My 1980's Kitchen Redo

This is not a do-it-yourself blog.  I don't really do crafts and I don't have the attention to detail to actually work on home projects. But I do like to decorate my home.

But by decorate I mean I like to pick stuff out and then have other people do the work.  Just keeping it real here! 

We recently moved into a very beautiful (on the outside) home with an interior stuck in the 1980's. 

Case in point...the kitchen before we moved in.



It was nice no?  I like bright and cheery colors so living with the drear and drab was most painful for me.

So I decided to take matters into my own hands and started painting. 

And that lasted for a couple of weeks and I couldn't take the chaos any longer.

 Cabinet doors were every where.  I was loosing track of what went where.

 Each door needed 2 coasts of primer and three coats of paint.  That is 5 seperate coats with at least 1 day of drying time in between.  I was going to lose my mind!

So I did what any respectable wife of a construction Project Manager would do.  I called Chip and asked for reinforcements.

And at first things were looking up.  We started to see potential in this oh so dark cave  kitchen of ours. In fact, we decided that even primed, the kitchen looked 1,000 times better!

But then we the guys hit a snag.  After knocking down the box florescent lights (woo hoo!) we found leaky pipes.  There were leaky pipes everywhere and the whole ceiling needed to come down!

But after several more weeks and lots of dinners at Chick fil a, we finally finished.















Here are some of my favorite before and after pictures.











Here is a list of the changes we made (in case you were wondering!):

Ceiling:  Tour down existing popcorn ceiling including florescent lights fixtures and grotesque hanging wine rack.  Replaced ceiling with tonge and groove planking.  I LUV it!  The narrow kitchen needed a focal point and now the ceiling is a beautiful place to rest your eyes.  Tutorial followed for planked ceiling found at the Lettered Cottage here.  We saved several thousand dollars following Layla's plan versus the traditional way to plank a ceiling.  Ceiling Color:  Creamy by Sherwin Williams

Walls:  Took off 1980's texture and floated the wall to be smooth.  Also removed moldings from around the breakfast area walls.  Paint Color:  Tea Light by Sherwin Williams

Cabinets:  Removed cabinets over the stove.  This opened up the room and let light into an otherwise dank space.   Primed the cabinets with Sherwin Williams Adhesian Primer and painted them Creamy by Sherwin Williams.  Replaced dated hardware with new crystal knobs from Lowes here.

Lighting:  Removed florescent lights and put it recessed lighting in the main part of the kitchen.  Removed fan (yes, can you believe it?I know I live in Houston but a fan in the breakfast room is a little bit over the top!) from the breakfast area and replaced with chandelier from lowes very similar to this one. 

Windows:  Installed new faux wood 2" blinds.  Window Treatment Fabric:  Thomas Paul for Duralee Stockholm in red.  Window Treament made by my mom.

The only thing still screaming to be replaced is the white refrigerator.  Clearly stainless would coordinate better with the other appliances but we just can't justify spending a couple thousand dollars on a new one.  So we shall wait!  Maybe my fairy godmother will drop one on our doorstep!!!

So, what do you think of everything so far?  Any other ideas I should incorporate? 

Happy Valentine’s Day

 Here is us, wishing YOU, a Happy Valentine's Day!  (yes, a little late I know!)

I actually did not make these but aren't they super cute?  They are Handmade Zoo Animals Cake Pops by Shari's Berries.  Chip knows us so well!

And Beau-ti-ful flowers, to boot!

Happy Belated Valentine's!

Life with a Broken Limb

Life with a broken limb…it changes everything. 

The waters of chaos instantly engulfed us after our 6 year old broke her leg. 

The excruciating pain, the 3 trips to the ER, the helplessness of hearing her scream and not being able to fix it.  It was all too much.

For the first several nights, none of us slept.  How do you sleep when the child beside you is crying and rything in pain?

Two whole days passed before a permanent cast made it’s way onto her leg. It would be 8 days before she could get herself to the bathroom or sit up to take a drink.  

I was falling down the deep dark pit of despair, a pit I have known all too well. A pit that has but one way out. 

And that way is to count.

Count the moments.  Count the blessings.  Count the ways God reveals himself.

Counting is the only remedy for traversing the depths of of darkness and it is the only remedy which promises a way out.

So reluctantly,  I began to count….

Clean sheets.  The mundane task of washing bed linens suddenly became a gift.  I washed away a weeks worth of sweat and tears the same way Jesus washes me.  But only he does it everyday. A glimpse of holiness in the mundane tasks of servants.

Seeing her need him.

The excruciating pain had kept her isolated. Now all she wanted was his skin next to hers.  In God’s mysterious ways, he made us to need each other.

The way he crossed his legs as he sat on her lap. 

He was content to simple be with her. The way our hearts were made to be content with Jesus.

It was laughter shared with a friend.

Nothing tears down the walls of sorrow quite like laughter.

The chance to wash her hair. 

And the double blessing of her asking me to do it again!

And it was walking outside in my pajamas, cursing the fact that I had to take the trash out.  (a husband with two broken ribs is so unconvient!)

And despite my propensity for wallowing in distain for the daily grind, God still chose to reveal himself.

The early blooms of a spring renewal. The hope of change revealed just for me.

Counting the blessings.  Counting God sightings in the mundance tasks.  Counting thanks.

We are no better than a broken limb if we do not learn to count.