Terri said to please wish Soney a Happy Birthday -- and she knows he's the adventurous kind of guy who's gonna make it happen!

My thoughts on the matter, gremol:

I'M QUITE SURE....

Well, I've been known to use mischievous
And gone so far as to say devious
But I'm quite sure Mary's not mean
From all that we've read and we've seen
The truth, I'll just guess -- she's mysterious!

As we head into another long weekend, there's a question that seems to be foremost in so many minds these days; a powerful issue talked about online and around the dinner table all over this great country of ours: Will life ever return to normal for our dear Dream Home heartland? Is it even possible to recover what we've already lost?

The following photo seems to capture the empty, lifeless current state of the 2014 Dream Home blog. We can only hope that the information drought won't have similarly disastrous long-term effects on our mental health and physical well-being as did the truly devastating decade-long Depression Era Dust Bowl of the Great Plains. http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://uploa...

Seriously though, put into perspective, our Dream Home dry-spell pales in comparison. Unlike so many families who lost everything in the 1930's, a story so poignantly portrayed by John Steinbeck's 'The Grapes of Wrath,' we can, thankfully, escape to the friendlier pastures of the Smart Home, the DIY Blog Cabin and the Urban Oasis.

Of course, we remain ever confident that Mary will step in, decisively and posthaste, to end our tales of woe in the blink of a wild goose chase clue, sending us once more scattering across the land in search of Dream Home treasure. Otherwise, it won't be long before we'll have to consider a request for Federal Disaster Relief in order to move forward with our shattered lives and battered psyche.

In the meantime, I'll end on a high note by singing this song of hope from the Broadway Musical, 'Annie' -- "The sun'll come out tomorrow, so ya gotta hang on, come what may! Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love ya tomorrow! You're always a day away!"

Well done -- it makes me think that spending more time under the seas would be safer and more rewarding than spending most of my days on dry land -- but then there is beauty all around us, both natural and man-made, if we choose to look carefully.

And one of those things of beauty would definitely be Dream Home 2014!

How popular was the 2nd annual HGTV Dream Home 1998 Sweeps prize, a low-country Beaufort, SC beauty with interior design by Linda Woodrum? In a word -- very!

Architect Bill Allison said, "We still get lots and lots of emails from people who fell in love with the house." An online news post stated that Allison has designed eight to ten versions of the Beaufort Dream Home in the local area.

Every picture of HGTV Dream Homes from the past tells a fascinating story, and somehow they keep raising the bar each year with the most amazing finished product for folks to dream about winning.

And for 2014? We'll just have to keep waiting until HGTV brings us the latest scoop. http://www.hgtv.com/dream-home/hgtv-dream-home-19...

Dear HGTV Dream Home,

We miss you. We've had so many great years together -- through the ups and the downs, the sweet memories of those crazy wild goose chases from one end of the country to the other-- the times when Mary's clues took us right to the target, and the times when we didn't even come close.

It was all about the thrill of the hunt, the palpable excitement as we awaited floor plans and videos of the latest Dream Home magic. How we lived day by day for each and every word of encouragement that more news was just around the corner. The joyfully received videos, teaser photos and daily construction camera updates of our beloved DH that Mary posted for us on our favorite blog pages. The fun of reading the personal stories of how it all came together, hearing first-hand insights about the Dream Home load-in day and the exhileration of our first look at the fully dressed-out DH, compliments of HGTV's very professional and carefuly detailed virtual tours.

Then, finally, would come the day when we could determinedly submit our first daily entries to try to win the house of our dreams. Inevitably, it seems, followed by the bittersweet sadness when no Dream Home Surprise Team arrived at our door, and Someone Else was given the keys to paradise. Yet, despite the pain of losing you, year after year, there was always a sincere outpouring of congratulations and good wishes from dreamers everywhere to the lucky winner.

Do I have any regrets? A few, but then again, too few to mention. Well, actually, I think I WILL mention a few anyway: my biggest regret is not winning one of those amazing Dream Homes yet. My next regret is that we're still on the edge of our seats waiting for the beginning of another Dream Home season. But certainly, time will heal our wounds and Mary will, even if it's just out of sympathy, soon grant us another round of those fond Dream Home escapades.

Ever so patiently awaiting your return,

D. B. Coop

Whether I'm the very lucky winner of this awesome Blog Cabin or not, I want to extend heartfelt thanks (and major kudos) to the builder, architect, project manager, interior designer, DIY guys and gals and all the trade crews for a truly exceptional finished product.

From the inside to the outside, top to bottom, outdoor deck to dock, pergola to pathway, landscape to interior scape, this major renovation has completely transformed a well-worn seaside cabin into a soul-stirring, "gotta have it -- wanna win it" oh so dream-worthy family home.

My chances of winning this beauty may not be any greater than the next dreamer's, but when the Sweepstakes begins, there's just no way I'm going to risk missing a single entry!

Finally, in order not to wear out my welcome dishing out high praise for this North Carolina coastal jewel, I don't know 'bout anyone else, but I'm going to be singing the Blog Cabin theme song, "Sittin' On The Dock of the Bay" day after day for the foreseeable future.

(NOTE: The views expressed in this comment are solely the opinion of D.B. Coop, who happens to fully approve of this message!)

I wonder if Jack T is getting his emails from Walt Disney's Golden Oak about the opening of their newest community, Marceline? Could be Dream Home potential there.... http://www.disneygoldenoak.com/neighborhoods/marc...

Did you know?

The 1997 HGTV Dream Home, the very first in what has become a highly anticipated and much sought after Sweepstakes Giveaway for wishin' and hopin', plannin' and dreamin' across the land, was manufactured in Finland, then shipped to the States and "assembled" at its mountain site near Jackson Hole, WY.

According to a 2004 online news report, Mr. Jim Wunsch, a local investor, bought the home for his wife and three children for $668,000 from school teacher Michele Rambo, the Tulsa, OK winner. After living there full time for two years, he sold it for $1.2 million to a Kansas family to use as a vacation home.

It seems that each amazing HGTV Dream Home built and given away since then has quite a story to tell. Certainly Dream Home 2013 on Kiawah Island will follow in the grand tradition of life-changing adventures.

I guess I'll have to sit in the corner, gremol, for missing your Freebie Friday roses post earlier. But before I go to my "time out" I'll wish you two dozen congratulations on your win. On to the next!