One of the things that makes me very happy that I don’t get to enjoy all that often living in Florida is a real wood-burning fireplace.

One of the coziest things I can imagine is sitting close to the fire while watching the flames flicker and listening to snap and the crackle of the fire as you sip a hot cup of cocoa with a warm blanket across your lap.

Living in Florida it’s not very common to see homes with a real fireplace and our home has two electric fireplaces which aesthetically look nice but it is not the same.

For me, I think it has to do with a feeling of getting out of the modern and going back to a time when Fire was a source of light, a way to cook food, and to keep warm. I imagine cold winter nights in a cabin surrounded by snow but inside is a toasty warm, with the smell of hickory and relaxing against the glow of the flames.

In a few weeks’ time, we will be visiting the Blue Ridge mountains in North Carolina where I know there will be at least one warm fire where I know I can sit and enjoy the ambience.