Well, this post is 15 years in the making. We finally had the kitchen professionally done. We hired a local company called Keystone Kitchens for the cabinet refacing and another company called Building Interiors for the quartz and backsplash.  I love the dark cabinets with the contrasting white counters and sink.

We bought the open shelves from Wayfair and the hanging pot rack was already there.

I didn’t have plans to get a new faucet, but my son convinced me that we needed a new faucet with the new kitchen. I’m in LOVE with the one we found.

I’d say it’s a pretty good upgrade from the bright blue tile and orange-ish cabinets that came with the house we purchased 15 years ago.

Our DIY attempt at a kitchen update held us off for a while. About 10 years ago we sanded and stained the cabinets and had some granite tile put in. I did love the look, but the cabinets were starting to fall apart. We definitely needed the cabinet refacing.

I love how light and bright this feels!

I’m a happy baker!

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As most of you know, I had a stroke 2 months ago.  The stroke was centered in the Cerebellar region, which controls balance and motor function.  I look fine, when I’m walking (most of the time), but I have a dizzy feeling in my head and sometimes sway, find myself off balance, or take a little tumble.  Grocery stores are the WORST!  Turning my head as I walk causes all sorts of problems like extreme dizziness and nausea, and you’re constantly turning your head to look for the items you need when you are in the aisles.

(Side story… words are really hard since my stroke and aisles took forever to figure out.  Isles? Ailes? I finally asked my husband.  Aisles isn’t normally a word that would have challenged my brain.)

Back to the story. My physical therapist gave me some homework.  She said to walk down the mall on a day when it’s not too busy.  Walk, looking straight ahead, and once in a while go ahead and glance into a store.  She thought that would be a good step toward being able to do the grocery store more than 5 minutes.  It started out ok.  I started with the outdoor portion of the mall because outdoors are always better for me.  Unfortunately, there was stamped concrete and the business was too much for my brain.  I sat down in a little chair because I was starting to feel like I was going to fall over and… HEY, there’s Williams Sonoma.  It sucked me in, Friends.  I started to look for some gifts I needed and spotted the Bees Wrap on the sale rack. I have to tell you, I have been looking for Bee’s Wrap for about 2 years. I saw it in a magazine.  I have put it on my Christmas list many times, but no one can ever find it.  So, when I saw the Bee’s Wrap sitting there, I had to buy it.

I bake a lot of bread, so the Bee’s Wrap bread wrap was the way to go.

Saving the environment, one Bee’s Wrap at a time!

(Another side story: Going to the mall as my physical therapy assignment didn’t work out so well for me.  I wound up with the headache to end all headaches, which put me back at the walk-in-clinic to get help with the pain.  There are very few things I can take for pain, so they tried a shot.  No luck.  They finally found some meds that worked, but sheesh!!! One little trip to the mall and they were just about ready to send me back to the ER for another MRI and and IV to administer pain meds.  I’m thinking it’s because I didn’t follow the rules.  I went into two stores and looked around.  On the plus side, I found Bee’s Wrap and got a cute new shirt. I know, I know, next time I’ll follow the rules.  “Strokes are nothing to mess with.  Your brain takes time to heal.  Rest is important.  Always stop the activity when you begin feeling too dizzy or nauseated to continue.”  Those are the doctor’s words.)

My son, who doesn’t really care much about kitchen related purchases, commented on how fresh the two day old banana bread tasted.  I was just happy that the bread wasn’t wrapped in plastic wrap. To wash and reuse the Bee’s Wrap, the directions say to wash with cold water and a little dish soap, hang to dry, fold to store, and reuse for about 1 year.  Friends, I’m saving the planet one Bee’s Wrap at a time.  I know you want to do the same!

Happy Bee’s Wrapping!

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The everyday dishes are a very simple pattern.  Our local Fred Meyer carries them.  It’s always been terrific because when a plate breaks, you can just pick up a new one while you’re getting your groceries.  Fred Meyer has carried them for at least 8 years.  Well, around Christmastime I was giving suggestions for Christmas gifts and I told my mother in law that I could use some new plates.  A few days later, she said, “Did you know Fred Meyer doesn’t carry our plates anymore?”

Hold everything!  This was going to be a huge problem!

I looked everywhere.  I called around to see if anyone had any on clearance.  No luck.  Of course, when you know you can’t purchase any more, that’s when things really seem to get bad.  I dropped one plate in the dishwasher and broke it, chipped two more, and now I’m down to about 5 large dinner plates.

I’ve made a decision friends.  I’m moving to Fiestaware.  My sister needs to take note here!  Since I’m moving to Fiestaware, I think she’s going to need to make the switch too.  Just sayin’.  Now don’t get me wrong, I didn’t pack up all of my old dishes and take them to Goodwill.  I simply bought 4 sets of Fiestaware to add to my current collection of Fred Meyer plates.  As something breaks and needs to be replaced, I will replace it with Fiestaware.

So, why Fiestaware?  They’ve been around since the 30’s and I can’t imagine they’d discontinue my basic white.  They are extremely durable, made in the USA, and have a ton of other pieces to go along with the dishes.  They come in about 20 colors too, and encourage collecting a variety.  Wouldn’t it be fun to have a few plates in brown or red too?

My mother in law had a coupon at Macy’s and I had a few gift cards burning a hole in my pocket, and I’m pretty happy with my purchase!  My hubby took one look at these and said, “They’re kind of plain.”  After the first time we ate on them, he said he was impressed.  They’re heavy, sturdy, and look really clean and simple.  It didn’t take him long to see the light!

So, do any of you collect Fiestaware?  What color or colors do you have in your kitchen?  Are there great pieces I need to keep an eye out for?  I’d love to hear!

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Hot chocolate, marshmallows, sprinkles, and candy canes make a perfect set up.  I didn’t have a cute antique tray, like my BFF, but I did have a pretty silver platter that my Mother-In-Law gave me.  The Christmas tree mugs were from my Sister-In-Law.

I don’t know about your family, but my kids make hot cocoa just about every day in the winter.  I think a pretty set up, rather than the the plastic containers that these items are sold in, is much more inviting and makes hot cocoa seem like a special tradition.  (Pssst…. the mugs only hold about 6 ounces, rather than the 12 ounce cups they normally use.  Don’t tell the kids!)

Do you have a hot cocoa station in your kitchen?  Send me a picture.  I’d love to see it.

homeiswheremystorybegins@gmail.com

Happy cocoa making!

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One of my first organizing projects was the kids’ art cubby.  We have one of those awkward cabinets on the back side of the kitchen cabinets.  A few years ago, we converted this to the kids’ art cubby.  It’s right by the kitchen table, so it’s the perfect place to store art supplies.  Well, it was absolutely overflowing with art supplies.  I couldn’t even close the cupboard doors, but with all of the craziness of the end of the school year, there was no way I could get my act together and reorganize this area.

My kids use this cupboard all the time.  My son only uses it when he has an assignment to complete, but my daughter pulls out art supplies almost daily.  An organized space makes it so much easier.  We have bins for watercolor paints, washable paint, stickers, light table and tracing supplies, markers, gel pens, drawing pencils, and card making supplies.

 

I also restocked the writing center with notepads, envelopes, paper, cards, and premade blank books. My daughter and her cousin started writing a book, within about 5 minutes of noticing the newly organized writing center.

I love having the time to get my home organized again.

Happy organizing!

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Happy planting!

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I can almost say that my kitchen is done.  Almost.  I still have a few sewing projects to do, but most of the big jobs are done.  We have painted twice, first to yellow then to taupe.  The cupboards have been refinished to a less orange tone. We added knobs and pulls to the cabinets, painted the bar stools, and refinished the kitchen table.  The floors were refinished over spring break.  The granite tile and backsplash was one of our first projects.  I just couldn’t live with the blue. 

Here are some “before” shots.

What a difference!

Here’s a picture with the new paint and valances too!

Here are a few linky parties I like to visit!

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