My tenant neighbors have moved out. No more frat house next door.
Next up....installing new faucets, sod and landscaping...and a for sale sign.
After 12 months of noise, lack of sleep and stress I think it's time to go back to detached. Likely more renos but also more peace. Living and learning!
I finally finished tiling the kitchen back splash. The grout actually looked like Manitoba clay. And felt like dealing with it too. Apparently renos could use some pre-training since my arms feel like spaghetti now.
I had a little trouble with haze but you have to love Google - found a tip that suggested some vinegar in the water and it seemed to do the trick!
Here's the beginning... (well sort of - it was originally an orange kitchen with a hole where the dishwasher went and this was my cost-effective attempt to update it although some doors were duct taped together)
Delivery!
Not all the cabinets were the right sizes...ugh.
Correct size counter:
Tiles up:
With grout:
There is a valance to go above the sink and toe kick to go. There are also cabinets across with the fridge that need an outlet moved up and to be secured to the wall.
A year ago...
And then...
And then it was a comedy of errors of a few incorrect cabinet sizes that took months to finally show up. A countertop measurement mistakenly transposed on a fax that took and extra 6 weeks to remedy. And finally tile decisions and ordering and then the biggie...the motivation to install it.
Grout still to do... and toe kick.
Hmm....I seem to be getting one mini project per month done....
I added inserts to some plain curtains that were/are hanging in the dining room. And I forgot to take a before so just picture them plain.
After:
May have to try for more pictures after dark since they're not lined. I also shortened them since puddling drapes may be stylish but not so much when they are puddling in dog hair.
Ah...much better! (And the fabric on the back of the chair is for another project...)
The kitchen is still in progress...like many things in the reno palace. However I did do a few little tweaks for the wall that never had cabinets before. They now tend to be a dumping ground so I'll have to work on that! I also need to buy some chalk:
I may also make a valance to go over the shade - which would cover the holes left by the previous curtain rod. And yes, the ladder will go back downstairs...although I do need something to reach the top cupboards!
More pillows to come - since I have more fabric! And I'd like to find a low dresser to paint out cream. There's a highboy at the end of the bed now.
after a breakup...I tend to redecorate.
Apparently I'm craving something bright and girly since this is what followed me home from Fabricland yesterday.
And began a transformation of this:
To something a bit more like this:
With the intention of eventually being a bit more like this:
I think the lampshades may need changing up and there is much more sewing to go but it looks like the next project is underway. And I was going to say that this time it doesn't involve paint - but there may be some painting coming up soon too.
Now grapefruit avocado salad is calling and the sewing machine needs to cool down.
Adapted from a bunch of recipes to suit what I had on hand...
Peach Mango Bread Pudding
8-10 slices somewhat stale bread
butter or margarine
E.D Smith Peach Mango fruit spread a la Costco
Eggs (or in this case, Egg Beaters)
Milk
Sugar
Brown sugar
vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter one side of enough pieces of stale bread to fit butter side down into casserole dish. Spread with Peach Mango fruit spread. Tear remaining bread into enough pieces to cover bottom layer. Melt about 1/4 cup of margarine and pour over. In mixer, mix together about 3-4 eggs worth and 1.5 - 1.75 cups milk with 1/3 cup of white sugar and 1/4 cup of brown sugar and a tsp or 2 of vanilla. You could add cinnamon at this point too - I didn't. Mix together egg mixture until frothy. Pour over bread in casserole and make sure to dunk any pieces sticking up. Let sit for a few minutes before putting in oven.
Bake for 45 mins to an hour until puffed up and set.
(about 40 mins in I sprinkled it with more white sugar so it would be crispy on top)
Probably best served with ice cream or whipped cream but I even ate it warm...yum!
The kitchen as we last saw it:
The now purchased "kitchen jewelery" awaiting installation: 
Grout color?
I haven't felt like I have been making tracks on the reno palace in a while. Today was bitterly cold I didn't feel inclined to head out and about but also didn't want to start a huge project.
The pantry in its chaotic state had been bugging me for a while so I thought I'd re-organize it. I emptied it and was shocked how much stuff I'd managed to cram in there (and yes, wish I had a better before pic with it all in the pantry!):
Of course once I had all the "stuff" out I realized how grimy the shelves were and how dingy the paint was and remembered how many crayon drawings there were inside the doors.
Which led to this:
And finally the satisfying end in sight:
Followed by realizing that even with one very jam packed jumbo bag of garbage purged out it's still a pretty full pantry!
I learned from my mom.
The joy of baking and the smell of butter, nuts, chocolate and cinnamon filling the house. That's still the smell of warmth and home-iness for me today.
The pleasure in giving those treats away in pretty packages. And trying to have some on hand by Christmas day!
And the old classics on TV; Frosty, Rudolph, Charlie Brown and The Grinch...guess they weren't "classics" then.
And learning to play carols on the piano and singing badly along.
That adding sparkle and twinkle and color to a house is partly lights and tinsel and partly the same decorations that go up year after year...many homemade and given by others and not about matching or color schemes or themes.
That wishlists are starting points and no guarantee. And they're really just a way to dream and imagine and maybe even realize how little you need.
That the hustle and bustle should be less about shopping and more about stopping in. My mom was not generally a fan of stopping in - that's my dad's domain but at Christmas there was no end of friends stopping by and Christmas Eve was about us going to friends' homes all over the place.
That Santa is more about magic than anything else. And a great motivator for an early bedtime.
And grownups still love cookies and milk.
And stockings are the best part of the gifts.
That Christmas morning is about chaos and mess and unhealthy breakfast and that's absolutely ok once a year.
And that the whole thing should be capped off by family gathered together with hospitality, laughter and thankfulness.
Merry Christmas!
How does this:
Well I've more than fallen off the wagon...I think I fell into a mega-deep pothole and then was run over while being lapped by the wagon. I've given in to cravings, to lazings and when I caught a glimpse of myself in a large mirror today I wasn't totally shocked but wow was I disappointed in myself.
So....I'm thinking that I will start a 30 day challenge. Here's the deal:
30 days of activity - min 1 hr per day
30 days of cleaning up my eating...and an attempt to battle my sweet cravings
The last few days have been good. It has helped that the weather has been great!
Friday I took the dog to the offleash and we walked for an hour - ok, he may have run some too. Saturday we went to visit another hound at the pound and stopped at a different offleash for about 35 mins. A little weak but still better than not moving at all. Today, I tried out a hot yoga class and we went back to the offleash.
So far so good...I need some help with sweet cravings and to get back to incorporating veggies in my diet - love em but seem to have lost em...
I should be out shovelling (it snowed some more!!) but since I did 2 hours of that yesterday I'm finding myself coming up with other things to do today. One of those things was to hang some mini mirrors in my bedroom and kind of finish that room up.
Here are the befores:
And the afters:
Of course not from the same angle...I'm not that organized!
You can't really tell in the before photos but the carpet was a gray-blue; at least where it wasn't stained or where there was a giant bleach spot. I'm not thrilled with the pale cream-beige-gray I chose because now I think it looks a bit dingy but it's still better than the previous stuff. The baseboards before were simple casing and not really baseboard. And last weekend I figured out how to finally replace the lightswitch and outlets to the decora style that was started in the rest of the house. And of course I missed it in both sets of pictures but there is a new light fixture up now and new hardware on the closet doors along with new trim around them. The nice wooden blinds behind the curtains were repurposed from my cousin's house. And the curtains were made for my previous house and have been put up in a few different rooms a few times since then. I finally gave in and bought a new bed this summer when I woke up aching every morning and it's quite high which makes it feel kind of luxurious even without room service.
There are lots of things remaining to do in the house but it's nice to take a look back at the initial photos and realize that I'm getting somewhere.
Now if I could just find someone to replace the kitchen counters, fix the fallout drawers and replace the ugly tub and surround!
And it doesn't seem to be helping...I am sick again! I was sick earlier in October too and I'm tired of it. This seems to be a similar bug that involves a splitting headache, body aches, stuffiness and fever and chills. Lovely. This time I toughed out 2 days at work since we had roadshow presentations and then dropped on Thursday. Today is Sunday and I felt even worse this morning including *new!* nausea. Of course I went out on Friday night and ran errands most of the day Saturday mistakenly assuming that I'd done my share of sick days. (On the up side I am down to 1 bank account so less monthly charges!)
This is interrupting my intention to get back on the fitness wagon once work became mainly sane again. Which is worrisome since I don't seem to be slowing down on putting on a few more curves. And yes, the elliptical is still in the living room...with a nice layer of dog hair.
So aside from the coldfx and lots of naps, I'm not getting anywhere too fast.
Tonight I've packed a spinach salad with chicken breast for lunch tomorrow - sounds healthy, right? A step in the right direction I hope. Once the bug is gone I think I have to check out the rec centre again...and try to get back to the routine that used to work for me.
Did I mention I started dating again? If you're not single then I don't think you can possibly know what hell that is...
* odd choice of clothes including very metrosexual boots on a very not metrosexual guy
* british teeth
* extra 30 lbs all held as a beer gut
* sweats
If only I hadn't forgotten to pick up some wine to go with....hmm...maybe a boyfriend would come in handy....
Some days I have an uncanny ability to make something out of nothing. And today that extended to the kitchen. I think the ability to re-make leftovers comes from those days when the budget was tighter...student days when brocoli with a processed cheese slice was pretty darned good dinner.
It's been really warm here and my desire to cook has gone the way of my mojo. I pulled this salad together from a hodge podge in the fridge and it turned out really well:
1 can black beans drained and rinsed
1 can corn drained
1/3 red onion chopped
1 red pepper chopped (1/2 if it's a large pepper)
cilantro chopped - I love cilantro so used about 1/4 of the bunch
2 tbsp jarred jalapeno pepper finely chopped
1/2 tsp cumin
salt and pepper
2-3 tbsp of canola oil
2 tbsp lime juice
Toss it all together and crumble feta on top if you like. The measurements are not exact since I'm not generally very exact when cooking so go to your taste.
It's a pretty salad and I think it would work well as a take along to a potluck or bbq. For me, it just tastes good and didn't require heating up my kitchen!
What is it with women and heat? There are all kinds of expressions and concepts that revolve around women and heat, "slaving over a hot stove", "she's a hot babe" or what a "hottie", there's the concept of "being in heat" and then of course later in life we get to enjoy "hot flashes". And the witch in the Wizard of Oz cries out "I'm melting!!!" as she expires.
One of my favorite women is quoted as saying "Women are like tea bags. They don't know how strong they are until they get into hot water." (It's Eleanor Roosevelt in case you wondered.)
Or until the weather is hot for days and the need to haul up the 70lb or so air conditioner from the basement overcomes their disbelief that they can carry it from the laundry/storage room, up 14 stairs, across the dining room and get it in the window.
Last year this resulted in an air conditioner casualty - the air conditioner came from a closet upstairs but sadly jumped out the front window. So far today, this smaller cousin air conditioner seems happily perched on the shelf constructed to dissuade jumping.
30 degrees here today...and no lake or pool...but at least a chance now of not feeling like I am starting hot flashes a little early.
For anyone considering painting cabinets; I recommend finding out if someone in your area will spray the doors. I know if I ever undertake a kitchen again I will look into it. This time I checked out new cabinets first but decided they were too pricey. The house still has enough projects in it that budget is a big consideration.
Anyways, after the bubbling fiasco with the boxes I decided to prime the doors. I hate priming. And I hate foam brushes (that's what I decided to use on the non-flat parts).
But first I washed the doors. (Because I can take the heat for not doing that with the boxes.) I also removed the handles and taped all of the hinges because I'm not a dainty painter.
Then I primed...about halfway through I wondered about the whole project. And wondered if the uppers looked ok with the doors off...
But halfway through the first coat of "Soho" paint I was feeling better.
