Happy Happy July

Hi everyone..Happy July - so far I haven't made a posting for the month of July. We've been busy doing family fun stuff. And the days have just gotten away from me. The heat of the summer is definitely here in good ole' PA. Have to say...we've been here six months now..(wow - time really does fly by). We really enjoy where we live and ironically years and years ago..we first came to this neck of the woods to bring my daughter to camp each summer. She is there this week as I'm writing. She looks forward to going each summer and meets up with her childhood friends. The camp is nestled in the moutains of Douglassville, PA..just the drive to camp makes you feel this is the next best thing to heaven..the scenery is just beautiful. Little did we know that several years later we'd be living amoung this beautiful area..Thank you God..it's simply beautiful and I'm soo happy and fortunate that our family is blessed to live here..anyways..enough cushing..lol

We are looking foward to going on our family vacation within a few weeks. I'll have some more pictures to post and share I'm sure..we are doing days trips this year and have a bunch of fun days planned.

We are also working on some new and fresh ideas for our business The Berry Cottage..so keep an eye out for some treats...

Lots of people have been asking me how the puppies are doing..Well, as some may know, we decided to keep 3 of the 5 pups from our litter in January - they are all almost 6 months old and full of puppy...they are growing like weeds...and all three have distinct different personalities..they are true schnauzers with always something to say. But beyond loveable...

Well just thought I'd share some of what we've been up to...will make another posting soon.

Blessings...

Our Visit to one of many Pennsylvania Covered Bridges - Pleasantville Bridge

As you may or may not know..I LOVE COVERED BRIDGES - they mean to me complete country..I've just begun doing some research on the history of each bridge we visit. To visit these bridges is a true adventure for us..we enjoy really looking at the building of these bridges..it is truly awesome to see the workmanship on how these bridges are built. The surrounding areas are soo beautiful and usually sooo serene - I could spend hrs. there. Some of them have been moved from their original location and rebuilt with the same lumber that they were originally built with...how awesome is that? Each bridge has a hex sign..different hex signs have different meanings..those are interesting to read about as well. I hope you enjoy viewing our pictures as much as we enjoy them.

Here is a little history on the Pleasantville Bridge:

History of the Pleasantville BridgePleasantville, Pennsylvania Oley Township, Berks County
The Pleasantville Bridge was built over the Manatawny Creek in 1852 by David Renno. It originally was an uncovered wooden bridge with sides four feet high. In 1856, Jonathan Bitner built up the sides and converted it into a covered bridge. The bridge is 17 feet wide and 142 feet long between portals. It is rather unusual among covered bridges in that it was constructed using three sets of arches and it has a floor that was raised to protect the bridge during floods. The bridge was built on a portion of the original 461-acre land parcel of Hans Yoder, which was purchased in 1714. According to one early Hans Yoder deed, Covered Bridge Road was called The Great Road to Philadelphia. It was later called the Oley Turnpike, which was the last private turnpike in Pennsylvania.

Information provided by:Oley Yoder Heritage Association

You can view some more pictures here:

Our Schnauzer Babies

Here is our Schnauzers...

Very top is Boomer..the most obedient loving precious cuddly baby...

From Left to Right..

Our all black schnauzer Bailey..Bailey is like an old man..he's cuddly and soft like black velvet..but a grouchy personality..next, Peanut..the runt of our new litter we had in January..he's just like his Dad Beasley..soo funny and full of himself and witty witty witty..he can bounce literally 2 -3 feet off the floor..next, Teddy - Teddy is Peanuts brother - he got his name from when he was smaller and before his first haircut..he was soo soft and cuddly and had/has a face just like a Teddybear..right next to Teddy is Sadie..our one and only girl..she is the pups Mom and true talker..she talks to me every day..she is certainly like a girl..always having something to say..she has the nickname Minnie..her ears stick up - she's an absolute honey..right next to Sadie..is Beasley..the pups Dad..Beasley is a one man show..can't you tell by that big smile on his face..he's very spontaneous and completely nutty...last and certainly not least..closetest upfront..is Barkley..he got his name from when they were newborns and he "spoke" the first and found his bark first..can't say he barks the "most" now..Barkley is the most shy out of our gang..he's a little timid and takes awhile for him to warm up to you..but when he does..he's a cuddly hunny..he's a very, very big Mommy's boy.. As you can tell I can go on and on about my schnauzers..they are a realllllll big part of our lives..The pups have two other brothers who went to great great forever homes...their name are Frankie and Miller..Frankie..looked allot like Barkley..and Miller looked allot like Teddy..we keep in touch with their familes and are really really great pups...much much more to follow with our schnauzers...

Our June Contest

Come view our homepage of our website and join our topsites - you name will be entered into a drawing. You may be the winner of a $25.00 Gift Certificate to The Berry Cottage.

Hope to see you there...http://theberrycottage.com/

Or direct link to our topsite: http://www.ultimatetopsites.com/general/theberrycottage/

Our First Entry

Wow..has our blog been a long time coming..but like they say, "better late than not at all". I'm not usually short for words..so I'm hoping to be able to keep our blog pretty active and full of latest news. We hope you'll enjoy visiting with us to find out the latest news about The Berry Cottage and "us" - the family who owns The Berry Cottage.

I've always had a love of country prim decor' and while we were living in VA from the 2003 through 2006 - there were literally NO...I mean NOOOO country prim craft shops. I think in the time we lived in VA I visited one or two shops that might have been considered country shops..they were nothing like I imagined they'd be. So out of desperation - I decided to give Chesapeake their own Country Prim Shop of sorts - that is..we were online..but hey, you gotta start somewhere - right? My dream - is possibly someday to have a brick and mortar store..but with all the overhead that is entailed in owning such a business..we will see what God has in store for us.

A little about "us" - when I refer to "us" most times it will mean myself, hubby, our 3 children and well our menagerie of pets...we have 7 schnauzers and a cat. I promise you - I will have tons of stories about our "happenings"..we live a very fun, full, active and completely nutty life.

We are hoping you'll bookmark (save) our link here to come back and visit with us frequently.