shortcakes

hubby has a sweet tooth and has asked me to bake him something sweet.



you can get the recipe here

I will be baking these shortcake biscuits. I tore the recipe out from one of my old Martha Stewart{2001} magazines. This is one of my go to recipes.

I like making these biscuits during summer but for tonight, we will have them as is without the cream and berries.

 The boys love them {I do too}.

Hope you had a great weekend!

kitchen remodel {after}

So here is my after pictures, after all the waiting {about ten years, before we finally decided to tackle the kitchen}. I never dreamed that I could have a kitchen like this…and now I do. I absolutely love it. I love to cook and now it is so much easier to do especially with this island. My only regret is that I waited too long but then again we probably wouldn’t of had the budget either. If and when we move {that’s a whole other blog post}, the kitchen will be the first thing  we remodel.

Of course my kitchen doesn’t always look this way {almost never}  but nonetheless, it was fun staging it to share with you.

This is our mudroom turned pantry area, not too much to look at. We were able to add a small wine fridge in this area. this area was not yet camera ready.. .will work on it soon.

Thanks for stopping by...hope you enjoyed the view.

 and are having a wonderful day…

kitchen remodel {before}

We remodeled our kitchen in 2009. Can’t believe it has been almost two years.  I wanted to share with you pictures of my kitchen before the remodel, I didn’t take any pictures of the kitchen before we did some demolition, but with the studs you can see where the wall was. I wanted to tear down and create a great room. when we had family over, I would either be stuck in the kitchen all by my lonesome or my sister and friends would all cozily gather in the kitchen talking to me, either way it was no fun.

Funny story about the roosters in the kitchen:

When we first bought the house, I noticed the roosters and vowed those were going to be the first to go….and there they are {or were} almost 10 years later. What can I say, they grew on me. Hopefully they are now residing in a home who loves them..they went with the cabinets… to a new home somewhere in Tijuana, Mexico.

 

Here is my doggy number 1. Who could resist a doggy picture, not me.

Max was always so curious about what was going on in the kitchen, hoping someone would give him a treat.

We have hardwood floors throughout the house and decided to install them in the kitchen. Since it was going to open to the living/dining room area, I wanted an even floor.

I love the way the floor looks in the picture below.

it was so shiny and new, it felt like a dance floor.

When I came home from work the day the cabinets were installed, I was in awe..I absolutely loved them.

hubby being the planner that he is, had all the appliances installed the day after the cabinets were fitted to ensure they fit well..and they did.

 

this island is a must, I didn't realize how much i would use it ...it makes breakfast and food prep easier.

I hand picked the granite at a  local granite yard. I was amazed of the color in granite and how one color varied from the time and season in which it was cut. All quite interesting.

when the granite was installed, I was even happier …. I absolutely loved the color on the island. It even has some shiny {blingy} opalescent specks.

 I will post some after pictures tomorrow..when I clean up my kitchen and stage it.

temptation

For a girl who is trying not to shop, I am having a hard time staying away...temptation...it does that to you.

so I decided to post on it...sometimes when you are trying to accomplish something, things purposefully try to distract you from your intentions... do I succumb or hold strong..I have a choice to make..

So let me show you what is causing this distress...

I love boots...ever since I was little...I wish I had a copy of a picture of me when I was 5 years old wearing knee high red boots...I remember them and I loved them!

I am soooo wanting a pair of these

But given they almost cost the same as this

 

I don't know if I could justify the cost...but I like them...a lot! I am torn, something for me or for my dining room. I have had my eye on this chandelier for a while... I don't really care for our current chandelier, {honestly I've never liked it but it served as lighting}

decisions..decisions..

valentine’s day

 

my boys are my valentines… I love them!

I bought these beautiful tulips at Fresh and Easy,

love that store.

we enjoyed a nice family dinner.

Hope you had a great one!

cozy places

This is one of my cozy places in my home, my bedroom.
I used my chaise to do homework while I was working on my master's degreee.
I also use it to read {not nearly enough}
but it mainly serves as a place to hold all my pillows at night.

My son also finds it his cozy place as well.

I don’t use my chaise nearly enough.

I think it is calling my name.

icing

Given my last bullet of my last post I decided to name this post icing. who doesn't love icing wether it is on cake, cupcakes, cookies or like my hubby-alone.

I have had a really busy week, and have been feeling a tad bit stressed out so for today i am going to focus on the icing in my life.

 I wanted to share this picture of a frame I made for valentines day. I had not done very much crafting the past couple of years. I forgot how much I enjoyed being creative. I need to do more, It's fun!

I like the colors so much I may just keep it all year long.

{I apologize for the quality of the picture}

The bible verse is 1 Corinthians 13:4.

Here's the verse I used

Love is patient,

Love is kind.

It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,

it keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil,

but rejoices with the truth.

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails.

1 Corinthians 13:4

Have a blessed Day!

things you should know about me

• i love animals, all of them except maybe snakes...ok i am afraid of snakes...but other animals especially farm animals are cute.
• i secretly wish to live on a farm, somewhere, anywhere....yeah a farmgirl, that would be fun. {hubby secretly wishes he could be a cheese monger after watching a show this weekend on the history channel about cheese, can't say I blame him, we love cheese.}





• i'd like to own chickens too {even if I don't have a farm} I think it would be fun to raise my own chickens and have my own eggs..like Martha Stewart

            Auracana Chickens give beautiful colored eggs

•  i hope to start a business with my hubby soon
• i love books and magazines. my favorite book when I was a child was "Charlotte's Web" and still is..
• i crave order....but don't consider myself anal or anything  {well, maybe I should ask my friends what they think about this}
• i hope to be at least a part time stay @ home mom..{i'm workin on it}
• i love God, my family, and friends.....everything else is icing on my cake

flowers

 flowers are one of my favorite things...I love them.

 These are one of my favorite flowers

ranunculus are beautiful..they look like roses but are more of a tuberous flower.

I especially love the hues of pink in this arrangement.

Look at this adorable garden valentine heart.

 you can find step by step instructions here

I might try to make one.

flowers make me happy!

chalkboard frame

I had been wanting a chalkboard frame after seeing one on a blog, I loved the look and thought it would look great in my dining room. I searched the Willies{Goodwill} for a frame and had no luck until I saw one in my sister’s garage. She parted with it and let me take it with the promise that I would continue searching for another frame and either give her this one or make her a new one. I scored! I took it home {hubby unwilling thinking it was more junk for the garage}. But like the good hubby he is, he went with it.

 He bought the spray paint and painted it.

He did all the work, except /I stained it to tone down the gold…was too shiny for my taste. At first, I wasn’t too sure about the gold {but lately I have been diggin’ it in frames especially}. Yesterday, hubby finished it and while I was out running errands he hung it for me {gotta love him}.

Whala..there it is.... and I absolutely love it!  just like I had envisioned it would look….fabulous!

Was a great weekend….now to get ready for the week..

Grace and peace to you friends!

goodies and give aways

While visiting My Sweet Savannah I came across her giveaway.

 Look at these wonderful goodies from My Sparrow.



For those of you who know me well, you know my affinity to baskets.

 {I used to be a Longaberger consultant..yeah, really}.

 I have to force myself to walk away from the baskets at Home Goods, IKEA, Marshalls....

but this wire tray is great.







this mercury glass birdie would look great in my garden





I have been into birds lately, especially owls {hmm, maybe that will be a later post}

 but aren't these birdies cute?





I want to win this! isn't it cute...I can just picture it on my island with fruit or veggies.
You could enter to win as well, just visit My Sweet Savannah.

all of the goodies featured are from here.
Enjoy!

blah!

have you ever felt blah.....I have been feeling like that all week. After all the festivities of my son's birthday...the party prep.. the baking...I was left pooped. Something about having my friends and family over is so energizing and tiring at the same time. We had a great turn-out and all the kids had so much fun. You can tell by this picture where all the shoes and socks are thrown everywhere.

Kids love jumpers.Whenever we have a party at home, a jumper is a must. 

I made this Indiana Jones cake with the giant boulder. It was fun to make. It tasted sooo yummy.I know because there was almost nothing left over but crumbs. I also baked cupcakes. It was interesting to see the kids preferences, some wanted cake some wanted cupcakes...and then some wanted both.. too cute!

We had such a great time. Birthday parties are a lot of work but definitley worth the smiles on the kids{and adults}faces.

I am ever so grateful to God for my Family.

{My boys are my biggest accomplishment}.

 Thank you for visiting.