifting, he became more interested in poking through the shops with me.  Southport has some wonderful antique shops, but we've noticed the prices keep going up as more and more people move to that area.  One of the shops in particular has two full floors of goods, and you never know what treasures you might come across there.  It's also amazingly well organized and tidy for an antique/consignment shop.

 source

Southport Cottages, Part Two

This is going to be a post of few words (I hope).  :)  Sharing some more pictures of Southport cottages.

Southport Cottages

I can hardly believe it's Sunday night again -- another weekend has flown by.  I hope yours was a good one!  A few weeks ago I shared a cute cottage in Southport, N.C., for St. Patrick's Day.  Here are some more Southport cottages for you.

A Cottage With A Touch of the Irish

Happy St. Patrick's Day to you!  Are you wearing your green today?  We've just returned from a quick trip to the coast.  We had three whole days there, and even though it rained all day Saturday, we still had a wonderful time.  It's always good to get away when we have a chance.

Southport Part Three, The Old Smithville Burying Ground

Hi everyone!  Thanks for all your wonderful comments on the tour of Southport.  I always appreciate that you take the time to leave a comment.  :)

This year, I finally got to look around the old cemetery in Southport for the first time in all the years we've visited the town.

Southport, Part Two

Hi folks.  As promised, I'm showing you the rest of the houses we photographed in Southport, NC, this past weekend.  There are so many darling cottages in this town, but we were only able to take pictures of a handful.  You can see photos of more houses in yesterday's post Here.

 

Southport, North Carolina

Would you care to take a little tour of one of my favorite towns in the world?  Let's go for a walk in Southport, North Carolina, and let me show you some of the charming houses there.  These pictures were taken this past weekend, and the weather was gorgeous.  Before we see the houses though, here's a little information about the town itself.

Southport was founded in 1792 as Smithville.  It was originally named after Benjamin Smith, who was a colonel in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War and later became a governor of North Carolina.  The name was changed to Southport in 1887 in an effort to promote the town as a major shipping port.  Southport sits on the bank of the Cape Fear River just a few miles inland of the Atlantic Ocean, so it is rich in maritime history.  Fort Johnston, also located within Southport, was built by the British in 1748 to protect the Cape Fear River Region from pirates and privateers. 

Summer's End

Hello all!  I know most of you are probably kicking into fall mode now (I am too) but before I completely leave summer behind for another year, I want to share a few images from the beach trip we took over Labor Day weekend.  We normally go to the beach much earlier in the summer, like May for instance, but this year we couldn't manage that.

September and October are beautiful times to be at the coast, too; we've discovered that in years past.  After all the rain, rain, rain, and dismal skies we had most of the summer here, it was beautiful and sunny for the three days we were at Oak Island.

Dry Street Pizza in Southport, North Carolina