Odd things!

There is an odd thing in my kitchen--there are doors on some of the cabinets.  Weird.  More tomorrow.

A short kitchen update.

In the past week only one visible thing has been finished in the kitchen.

The floating shelves!  I still need to repaint jar lids-they get a hammered pewter color which mimics the zinc lids on  some of the antique jars and make labels.  I like to have everything close at hand when I cook and bake so this arrangement works quite well for me.

I've finished painting the first set of doors and have begun the second.  Found space for a few more this time and have found a way to shave a day off the whole process so I am hoping to finish all the doors by this time next week.  I think I'll wait to hang them until they are all finished and the handles arrive.

I've also been stripping multiple layers of paint off the two windows I bought and Rob has made me a bookcase (for my cook books).  All will need painted.  I have the trim and my brother, Bobby, is going to rip some board for the kick space-that will need paint as well.  I am really starting to hate this painting!  But,  things are coming together, thank goodness.

The counter(bench) tops are due in Tuesday, I say due in because I was told it was the earliest they would be here.  The truck only comes once a week so if they don't come this week it will be the Tuesday after.  I have all my fingers and toes crossed for this week!

Remembering September 11

Today makes ten years since September 11, 2001.  While I haven't (and won't) watched any of the many tv programs on the subject, it is hard not to remember what happened that day.  The live video of the towers collapsing is etched in my memory along with President Kennedy's  death and the Challenger explosion.  The act of  men who hate my country and cloak it in terms of religion.  I grieve for those who were lost, knowing that their families will never be the same.  I hurt for the survivors who must feel some "survivors guilt" along with great gratitude.  I will never forget.

Holiday Weekends!

Hope all those in the US are enjoying the Labor Day Holiday!  I've had a terrific weekend, so far.  Saturday Scott, Bri and Coco (their adorable little dog) came up from Columbia to visit.  We generally all gather to attend my town's annual street festival, Santa-Cali-Gon (so named because Independence was once the "jumping off" point for the long overland trips to Santa Fe, NM; Oregon and California.) Mostly we go to eat funnel cakes, corn dogs, walking tacos and other "junk food" and to buy homemade Cream Soda or Root Beer.  (We all save our bottles from year to year and they re-fill them for us.)

Then we walk through the craft tents.  It was pretty exciting on Saturday as a big thunder storm hit right over the top of us and the tent we were in began swaying and things started falling off displays etc.  Bri managed to get outside and the rest of us headed that way but by the time we got to the doorway it had let up some.  Started up again though and was surely in danger of falling down except some really intelligent person shouted that we should grab onto the poles and hold them up!  One of the other  tents did fall in so thank you intelligent person!  As soon as it let up we made a run for the cars and headed home!

One great thing about the storm, it brought a cold front with it!  After the high 90's of last week, today's 71 is delightful!

Sunday morning Beth and her boys joined us for a biscuits and gravy brunch (apparently their favorite breakfast-or maybe they just don't get it very often?)  Then we split up.  Rob, Tanya, Beth, Brayden and Kolby along with Rob's friend Das met up with other friends Thomas and Heather at the Carnival part of Santa-Cali-Gon while Bri and I headed to the Flea Mart.  I scored a really cute sewing box (always wanted one) I plan to put my cross-stitch in it for now, hum it would work well for hexi-gons too.  I wanted to attend a memorial service for a lovely lady I knew from my historical work here at 2:30 and I did.  While Scott and Bri took Coco back to Columbia and demo'd their current project, their den.  Later I met up with the others to walk through the tents again and eat more "junk food"-- Didn't buy too much there this year just a snowman for Tanya and a long magnet to hold up the calendar on the frig.

When I woke up this morning, after sleeping with the windows open, it was 54 degrees!  A beautiful clear day, with a lovely blue bowl of a sky.  I mowed the lawn this morning and I found a hint of things to come.

Already the hills in back are getting slippery, rolling on these as I walk and I hear them hitting the trailer all the time!

A short kitchen update:  The shelves arrived on Friday, the doors and drawer fronts on Saturday.  I already have primer on one side of 5 doors (that's all I can fit on my 6 foot table).   Everything is here now except the counter tops (bench tops) which won't be in until the 13th.  I bought the old windows for the wall decor on Friday and Rob installed the second fan on Saturday.  I still hope to be 90 percent finished when I go to San Diego next month, won't be finished until I get back as I'm bringing home IKEA stuff for in there.

Look! New Floors!

I know it's crazy, two kitchen posts in two days but what can I say WE DID THIS TODAY!

I just love these floors!  Rob, Tanya and I just keep looking at them and saying how pretty they are and how much they change the room.  I haven't moved any furniture back in as I wanted another little while to just look at them and admire all our hard work!  One more thing off the list.

KitchenUpdate!

Today, I finished painting the cabinet boxes and fronts.  Thank goodness.  No more oil paint until the doors and drawer fronts come-have no idea when that will be, soon I hope.  I spent the rest of the day getting part of my gardens back in shape from the heat and cleaning house.  I don't even want to think about how long it's been since I last cleaned my bathroom!  So photos:

You'll have to imagine the doors and drawer fronts painted white and installed ;) but you can tell where I'm headed.  The back splash is here as is the new sink (I think I have to buy drain parts for that) just waiting on the new countertops.  Tomorrow afternoon Rob and I will go buy the bamboo flooring, maybe we will put it down on Wednesday or Thursday.  The shelves for the big open space are on order as well, so it's all beginning to come together.  I think my plan is working out, it's just slower than I would have liked.  That true of all remodeling projects!

Time for a Kitchen update!

Wow, a whole week has passed!  I worked on the kitchen every day except one and I have nothing to show in pictures!  All the "this must be done before I can paint the cabinets" are finished.  Today I primed a bit over half the cabinets, inside and out!  Rob said I had as much paint on me as I did on the cabinets, even in my hair!  As it's oil based paint I have scrubbed several layers of skin off!  This time next week I should be finished with the cabinet boxes/frames, then I will have to paint doors and drawer fronts-after they are delivered of course.  Tomorrow I will put a coat of paint on, inside and out and then I can return my kitchen to some sort of order!  I'll have to begin early in the morning as it is Brayden's night at Granna's and I'll need to be at the bus stop about 3:30pm and I'll need time to scrape away all the skin-I mean paint!