The Nursery and the Office/Guest Room

Here it is, folks, the final before and after pics of the house.

The nursery with orange shag carpet with pink flecks. I actually loved it and planned on making area rugs out of it, but it was just too old and nasty.

If you look closely you can see the shape of every frame the previous owner hung on these walls.

After. A great surprise to find gorgeous hardwood floors under the shag.

If you ever come to visit us, this is where you'll stay!

The Master Bedroom

Before. Oh darn it, I cut off the cat border.

After.

This dresser was given to my grandmother when she got married.

Her initials and the year she got married are on the front.

Zane in the womb, rocks from the Bay of Fundy in New Brunswick, Canada, and a doily my Great Aunt Lydi made.

The Living Room

Before. No, the fireplace is not real, but the heart border is.

After.

In Defense of Art

In the beginning of October our church hosted an art show and Saturday night they hosted a "coffee house" with live music and the art from the art show was displayed for all to enjoy. On Sunday an art pastor from Austin, Texas, spoke during the service and if you are at all passionate about any form of art I highly recommend listening to it. Even if you just "merely" enjoy art, which you have to admit if you're breathing you probably do, I recommend listening to it. It encouraged me and reminded me that God is not only interested in that which is practical, useful, and purposeful, but that He enjoys and wants me to enjoy those things that have no function other than to bring joy.

The Kitchen

Blankets

Tis the season for curling up in a nice cozy blanket, especially if you have a frugal, energy saving husband. My favorite kind are of the homemade variety especially blankets made by someone special. Here are my favorite.

My mom had me pick out all the fabric for this one. It took her 2 years to get to it, but then she completed it from start to finish in one week (the week before Christmas). Go Mom.

This is one my mom knitted when she was a teenager. She thinks it's the only thing she's ever knitted. Pretty impressive.

This one Jake's grandmother (Nana) made for Zane as shown below.

Toys

Today, I'll just leave you with a link to a list of some great staple toys for the kiddos.

The Seventies

Oh the inspiration of the seventies. Here are some more house pictures I promised, but you'll have to come back for the after pictures. While you wait in anticipation, think about what you would do with such a kitchen as this and post a comment. I would love to hear your thoughts. The after pictures are coming I assure you.

A Carrot Addiction?

Generally, when I crave something it's along the lines of say chocolate, pastry, a big cheeseburger... but lately I've been craving and eating carrot casserole like it's nobody's business. Here's the recipe and a picture of the dish after day 3 of eating the leftovers.

Carrot Casserole

4 cups carrots sliced (a 2 lb. bag is 4,3/4 cup)
1 cup mayo
3 Tbs horseradish (my hubby prefers mustard here)
melted butter
ritz or saltine crackers

Cook carrots, mix with mayo and horseradish, put in greased casserole dish and top with crackers mixed with melted butter. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Yum.


This was originally introduced to me as part of a meal delivered to me after I had Zane. Thanks, Mary, it's a keeper.

Evidence

I'm a pretty neat person. There's a place for everything and everything is in its place in my house. At least for the most part, but I would not give up for anything the little signs that there is someone in the house who can't even say the word, "neat".

A Work In Progress

A few of my friends that don't live near me have been wondering what my house looks like, how I decorate, what styles I like, etc. All the before and after pictures would be too much for one post so I'll give a little taste here and there of what my humble abode is like. Plus, I don't have all the "after" pictures taken at the moment. So I'll start with the curb side view to which there will not be an after picture for who knows how long because.... well, that would be a whole other post entitled Excuses.

We have cut off a lot of the lower branches on the two pine trees in front so you can actually see the house now. There's a big back yard and a lot of work to do so maybe I'll still be doing this blog when I have an after picture and you can see it.

Now here is an actual before...

And after of the bathroom. It's tiny so this is the best way I could get a view of most of the room.