Archive for 2013
Joyful and playful
Each and every year, as soon as we haul down the boxes of tree trimmings from the attic, I feel like a little kid – I can’t wait to dig…
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Portraits: A re-imagined Christmas tale
Two important things I like to keep in mind: Follow your passion, and follow your friends on Facebook. I met my friend Mark on Facebook earlier this year through our…
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A Country House Christmas back-story
The Holiday issue of our e-magazine is now on-line. It’s a beautiful issue filled with tons of imagery, stories, keeper recipes, and “Holly Jolly” decorating tips. The “Holly Jolly” part…
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A taste of Nantucket
I was digging for a new Cranberry Sauce recipe, and what better place to find what I was looking for but from the Cranberry capital of the world, Nantucket. This…
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The instant mood setter
Daylight savings time seems to be the catalyst for a whole new mindset when it comes to entertaining, and candlelight becomes my secret weapon to styling the house for any…
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My yellow wood
The Road Not Taken Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as…
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Halloween: a behind the scenes
I love Halloween photo shoots, especially when it involves children. I started with the best children’s photographer I know, Duanne Simon. And to capture Duanne’s and the team’s efforts (the…
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She’s the real deal
The first time I set foot on Pumpkin Hill Farm, I immediately felt like I had arrived at a gracious Litchfield County country estate. I loved being greeted by the…
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Our very newest baby
What would October be without Halloween – an autumnal celebration loved by children and adults alike? Clearly, we needed to take this fun-filled day and feature it in a very…
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Autumn is now officially here!
The leaves may be falling all around Connecticut Country House, but until we launched our new Autumn issue of our on-line lifestyle magazine today, for me, autumn had not officially…
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Last of the roses
You know the old saying, “When life gives you lemons…make lemonade”. Well, you can also say, “When your rose garden give you a few measly blooms…make a nose gay”! Late…
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End of summer salsa
If you’ve planted tomato plants this year, we’re probably in the same boat…lots and lots of tomatoes ready for the picking, or in my case, falling off the vine and…
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A labor of love
For over 20 years now, Murph’s been getting up at daybreak and driving to Main Street to set up front row seats for our town’s annual Labor Day Parade. This…
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Take a hike
This past week I’ve felt like I’ve been under house arrest – I’ve been on my laptop fighting writer’s block from exhaustion and typing away on content for the upcoming…
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Summer smoothies
There’s something about a smoothie that makes it the perfect summer weekend treat. So technically, we started our weekend yesterday morning when it was dark and rainy. No amount of…
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Blueberry breakfast
Blueberries are ripe for the pickin’ here in Connecticut. And picking them by hand – well, let’s just say there’s nothing like it. I don’t know what I like best…making…
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Meet NoraMurphyCountryHouse.com
She’s here! My brand new baby online magazine! Her name is NoraMurphyCountryHouse.com. She weighs in at 11 up-close and informative stories, 24 Nora’s Notes – full of DIY details, over…
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A summer salute
Happy summer! It feels good to be back. We’ve been working 24/7 (quite literally) on our new website, and with fingers and toes crossed, we’ll be introducing it to you…
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My latest love affair
This weekend I declared the Peony to be my favorite flower. Now, this here declaration is a big deal because I have so many favorites (lilies, roses, orchids, sunflowers –…
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My gardening guru
“A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness; it teaches industry and thrift; above all it teaches entire trust.” – Gertrude Jekyll, British gardener (1843-1932) When…
Keep ReadingWe are Newtown
Good morning. It was 6 months ago today on a Friday morning, here in Newtown, 20 children and 6 of their teachers lost their lives. Quite innocently they went to…
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One take
Murph was really on his game this weekend – concocting probably the very best, most awesome batch of Corn and Crabmeat Chowder he has ever made – ever. One taste…
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Living without boundaries
Oh, go for it – show a little floor! At least for the summer. That’s what I do. Rolling up my rugs and showing a lot of bare floor during…
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Simple beauty
Each week, here at Connecticut Country House – something’s in bloom. (Love it and so in my element.) This week, the back path to the house (which happens to be…
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A million little things: courage
“A ship is always safe at the shore – but that is not what it is built for.” – Albert Einstein (1879-1955) I love the sea. And this wonderful old…
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