Signs of the season emanate from historic home

Owens home on McGregor Boulevard. LIBBY MCMILLAN / FLORIDA WEEKLY A local home that always brings a smile at Christmas time is the stately historic mansion at the corner of Bougainvillea and north McGregor Boulevard. Former Sanibel Islanders Dave and Jacque Owens purchased the home in 2002 and began a loving restoration which continues to this day. Projects all take a back burner during the holidays, however, when it's time for Dave's homemade lawn sculptures to emerge from storage and bring a smile to passing drivers and pedestrians.

The red-and-white wooden Ho Ho Ho marching across the Owens' front lawn clearly states that no humbug attitude will be entertained within the cheery confines of the property. Joining these now-landmark letters are Dave's other creations — he's added one annually — which include this year's bright green Christmas tree. While Mr. Owens is master of the saw, the entire clan gets involved in sanding, painting and installing their lawn décor. "It's definitely a big family project," says Mrs. Owens, with a smile.

Nutcrackers flank the front entrance The crafty sculpture project was inspired

by the two Nutcrackers flanking the front stairs, a project done by elder brother Keith Owens for the family's former Sanibel retail store, Stanley & Livingston's. "That kind of started it off," admits Mrs. Owens, "and the scale of the house also makes it hard to find something to fit," she says, referring to the Christmas décor traditionally available for sale. In comparison to the house, she says, "Everything looks so small."

The Owens family is large: five children, ages 15, 14, 13, 11 and 10 bring a joyous energy to the holiday. A goodhumored sign near the gate to the back yard declares the homestead "Casa Chaos," despite there being no real evidence within. Mr. Owens, an accountant who owns the successful 1031 Tax Free Strategies and also Entrust SWFL, is well-known and respected in the community. His wife, a competent and creative mother, is a former IT professional with a master's degree; in addition to handling computer issues for her husband's businesses, she has created a home that would make Martha Stewart proud.

Dave Owens' oversized lawn sculptures Each December, the tireless Mrs. Owens makes countless batches of treats for her children to take to friends, teachers and coaches. "I bake these goofy cookies every year," she says humbly, and, in fact, the kitchen counter holds a plastic-wrapped plate of Christmas-tree-shaped sweets with green frosting. Nearby is a scrapbook-style recipe book, holding page after beautiful page of lovingly-collected cookie recipes: some hand-written, some clipped. It's not unusual for the answering machine to hold a last-minute request, such as the knowing voice from her children's school, asking if Mrs. Owens "would mind bringing savory treats for 70 tomorrow."

The kitchen is the sort of sublime spot in which cooking is inspiring. A farmhouse sink with oversized fixtures is a focal point in this inviting space, with its bead-board walls, marble countertop, stainless appliances and the pairing of cabinets both white and natural wood. A stainless hood over the stove gets a regular workout, especially when family or the children's many friends are invited for dinner.

A cozy hearth in the living room Mealtime often spills onto a gracious back patio and pool area, which has been recently bricked and includes a fireplace, dining table, chaise lounges, a pond and a hot tub. As the sole Symphony Showcase Home for 2003, the Owens' home was enhanced by landscape designers who transformed the outdoor area as part of that year's Gardens theme. "The Rose Garden Society of Fort Myers did the rose garden," says Mrs. Owens. "Somebody else did the pond." The entire space - hiding within the confines of the private fence behind the home - couldn't be more inviting.

Foot traffic naturally spills down the stairs from kitchen to patio, sometimes dispersing Owens teens to their own hangout in the converted, free-standing garage. Next to the family's colorful golf cart, which resides within, is a weight bench, an abundance of sports gear, and a comfortable seating area surrounding a big-screen TV. From the street, the free-standing garage resembles a carriage-house, with period hardware and crisp white paint. From the patio, it more closely resembles a guest house, replete with its own small pergola.

Since moving into their Fort Myers abode, the family has regularly hosted Christmas Eve dinner following Mass; Mr. Owens' parents and other siblings attend, including Fort Myers-based architect Joyce Owens. The dining room's gleaming wooden floors add even more warmth to a room that has French doors with antique glass doorknobs, a china-filled corner hutch, and a shiny Magic Chef stove, circa 1940, by the American Stove Company.

Period antiques fill the Owens home without compromising its livability or comfort factors. Wooden bookcases occupy a corner of the living room. An antique bellows cuddles up to kindling in a stoneware pot adjacent to the brick fireplace. And stockings are hung by the chimney with care, while a pair of red ceramic boots herald Santa's imminent arrival. Unfettered by the presence of a television, the family living room is the scene of what has been a delightfully torturous Christmas day ritual for the children.

"We have our stockings first," says Mrs. Owens. "Then breakfast. And then we open one present at a time," she says, with a smile, "and it takes until one in the afternoon. The kids are just out of their mind with Christmas angst."

Holidays are also a big time for enjoying football together. Mr. Owens, who formerly played for Purdue, is the head coach for the freshman football team at Bishop Verot High School. He also shares his wife's passion for the UF Gators of Gainesville. Their den, a manly leather-recliners-andbig screen paradise, holds pennants for both college teams on the wall. Depending on the game, Mrs. Owens may choose to watch or work in her office just beyond the stairs. A piece of crown molding circling the room about 8 inches below its pressedtin ceiling has become the perfect perch for an informal family gallery of 8-by-10- inch photos.

More evidence of a happy family is found on the Christmas tree, filled with handmade ornaments from years past. "I'd love to have a department store tree one of these years, but . . ." says Mrs. Owens with a laugh, ". . . we always pull out those old coffee-filter ornaments."

The home's exterior couldn't be cheerier, with red-bow wreaths hanging across every window, and a brick driveway cutting a gracious curve beneath the oak in the side yard.

In the last year, the Owens have added new, working shutters made of cedar and painted a piney green; new siding; and the massive amount of bricks required for the driveway and patio. The home had been covered in vinyl siding at the time of the purchase; when the couple removed it, they realized there was rot underneath. The process of restoring this grande dame has been painstaking labor of love. Throughout the project, the Owens have stressed remaining true to the period of the house, both inside and out, which is part of its great appeal.

"The previous owner we heard the most was the Drumm family," says Mrs. Owens. "A lot of folks around town knew him. And our neighbor says the house's deed originally included land that stretched all the way south to Colonial and to the river, while the house and property to our north went all the way to the Edison Home. Prior to that, it was gladiolus fields."

As school draws to a close for this calendar year, Mrs. Owens is off and running, ticking last-minute holiday errands off her list, baking yet more cookies, and somehow managing her own obligations as well as the schedules of five children and her successful husband. Meanwhile, cars slow as they traverse McGregor Boulevard, their occupants pausing to enjoy the holiday sentiment on the front lawn of this happy home.