Weak Sauce

I'm way behind. I know this. I am feeling completely uninspired to blog. Over at the boys' blog, I'm so far behind I don't even know where to begin, because to pick up where I left off would take too long. I'm calling it 'weak sauce' because I know, it's just excuses. So anyway, here are some thoughts about my kitchen.

I finished painting our kitchen today. Josh and I were going to do it together, and then it ended up that I did a bunch of work here and there during nighttime and naptime, and then he said, "You know what? I think I'm going to keep the boys for you and you can just keep right on painting." Ha. I loved it. I love getting a break from the boys without feeling like I'm shipping them off somewhere (they're with their dad, for Pete's sake, it's hardly out of the ordinary), and I also love to paint.

Our kitchen was pretty country. As in, beige/tan/cream walls, off-white appliances, beigey tanny countertops, oak cabinets, BRASS hardware. Gag. I guess maybe more than anything, it was really neutral - but I always felt like the brass and the oak made it country. Plus the natural wood trim. Anyway, we painted a light blue/green called Turquoise Mist and changed up those horrific brass door and drawer pulls for some brushed nickel and I love the look. Next up is to replace the gold and oak light fixture (gag again), and we'll be in business. You know, for making dinner and stuff.

I got rid of even more of my 'things,' and by things I mean stuff that sits on the counter. I found homes for some, tossed some, and well, who knows what happened to the rest but at least my counters are visible and it's a lot more pleasant in there. :) Try to ignore Josh's lunch pail and my Tupperware-type container of cookies and pretend the countertop is spotless, would you?

I've been making a bunch of pulled pork lately. There have been many opportunities to make meals for other people lately, and I am thoroughly overwhelmed at the idea of cooking for other people, so I put things in my crock pot and ignore the sense of impending doom that I feel that things won't turn out well and my meal will make me the laughingstock of the local wives' guild. Pulled pork has gone over well, and I've actually prepared food successfully for 12 people at a time. That, my friends, is veritable magic. I owe my life to my new crock pot. It's in the picture. It earns a spot on the counter because it is too big to fit in any of my cupboards.

The curtains in our kitchen are from our very first apartment up in Warrensburg, NY. I bought the fabric when one of my girlfriends was visiting (Marji? Sue?) and just went to town. I didn't have a pattern or anything, they're just simple valances. I weaved a little ribbon through the eyelet to coordinate with our old kitchen, and the other night I changed it out for a new color that coordinates with the new paint. I also soaked those bad boys in Oxi-Clean overnight because they were yellowed and gross. It worked. I also owe my life to Oxi-Clean. For real.

Here's a picture of part of the old kitchen so you can see how we went from drab to fab. Note the hardware and the paint color, friends; it's made a world of difference, no? Can't wait for a new light. :) Oh, and I oiled the cabinets - I didn't think it was noticeable, but maybe it is. This old picture looks yuck-o.