New kitchen - progress pictures

Hubby has been doing a great job renovating our rather old fashioned kitchen.

We had minor flood which caused some damage, for which we got a tiny amount of insurance money.  A very kind person blessed us with the rest of the money to get a completely new kitchen.

A friend helping hubby find the right plumbing equipment

The best bit has to be ripping out the old kitchen!

The hard work begins!

Taking shape!

The cupboards were so hard to fit - we could have done with asking another man to help!

Looking good

Leak!

We have a leak in the kitchen.

I'd been lamenting why we were getting mould in the cupboards.  I'd clean them, made sure the kitchen was always well aired, but we were still getting this damp in certain cupboards.

Then this evening I walked into the kitchen and noticed that the lino was lumpy and had weird bubbles that I could squash with my feet.

Anyway, hubs pulled up the floor and lo and behold, the dishwasher water inlet pipe has been leaking under the lino for some time.  The floor is soaked and, when we started to pull them all apart we can see how the damp has damaged all the cupboards.

*sigh*

No wonder our water bill was so high!

Summer house

Today's job was to paint the summer house.

We all pitched in and it now looks lovely!

Before

After

Decorating

I've been decorating L's room.

I'm quite pleased with the paint effect, I was a little worried it would go wonky!

Photos are a bit rubbish due to the giant shiny window behind and shiny window on cabinet, but here's what I did this morning.

 I decided I'm fed up with glass cabinets in the kitchen (they have to be tidy all the time...I mean really! *chuh*)

 So, using some professional equipment (wrapping paper and L's sharpie) I have transformed the cabinet into somewhere we can hide all our stuff. Woo-hoo me! I love Scandinavian folk art, hence the designs.

Spaceship has landed in our kitchen!

Well, perhaps not a spaceship but my new washing machine.  I am unbelievably excited.  It washes 9KG OF CLOTHES!!!

Cacti Garden

NEVER sniff a cacti garden

Seven Quick Takes - Rotting beans, teenagers and tender mercies

Visit This Ain't the Lyceum

1.  If you read any of my other posts you will note that on Monday I proudly stated that I was soaking some beans and lentils for a homemade soup.  On Thursday I announced that on Wednesday I realised I'd forgotten that I was soaking the beans.  Thursday I went out to go give my Grandma a shower and clean her flat, on my return G announced that he had found the beans in the microwave and the slimey bean-water had overflowed all over the microwave.  He refused to throw the beans away, such was the smell.  And he was right - they smelled like feet and vomit.  How on earth did I manage to recount the beans tale and then forget to actually throw them away?  How?  It's a mystery to me to be sure.

I think I need to point out that I am not disgusting, we just don't use the microwave much and the beans were hidden. I do clean! :D

2.  My plans today are to do some cleaning and some ironing whilst I wait for a friend to let me know that she has the keys to their new house and then I'm going to go and help scrape some wallpaper for them.

3.  My eldest daughter has reached a peak of teenageryness.  Anyone who has teenagers will understand what this means.  But G and I mostly look like this:

Well, especially G what with him having a beard and all...and the fact that I would be wearing a top... haha

4.  I am waiting in trepidation for the washing machine to finish.  It has our bedding in and I just KNOW that it is not going to like it.  We got the washing machine with the house.  It's a small top-loading machine and for some reason, especially when it's doing our bedding it decides to announce that it needs servicing (well it doesn't announce it, a little red light comes on) and then it seizes up for half the day.

5.  We visited some friends at their caravan on Wednesday.  We had a lovely time chatting whilst the girls played with their daughter and some other kids from the campsite all day...well except for a time of teenageryness from Chatterbox who sat in the car for about three hours reading her book.  She did emerge when they announced they were going to play hide and seek.

6.  Whilst we were chatting we talked about various things and one of the things is forgiveness.  If Jesus died 'once for all' do we need to keep asking for forgiveness?  I say, "Yes".  I won't go into a big theological treatise as to why I believe this, because this is seven QUICK takes and would defeat the object of this meme.

7.  I've been thinking a lot about selfishness, self-less-ness, etc.  I read this Gentle Selfishness.  I'm not sure but they suggest that the Spiritual fruit of Gentleness can 'kill' gentle selfishness because it is 'not weakness but controlled strength'.  I always think of godly gentleness more like tender mercy, I think if I look at it like that, then mercy does kill selfishness.  Something to ponder.

Happy weekend!  

Happy Homemaker Monday - 15th September 2014

For more Happy Homemaker Mondays visit Sandra!

Breakfast time....what is on the plate this morning::::

This morning I had blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, Greek yogurt, linseed and granola.  Mmmm.  With a glass of apple juice and a black coffee.

On today's to do list::::

Go to grandma's whilst she has a shower and do her cleaning.
Helping Dad with decorating at their house.
Grocery shopping.
Taking Squidge to gymnastics and Chatterbox to her church youth group.

Currently reading::::

'Why, Despite Everything, Christianity can still make Surprising Emotional Sense' by Francis Spufford.

I've just finished 'Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes' by E. Randolph Richards and Brandon J. O'Brien, and 'One Thousand Gifts' by Ann Voskamp.  I'm hoping to do some Good Reads reviews, if I get time, and I'll post them here.

On the TV today::::

A History of Britain with Simon Schama and old episodes of NCIS.

The weather outside is::::

Very damp.

If I have a few minutes to myself, I will::::

Read! Yay!  Do some Good Reads reviews.


In the garden::::

Too damp to do anything today.  But I'm just trying to keep it tidy for when the new people move in, so nothing new being done.

Favourite photo[s] from the camera::::

Photos from our holiday in Devon.  I was playing around with 'Dramatic' setting on my camera.  I got some nice ol' spooky photos. :)

St Nicholas's church in Ringmore, Shaldon.  A 13th century chapel.

The obligatory yew tree found in ye olde churchyards in England.

A cottage in the village

Kingswear Castle on Dartmouth River

Eagle Owl, part of a falconry display at Powderham Castle

A stag at Powderham

Sunset view from our cottage garden

View towards our cottage, you can see the thatched roof at the end.

Homemaking Tip::::

Don't sweat the small stuff.  You're making a home not a mausoleum to display your stuff.

Visiting with Blog friends (blog you want to share, blog post that caught your eye)::::

Nothing off the top of my head right now. :)  Read lots of lovely stuff, but can't remember where LOL

Praying for::::

Moving house.  There's so much to do and the process is so slow.  Praying that all will go smoothly and that our new home will be very blessed.

My Mum who's suffering with her poly-myalgic-rheumatica.

My granddad.

My grandma who's seemed under-the-weather recently.

Some friends of ours who have asked for prayer.

That Scotland with stay in the union!


Bible Verse, Devotional that is resonating with me at the moment::::

Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. ~ Philippians 4:5

Oooh House Move Ahoy!

Well, we've accepted an offer on our house!!!

Thank you so much for your prayers.

Please, please, pray that this all goes smoothly and also that we choose the right house.  We have two that we love and one that we really like, just looking at figures and seeing what we can afford.  So excited!!

We've put an offer on one house and are waiting to see if it is accepted, but having viewed another we are now in a quandry.  Just want to make the right decision.

SO EXCITED!  I think I've said that already, but YAY!

xxxxx

Homemaking meme

Sandra has done a meme - and I haven't done one in years and I've been tagged, yay! :D

The rules are simple: Just copy the meme from my blog and post it on yours, answer the questions, and tag your friends if you wish.  You don't have to tag anyone, if I tag you, you are more than welcome to just play along, but do let me know so that I can come and read yours too :)

Most of my favourite blogs are 'tag free', but if any of my readers do this meme please let me know!

Plus, I just want to add, even though it's a 'homemaking' meme, you don't have to be a full-time housewife or anything to join in, we all have homes and most of us enjoy some aspect of making it nice - whether it's decorating, cooking, family get togethers, some people even like ironing...Sandra!...LOL

Aprons - Y/N If Y what does your favorite look like?
I have aprons, but I don't often wear them.  This is my fave, it's a bit vintage looking :)

Baking - Favorite thing to bake?

Fire! Da da daaaar!  I am renowned for my attention span issues in the kitchen.   Here is a little picture I have in my kitchen, which sums me up nicely! :)

 

I remember baking a cake for Squidge's 3rd birthday, it came out lopsided, and then all the pink icing ran off onto the plate. Haha.  Awesome! :)

Clothesline - Y/N

YES! There is nothing more satisfying than a line of washing hung out.  I love the look of it flapping in the breeze and the smell of it when you bring them in. 

Donuts - Have you ever made them?

No! See note on my baking above. Haha.

Everyday - One homemaking thing you do everyday?

Washing (laundry).  Wipe around the loo. Cooking.  Washing dishes.

Freezer - Do you have a separate deep freeze?

No.

Garbage Disposal - Y/N

No. Not something many of us Brits have.

Handbook - What is your favorite homemaking resource?

The internet I suppose and my lists! Lists, lists, lists!

Ironing - Love it or hate it?

I like it when it's done... :D 

Junk drawer- Y/N - Where is it?

Haha, yes we call it a 'man drawer' where all the batteries and screwdrivers and random nuts and bolts end up.

Kitchen - Color and decorating scheme?

Teal flowered wallpaper, blue tiles, white shaker style cupboards, butcher's block style worktops.

Love - What is your favorite part of homemaking?

Making a home for my family.  When it's all done and we have time together to talk and read and stuff!  I also like old fashioned stuff.  I have lots of doilies and my Nan's paintings around the place.  I like wood and natural things too.  I like a home to look comfortable.  I also rather like gardening, I'm not particularly knowledgeable, but I love flowers and watching bees. LOL

Mop - Y/N

Yes, but I don't like it.  Much prefer hands and knees because mops don't get into all the corners. But I do use my mop...it just isn't satisfactory! :D

Nylons - Wash by hand or in washing machine?

Nylons? Are we in the 1950s?  Haha. Well, if I wear tights (as we call them over here) I pop them in the washing machine.  Having to handwash makes my eye twitch. LOL

Oven - Do you use the window to check on things or do you open the door?

I open the door and every time the sudden rush of heat melts my eyelashes. 

Pizza - What do you put on yours?

Mmm, mushrooms, peppers, olives. YUMMY! Oh and mozzarella is the best cheese - stringy!

Quiet - What do you do during the day when you get a quiet moment?

Bible study, read, watch Morse.

Recipe Card Box - Y/N

No.

Style of house

Old fashioned. Lots of wood. Woodburner stove. Smells of lavendar and polish. Oh yes, that would be my fave.  Cottage garden. Or a Hobbit hole, I'd love to live in a Hobbit house. 

Tablecloth and napkins - Y/N

Tablecloth. 

Under the kitchen sink - Organized or toxic wasteland?

Washing powder, dishwasher tablets, various cleaning stuff...

Vacuum -  How many times per week? 

A few times a week, but not everywhere.  The stairs need a few times a week because they are red and show up every bit of muck.  Downstairs is done regularly because the girls trek in sawdust and hay from the guinea pigs!

Wash - How many loads per week?

At least 7!  I'm a bit obessessed with laundry, I think I've picked it up from my Mum.  I love my wooden pegs too, they remind me of my Nan: Beautiful Simplicity.

X's - Do you make a daily to do list and check it off as you do things?

Listomania!  Oh yes, I am LIST WOMAN!  I have lists for my lists.

Yard - Y/N - Who does what?

Yard? Over here a yard is a small flagged area, but I know this means garden.  Yes we have a garden and I generally do the gardening.  The hubster does mow the lawn on occasion and help with big stuff, like digging up bushes and the like.

Zzz's - What is the last homemaking task you do for the day before you go to bed?

Make sure the kitchen, living room and bathroom are respectable. :) Or, apply - what my dad calls - the 'sod it principle' and fall into bed instead.

Happy days. xx

Meter cupboard make-over

I'll wager not many statuses ...sorry posts (obviously in Facebook mode LOL)...have that as a title! :)

There were some ugly self-adhesive towel holders on the meter cupboard in the kitchen, so I decided to pull them off.  Bad idea! It took a load of paint with it.

So I made it all pretty, lol.  The sign says, 'Where there's smoke, you'll find me cooking dinner'.  I now have a place to hang my apron and tea-towel. :)

Blessed!

So pleased. My granddad has decided sell his house and he has allowed me to keep some things! I was totally bowled over that he would allow me to keep all these things.

Most of all I love that these things are not only beautiful but are filled with memories. Things to be treasured.

Firstly, the paintings.  These are all by my nan.  Those who have read my blog for a while know that Nan passed away in November 2010.  She and my granddad loved to draw and paint.  I've been given a number of Nan's paintings.  Here they are.  Sorry the photos aren't that great, they were taken with my phone camera and they have flash-reflection off the glass.

I've had this one for a while, but thought I'd share :)

Also had for a while.

Isn't this just beautiful?

This is a small picture, I think it's quite clever.

Nice farmyard picture.  It wasn't in a frame, so I found a frame I think suits it nicely.

I've had this one for a while, Nan didn't like it.  I'm not sure why.  I love it of course.

I'm going to have to ask Granddad where she painted these pictures. This one is quite interesting.

This one is in cellophane.  I'll have to find a frame.

Squidge has chosen this one for her room.  It is already framed, so it already hangs on her wall.  She's so chuffed.

Chatterbox chose this one, it needs a frame though.

Pretty, pretty cups.  One is smaller than the other...not sure why, wonder if one is a coffee cup and one is a tea-cup?   Written on the saucer it says, "Fashioned from the favourite pattern of Lord Francis Levenson-Gower, the first Duke of Ellesmere; a patron of the arts and a Knight of the Garter".

A pretty china set.  I didn't have time to lay it out properly, but you get the idea. :)

Beautiful silver plated cutlery set.

Oil lamp. Love it! Oh and the pretty crocheted mat.

I also got a pretty vase, some pretty drinking glasses, and an amazing marble chess set that I am too scared to put out in case the cat or the children knock it over! LOL.

So, so happy.  Such good memories and such pretty things.

Have a great week.