{Sugar Snow}

The last two days we've been cooped up inside

Watching the world outside turn to ice, then slush, and finally a mushy snow.

It's what the locals call a "Sugar snow".

The temps are cold enough to precipitate, but warm enough for the sap to start running.

I haven't been out much, but it sounds like everyone is putting in their taps

Causing those maple trees to bleed,

And cooking down the sap to make that mouthwatering maple syrup.

Mmm...I am now hankering for a blueberry pancake, flowing with that golden liquid.  And lots of butta.

 So while the world outside our front door was white and too sloppy to be out in

We were eating the ultimate kid food for lunch.

Spaghetti'd hot dogs with cheese.

Weird.  And in a kids' mind, the ultimate food ever.

All you gotta do, is have the patience to push spaghetti noodles through

Pieces of hot dog, without losing your insanity, as broken shards fly in all directions.

It helps to say "heya" and give a great stab of frustrated intensity.

Another lesson in patient perseverance for the mother, and noodle slurping for said kids.

Perfect.

And in case you wanted to know, here's how you cook it all down:

(As the water boils, the noodle slowly sinks into the pot.)

(Not so much unlike the mom in this house after a day of kids run amok.)

{A Kitchen Finale}

This has been two years in the making,

And I am so completely in love with my new kitchen.

Yes, the kitchen of this old house

Is finally complete!  Yay!

The beginning days felt like complete torture, 

As we tore out dumpster loads of flooring, ceilings, (yes, there were LAYERS), and plaster.

Sold off old cabinets,

Fought over light fixtures, and flooring (we are trivial like that, I guess),

And finally stood back to admire the end result.

It was well worth those two long years.

Don't you agree?

 Our cabinets were made by a local cabinetry shop:Sylvans Woodworking .  The stool and ski's were saved from a junk heap,

 the clock is from World Market, and the glass canisters from Crate and Barrel.  The fruit is supposed to be making the kids in this house healthier than oxen.  :)

Flooring is engineered hardwood from Anderson and it is super easy to wipe, easy on the eyes too, with it's raised grains, and was a breeze to install.

 I bought these industrial pendant lights from Wal Mart online.  Yes, I said Wal Mart

They're even weighted, so the pulley adjusts to raise/lower the light.

 My chandeliers are from Lowe's

 Our cabinetmaker just finished this little piece of the hood last week.  Brick wallpaper by Lowe's.  Love!

 This little coffee nook is one of the best little ideas I came across.  We store all our mugs, goblets, straws, teas, coffees, and other drinks and accessories in the base cabinet and cupboard above.  The sink is firestone clay from Vintage Tub

 This cabinet got rescued from the trash heap while my mom was building a house 5 yrs ago.

It was destined for the bath, but the marble top broke in shipping and was deemed unusable.

I never throw a good-lookin' piece with these kinds of curves, away.  So she moved here with us, and we modified her depth, painted her up and put a new top on her.

 My pantry door was an old storm door at our other house.  We had replaced her, in favor of a wind-proof door and I hoarded her, saved her from Myron's junk pile and gladly wore the term "junkaholic" for her, until she could be properly glorified.

 Backed with burlap, she makes the perfect no-see pantry.  And look at that patina!

This corner was a full bath in its former life.  I despise baths that are connected to main living spaces.

What goes on in there, is noone else's business,

 but it sure can be if it's smack in the middle of where you dine.

It is now our favorite corner in the whole house.  All kinds of life happens here around a cup of coffee.

 These chairs were a antique shop find for $15.  I have since seen many like it online for going on $100.

 Farmhouse table by World Market

The old coke box is from my grandparents store many years ago

 Gorgeous windows by Andersen

Blinds and faucet from Lowe's

 The firestone clay farmhouse sink that I love so much from Vintage Bath

Weighs a "ton" and was a beast to unload off the freight truck parked on the street,

But I would do it all over again.  An amazing sink that handles just about anything.

Countertops are a solid surface material.  The concrete counters I had originally wanted, didn't work out.

But our countertop guy sure did an amazing job at making them look like concrete.

My kitchen "island"?  The bottom of a hoosier cabinet.  The top cabinet is being stored in a closet.

I love that old enamel top...takes a regular beating, and is the perfect spot to set hot pans, and store cookbooks.

If the kitchen is really the "heart of the home",  the heart in this house is beating blood red.  This has become,easily, the most favorite room in the house for everyone who lives, and visits, our home.

JO

Per request, I'm adding a before picture, it just doesn't get much more 70's than this: