Home of the Week: Opening their doors for hope

Dian Corneliussen-James of Annapolis has Stage IV breast cancer. In other words, well, there are no other words. It's final.

But CJ, as she prefers to be called, began Metavivor Research and Support Inc., along with three others, to ensure those diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in the future won't be dealt a final hand.

"What we want is for Stage IV to a considered a controlled, chronic illness," said CJ.

That would mean being able to live with the disease, rather than dying from it.

With that in mind, we visit the home CJ shares with her husband Rob. Others are invited to do the same on Dec. 5, when this and five other area homes will be included on a holiday house tour to benefit Metavivor.

The 3,200-square-foot, three bedroom home is located in the Hunt Meadow community.

"We moved in initially in 1991," said CJ.

Both CJ and Rob are retired Air Force officers. When they found the home, she was stationed at the Pentagon and he was at Dover Air Force Base.

"This was the logical place to live," Rob said.

After being transferred out of the area, they rented out the home and then returned for good in 1997.

"We'll never leave Annapolis," said Rob.

CJ looks around and agrees.

"We couldn't move all the Christmas decorations," she said with a laugh.

And she's not kidding. There are a lot of Christmas decorations - a lot.

"She does it up full scale," agreed Rob.

"Under normal circumstances, I start the day after Thanksgiving," explained CJ.

Given the house tour and the visit for the "Home of the Week," things were pushed up a bit this year, but CJ has done a masterful job of putting it all together.

As it happens, decorating for the holidays is a tradition that Rob's parents believed in also.

"My dad was stuck in the Bastogne area during the Battle of the Bulge," he began.

"He swore, 'If I get out of this alive, Christmas is going to be a big celebration every year,'" said CJ.

And so it continues to be.

Outside the door, a beautiful wreath of greenery, pine cones and glitter sets the tone.

Just inside the foyer, an animated Mrs. Claus greets visitors with a warm smile. She is surrounded by lights, garland and all things Christmas.

Ascending the steps, a series of angels guides the way.

To the left of the foyer is the formal living room and home to the first of many trees inside the home.

"This tree is my angel tree," said CJ, of the tree adorned with gold angels.

A miniature village is setup on the other side of the room

"My mother-in-law, many years ago, because I speak German and lived in Germany, she gave me the church and then the train station," offered CJ. "These are all Germanic - it's an Alpine village."

The village continues expanding with a little online help.

"I've gotten a lot of them off of eBay this past year," said CJ.

"You've got to be careful going out the door here," said Rob, indicating the normal presence of boxes and tripping hazards.

Ironically or maybe not, the colors palette throughout the house involves a great deal of red and green, making the holiday decor a natural fit.

On the far wall are three beautiful portraits.

"His mother did those," CJ said.

"She started painting late in life and she got pretty good at it," Rob said.

As we head toward the back of the house, we reach the dining room.

"This antique table we found in California," said CJ of the dining table.

Here and throughout the home, a number of candle pyramids are on display. Having been stationed at or visited quite a few places, including Germany, CJ's holiday collection has reaped the benefits.

Next we reach the kitchen, which CJ is looking forward to overhauling.

"We're going to redo the kitchen in 2010 - I'm so excited," she said.

We head through the informal dining area into the den, which overlooks a beautiful, wooded backyard.

"That was one of the big selling points of the house when we bought it," CJ said of the backyard.

Keeping up with CJ is no small feat. She's a whirlwind of energy with an awe-inspiring joie de vivre.

It's surprising when she announces, "I also have systemic lupus, so my energy isn't what it used to be."

The cozy den, done in yellow with red accents, features a floor-to-ceiling brick fireplace, decked out in holiday decor. Here also is another tree.

"This is my eclectic tree," CJ said with a laugh.

On the porch, four cats are at rest or play or a little bit of both. One stands at the door looking longingly inside.

Upstairs, three bedrooms provide quarters for guests, cats and homeowners.

Here the color palette changes to blues and whites.

The guest bed is dressed in a beautiful quilt.

"I'm making a quilt for my mother," CJ said. "It's almost there."

On a table at the top of the steps is a collection of Asian objects and prints.

CJ points out a framed letter hanging on the wall - a letter of appreciation from the Chinese government to Rob who was a transport pilot.

"Rob was the first plane to go into China before Nixon," CJ explained.

"We took his communications gear in," Rob said.

Downstairs, a finished basement provides full guest quarters, plus additional space for even more trees.

How many trees are there in this house?

CJ starts counting.

"It depends how you count them," CJ said. "I guess there's seven, maybe eight."

There's also a really big sled here too. That's something you don't see everyday or ever.

"I bought it from a farmer in Germany - he wasn't using it," CJ explained. "Had a mattress put on it and I found this fabric, which I loved."

"I love the basement - that's my getaway," CJ said.

Why the holiday house tour?

"This is our first year really trying to raise money - we are awarding one grant to a researcher focused on metastatic breast cancer," CJ explained

"Median survival is three years after diagnosis of Stage IV," said CJ, who received her Stage IV diagnosis in 2006.

"They (researchers) could, quite possibly, turn our condition into a controlled, chronic illness within 10 years," said CJ. "Instead we are losing 41,000 annually - that includes about 500 men."

There are some other reasons for the holiday house tour. CJ has a lot of decorations - a lot.

She also has hope.

Donna L. Cole is a freelance writer in the Annapolis area. If you'd like your home to be considered for "Home of the Week," contact her at writerdle@aol.com.