The Tall Skinny House

Please vote!

2012-02-04T08:51:00.000-05:00

My chalkboard backsplash has been selected as a finalist in Better Homes and Gardens photo of the week contest online. There are still 2 days to vote. Voting ends tomorrow, Feb. 5. If you have a moment, please vote for me! I would appreciate it. I am currently in first place! :) :)

http://photos.bhg.com/rooms/05/2012?esrc=nwphotofaves_rooms

Home sick

2012-01-26T13:47:00.000-05:00

I am home sick today, trying to rest up and get better. Perhaps I should take a cue from these two....

A casual update

2012-01-21T13:13:00.000-05:00

The dining room in our house is something I have been wanting to rework for a while. Again, getting more accustomed to the openness of our home's floor plan has taken some time. I did not want to make purchases that I would regret.

The dining set is my late grandmother's. Rob and I sanded this bad boy down and refinished it while we still lived in Pittsburgh. I love the sentiment of the set...but the chairs have really seen better days. They are wobbly and not terribly comfortable. So I decided to get new ones. They are from World Market. I LOVE World Market.

And replace end chairs with a cushioned bench (from Ballard Designs), which takes up less space and makes better sense in our home. As you can see, it is kitty approved. :)

Scaling the table down by removing a leaf and eliminating end chairs made room for these fabulous stools. Also from World Market.

A closer look....aren't they great? And they were on sale! Actually, everything was. :) :) :)

Another angle of the new, more casual dining space.

Santa brought me a new kitchen color

2011-12-29T11:08:00.000-05:00

Remember this? Our rusty/red kitchen? I've been wanting to get rid of it since we bought the house. We have finally gotten around to selecting colors for our first floor (it's so open that we really want it to feel cohesive and not have too many different shades going on).

Clearly, I like red with my red cookware and accessories. But red on red (or really, red on rust) was overkill.

So Rob got to work (under Brutus' careful supervision).....

And we have our first room painted! Take a look....

We like it so much better; now everything 'pops' against the lighter color. I ~~forced~~ suggested to Rob that we paint one room each month until we are done with what we want to do. And I got a handshake. ;)

Flour Power

2011-12-21T22:36:00.000-05:00

Corny title for this post...I know. A few months ago, I started ordering specialty flours online from King Arthur Flour. When I was in junior high school, I played Queen Guinevere in "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court". And now I am ordering flour from the company bearing the same name. Destiny? Perhaps....

I used their Pizza Perfect and Italian (00) flours in my last order for pizza crust. Both yield different results and I love having the variety depending on what we are in the mood for. I reordered those again, along with Sir Lancelot Flour for more experimentation. I also really like their semolina flour for fresh pasta (it works well with my Kitchen Aid pasta attachment).

If you have ever thought about trying specialty flours, take a look. This particular company has some good shipping deals going on for the holidays. I got free shipping on my last order, which was like getting a free bag of flour. Score! :)

Belated thanks

2011-11-27T20:42:00.001-05:00

As I have spent the last few days actually enjoying the holiday, I am late in blogging my thoughts on thankfulness. Learning today that a very old friend's husband must have a heart transplant (after being able to get around this for the past few years, but knowing it was eventually going to be a must) has made my heart heavy for her and her family. It has also made me feel thankful and blessed for the good things in my life.

I don't know exactly where I adopted this perspective, but I really do try to see the good in things every day. I always try to focus on what I have versus what I don't have. I think a lot of people share this perspective. Otherwise, it is far too easy (and stressful) to get caught up comparing your life to that of others, thinking of what you don't have, etc. I think, especially in these times that are tough for so many, we just need to get back to basics. So, that being said, I am thankful for many things...

1. My husband and our happy marriage (corny, but true)

2. Gratifying employment (which changed a few weeks ago and explains my absence of late....this is a high item on my list)

3. Good health for me and my loved ones

4. Our home :)

5. Our ability to take care of our needs...something that I know is a challenge for many...I am always, always grateful to have the basics covered (paying the mortgage, utility bills, putting food on the table, etc.)

6. Our two sweet kitties who make us laugh, and one sweet kitty watching down on us from heaven (I miss her every day, but am thankful that she is resting comfortably)

7. Our journey in South Carolina continues to be relatively smooth....a move I dreamed of and feared at the same time...very glad to be here and be enjoying it.

8. Palm trees outside my window (okay, that one is frivolous) ;)

9. Our military personnel for keeping us safe and sacrificing for us

10. Thankful to be able to make this list and have so many blessings to be counted.

I hope each of you feel as blessed this season. I am keeping that old friend close to my heart tonight and in my thoughts and prayers. And hoping her husband's health will soon make it to her list of things to be thankful for.

Happy, happy Thanksgiving to each of you.

Halloween humor

2011-10-25T22:33:00.000-04:00

As seen on a carriage ride through Charleston this weekend (highly recommended, by the way, if you are ever in Charleston, SC)....

It's fun to see that even people living in multi million dollar homes have a sense of humor. :)

Chalkboard paint backsplash

2011-10-16T10:47:00.000-04:00

To say I love chalkboard paint would be a gross understatement. I love it. It's fairly inexpensive and just flat out charming. I have chalkboard tags on baskets in my house, a chalkboard wall in my kitchen, chalkboard paint on my pantry door, a chalkboard in our guest room, etc. It's a craze that started in our Pittsburgh house (http://kristinandrobs.blogspot.com/2009/04/virutes-of-chalkboard-paint.html) and has continued here. Heck, I'd probably affix a chalkboard tag to Rob if he'd let me. ;)

As we are finally settling on some paint color ideas, we picked a color that we think will be good for the kitchen. Then Rob had THE BEST idea...why not paint the painted area of our back splash with chalkboard paint? BRILLIANT!! I got right to it. A few hours and three coats of chalkboard paint later, here it is....

Fireplace Facelift

2011-10-08T22:13:00.000-04:00

Several months ago, we printed out a bunch of those $10 off a $50 purchase at Lowe's coupons to buy some tile to dress up our fireplace (below). Those coupons are great. The Lowe's employees may have wondered why we kept coming back and forth to buy more tile and use new coupons. But that is okay.

It's not a bad fireplace, but we wanted something different. Even if it means storing my cute fireplace screen (that I went to every Target in Pittsburgh years ago to track down) up in the attic.

I ~~harassed~~ asked Rob if we could finally get this project done last weekend. And so he did.

Here is the result:

It's taken a few days to get used to how much lighter it looks, but we are enjoying it. Now onto the next item on the 'honey do' list....;D

Fall decor around the house

2011-10-04T21:15:00.000-04:00

Home decor on the cheap

2011-09-28T10:07:00.001-04:00

I love finding inexpensive things to turn into decor around our house...especially when those items have personal meaning.

Skeleton key from our Pittsburgh house, placed in a shadow box...

Part of a burlap 'olive oil' bag that I found on clearance at Pottery Barn, framed in our dining room

Here are a few things next to our pantry door....

The front from a bag of coffee we got in Mexico on our honeymoon 9 years ago...

...and the back of that same bag

Recipe: Black raspberry and balsamic glazed pork tenderloin

2011-09-25T15:34:00.000-04:00

I love this pork, and it's a great weeknight recipe. I usually make our dinner in the morning since I go into work later and get home later. This is quick to throw together and put in the oven.

Pork tenderloin

-1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
-about 2 tablespoons of black raspberry preserves (or another flavor you like, such as strawberry or raspberry)
-about 1 tablespoon of dijon mustard
-kosher salt and black pepper

Trim a pork tenderloin of excess fat and silver skin and place in a baking pan (I use Reynolds Release foil for easy clean up...this sauce does get sticky). Sprinkle with kosher salt and a healthy dose of black pepper (I like the bite of the pepper with the sweeter sauce).

Now, mix the balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard and preserves in a small food processor until well blended. You can certainly mix this by hand, too. The mini prep just makes it blend a bit better.

Now, pour the sauce over the pork and place in a 400 degree oven for about 45 minutes. I check mine every 15 minutes and re-baste the pork with the sauce as it starts to thicken. When this is done, the pork is coated in a thick, tangy and sweet glaze. It's delicious! Slice very thin and serve. This glaze also works well for grilled chicken.

Before and during pics: Kitchen

2011-09-10T15:23:00.008-04:00

Here are some pictures of our kitchen before we moved in....

As you can see, it has many good points that we were happy to inherit. I love the lay out and the extra large cabinets hold more than I expected.

But...the builder grade appliances and countertops were a no go. Which was fine with us...we already planned to bring appliances from Pittsburgh (some we had, some we purchased for this house at Sears Outlet). And the ugly gray laminate gave us the chance to get exactly what we wanted when we replaced it.

Here are the pics of our kitchen now, which is pretty done except for paint. I keep floundering between keeping it a darker color (still, not this one) or going lighter. I am leaning towards the latter...perhaps a nice butter yellow. Tan would be a safe choice, but we had it in Pittsburgh and I want something different. I have been drawn to rooms with lighter, soothing colors lately. Feel free to weigh in!

We replaced all the cabinet hardware, appliances, changed the countertops, sink and faucet added a backsplash...and of course...all that builder grade lighting was the first thing to go. And most of the above mentioned items were purchased at outlets or at great discounts.

My chalkboard menu returned (of course!!)....

Prior to our move south, we got this island and shelving at Ikea (boo, no Ikea in Charleston) so we'd have it when we got here. It fits perfectly and makes a nice addition to the kitchen.

Before and during pics- dining room

2011-09-06T11:30:00.006-04:00

I was chatting with a friend last week about how, were it not for time and money, it would be great to get all of your home repairs, etc. done at once.

In our new house, we've done a few things, which I will share over the next few posts. But the big thing, the easiest thing to do is the one thing we have not done...and that is paint. All of our paint colors were selected by the PO of our house. Some of them we like and will not change. But I think what I am having a harder time with, this time around, is how open our house is. With less wall space, I don't want the colors to be too different and jarring from room to room. But we need to do something with them.

In the meantime, we have changed every single light fixture and faucet in the house (okay, I lied...we left our closet and the laundry closet alone). Light fixtures can make SUCH a difference in how a room looks.

Take our dining room for example. Here is what it looked like when we bought the house:

The existing light fixture, while not horrible, was also not anything special. Rob found a great lighting place that was having an annual close out shortly after we moved in. The day we went, my heart skipped a beat when I spotted this mission style fixture outside under a tent (see picture below).

I actually made a fool of myself running over to it to stand guard, like a herd of people may suddenly appear out of nowhere and want this light (get a hold of yourself Kristin- they did not want it or it would not be on clearance...ha, ha). For years, I admired a similar looking fixture from Rejuventation, but could not bite the bullet and pay the hefty price tag for it.

$40 later, this great fixture was ours, and has spiffed up the dining room, which you can see below in it's "during" state. The "after" will include new paint and wainscoting...someday. :D

Dishtowel "curtains"

2011-08-29T10:33:00.003-04:00

Lately, I've been thinking that a cute set of curtains would look nice across the front of my island, which has open shelving. It looks fine as is, but I thought the curtains would add a homey touch. And, I had something similar in our house in Pittsburgh.

I found curtains in Pottery Barn that I liked, but did not really want to spend upwards of $50 on this project.

And then...I went to Target and found these ADORABLE dishtowels. The colors are exactly what I had in mind. 4 dishtowels, ring clips and a tension rod later, and now I have this:

I'm sorry, but how charming are all those whisks across the bottom? LOVE THEM!

I used 6 ring clips per towel, and then mounted the tension rod on the underside of the butcher block on the island.

This little project came in at under $20 and is more personalized than buying curtains out of a catalog. Love it!

Magnolia Plantation

2011-08-20T09:44:00.005-04:00

Yesterday, I visited Magnolia Plantation with my sister and nieces, who were in town visiting us this week. I had not been here yet, and it was beautiful! Take a look at a few of the many pictures I took; there will be more to come in future posts.

Bite sized beach grub

2011-07-31T09:21:00.006-04:00

I never used to fry much at home, as I dislike (ok- hate) the smell of vegetable oil in my house. HATE IT. Ew. I know there are other options, but vegetable oil is the cheapest.

Well, after frying with peanut oil a few times, I have decided that it's well worth the extra money, and it can be an occasional treat (if I can muster the self control to not deep fry everything! Ha, ha).

Rob and I typically hit the beach every Sunday. Often, we go to our favorite place, Poe's Tavern (http://www.poestavern.com/), when we are there. But every so often, I like to pack some food for us. These fried chicken bites are perfect for the beach, since they are bite size and tasty hot or cold.

Fried Chicken Bites:
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2-3" bites (you'll get 4-6 bites per breast)
3 eggs
1 cup flour
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 quart Peanut oil
Kosher salt

1. Preheat peanut oil in a saute pan (higher sides will control splattering a bit). The oil should be 350 degrees.
2. Combine the flour and spices with a pinch of kosher salt.
3. Dunk the chicken pieces in the eggs, then the flour mixture, then repeat (so egg-flour-egg-flour). Yes, I like the batter. Place battered chicken pieces on a plate.
4. Place 4-5 chicken pieces in the oil and fry for about 8 minutes total (turn over half way through). Check the oil temperature to ensure that it does not drop below 350.
5. Remove chicken bites from oil and transfer to a wire rack over a baking sheet lined with paper towels.
6. At this point, I like to check the internal temp of the bites to be sure they are done. Your thermometer should read 160 degrees (the temp may rise a bit during carry over cooking).
7. Finish the bites with a sprinkle of kosher salt while they are still hot.
8. I like to serve mine with honey mustard (equal parts dijon mustard and honey).

Enjoy!

Recipe: Southern supper

2011-04-28T16:09:00.009-04:00

I bought this new cookbook last weekend and anxiously got to work trying some new recipes. After all, I do live in the south now, and this book looked amazing.

Pork tenderloin is one of my go-to weeknight meals. With my schedule being a bit different now (go in to work later and get home a bit later), I make our entire dinner in the morning before work, so we can just heat and eat at night. I refuse to sacrifice good meals because we get in a bit later!

Molasses pork tenderloin (adapted slightly, from Sara Foster's Southern Kitchen)

2 tenderloins, seasoned with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
1/4 cup bourbon
1/4 cup strong coffee, cooled
2 TBSP balsamic vinegar
2 TBSP molasses
2 TBSP fresh thyme

The cookbook calls for the pork to be grilled, and to be coated with the above mixture, with the addition of olive oil. I omitted the oil in favor of a thicker glaze. I mixed the ingredients, poured over the pork, and baked at 400 degrees for 45 minutes (internal temp should be 160-165 when you remove from oven).

Note: Baste the pork every 15 minutes or so to continue coating the pork with the glaze. Slice very thin and serve.

I made cheesy grits studded with chives alongside the pork. Grits are easy to make. Be sure to use a very good quality cheddar here (I love Cabot Vermont Cheddar- private stock).

Project: Master bath tile floor

2011-04-28T16:02:00.002-04:00

Out with the sheet vinyl and in with this cute tile. Rob popped out some of the white diamonds and replaced them with the glass mosaic tiles we got, in grids of 16, for 39 cents a piece at Lowe's. Now that is a bargain!!

Recipe: Cinnamon Sugar Scones

2011-04-10T12:27:00.008-04:00

I decided to dress up a plain scone recipe for our breakfast this morning. Enjoy!

Scones (Adapted from Kitchen Aid Baking Companion cookbook)
2 c flour
2 4 TBSP sugar
2 TBSP cinnamon
2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup butter, softened
pinch of salt
1 egg
1/2 cup heavy cream

Glaze

Powdered sugar
Milk

1. Preheat oven to 425.
2. Mix the first 6 ingredients in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (if you don't have one, you could certainly do this by hand in a bowl with a wooden spoon; it will just take a little longer). Mix on LOW until ingredients are incorporated and form a pasty dough, about 1 minute.
3. Add the wet ingredients (egg and cream), and mix another 30 seconds on LOW until the dough forms.
4. Dump dough on counter and knead 3-4 times to finish forming. Separate into 8 triangles (cut like a pizza) or round (with a biscuit cutter).
5. Bake 10-12 minutes at 425.
6. While the scones bake, mix powdered sugar and milk to desired consistency. When scones are cooled, drizzle over the scones (I keep applying the glaze in layers until I run out).

A photo tour of Summerville

2011-04-10T11:47:00.011-04:00

Here are photos of some of the charming homes in downtown Summerville. I will have to go downtown to take more of the cute shopping district. There is one above, but it is not a great picture (I took it while trying to keep moving during the Flowertown Festival). Look at all the gorgeous blooms; it is really beautiful here right now!

Flowertown Festival 2011

2011-04-10T11:34:00.005-04:00

As we approach being in our house one year, we had our first opportunity to attend the Flowertown Festival in our town of Summerville, SC. This festival is a pretty big deal around here, and is named one of the "Top 20 Events in the Southeast".

As you can see from the picture, the festival draws quite a crowd (around 250,000 in 3 days!). There are many artists and food vendors at the festival. It was very enjoyable, and we will definitely be returning next year!

Check out the cute sign I purchased from one of the vendors (over the pantry door). :)

We're back, the sequel :O

2011-04-10T11:32:00.000-04:00

I know, I know....it has been a LONG hiatus. We moved, I did a few posts, and poof, I disappeared again. But now I think I am ready to continue blogging, and I might actually have a thing or two to post about now that life continues to calm down and we have a few projects done, and a few coming up.

Keep checking back!

From builder grade to better

2010-08-21T22:16:00.007-04:00

It's not the worst faucet in the world. It's a Delta, and it works fine. But it is pretty 'builder grade'...and I am pretty sure everyone on our street has the same one!

So, we put 2 of these in our master bath instead...

Check out the pull down sprayer, just like a kitchen faucet! It makes cleaning the sinks so much easier.

Next project: tiling the guest bathroom floor

Turkey meatloaf

2010-08-18T21:16:00.002-04:00

It was good....just ask Woody. ;)

Menu highlight

2010-08-17T11:05:00.007-04:00

This is tonight's menu...it's raining on and off, I have a later start for work today, and felt like some 'comfort' food.

Twice Cooked Turkey Meatloaf (courtesy of Claire Robinson, 5 Ingredient Fix)
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/claire-robinson/twice-cooked-turkey-meatloaf-recipe/index.html

I don't plan to cook it twice...just once...but the sun dried tomatoes sounded like a great alternative to ketchup. I have had good turkey meatloaf with tomato paste, but this smelled more flavorful as I put it together.

Barley Pilaf (at least that is what I am calling it)...just threw some veggies (carrots, white mushrooms and yellow onion) in a pan with some fresh sage and a pinch of kosher salt and cooked until veggies got soft, about 10 minutes.

I added some barley that I already cooked in chicken stock to the pan and added some chicken stock to blend all the flavors. Just heated on low for a few minutes to get everyone acquainted. ;) A little dash of pepper and it's done. It tastes good!

I'll let you know how the turkey meatloaf turns out after we actually eat it; the picture is the uncooked version that is now in the fridge, and the pureed sun dried tomatoes go on top during the last few minutes of cooking...mmmm. :)

Simple can be good

2010-08-03T11:26:00.001-04:00

Last night's menu: BLT sliders with macaroni salad. I realize this is not rocket science. But it does contain bacon...and bacon is good. :)

We discovered this great local burger place called "Matt's Burgers" just a hop, skip and a jump from our house. They make fantastic burgers. But they take their bacon and crumble it very fine, and then dump it ALL OVER the burger. It is awesome. And not as messy as you'd expect. So I crumbled my bacon for some sliders, which turned out to be pretty easy to eat, vs. a regular BLT sandwich. Mmmm....

Macaroni salad (for 2-4), modified, from America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook

1/2 lb elbow mac
1 hard boiled egg, chopped
1 stalk celery finely chopped
about 1/2 cup mayo
1 tablespoon dijon
3-4 tablesppons pickle relish (to your taste)
kosher salt and pepper

Pretty straightforward...mix and enjoy.

Enjoy!

We're baaaaack!!

2010-08-02T16:57:00.003-04:00

What a terribly cheesy and unoriginal title, right? I know. But we are...back, that is. After an extended blogging absence, I don't even know if anyone will notice. But anyway, here goes.

So, as you may have seen in a previous post, we moved from Pittsburgh, PA to Summerville, SC (about 20 miles west of Charleston). Now, here in SC, the first question I get is...why? Is your husband in the military? No. Oh, so you moved for jobs? Um, not exactly. So, why did we move? Plain and simple...because we wanted to. We were ready for a new adventure. Truthfully, we have talked about moving south for a few years. But worries (mostly mine) kept us in Pittsburgh. What if we don't like it? What if something happens to someone in our family? What if we hate it? Anyone who has ever moved anywhere can relate, right? Then we (ahem, I) finally got over it and decided life is too short for what ifs. And my very smart and wise dad told me to stop worrying...most of the things I worried about would not be completely in my control regardless of where I lived. So here we are. And we like it. We are glad we did this. Don't get me wrong, it has been stressful in so many ways. Losing our sweet cat Chloe was a terrible way to transition. We miss her dearly, but we know she is okay. I feel sure of that...I believe she has found a few ways to let us know that. So here we are...things are calmer and we are starting to feel more settled.

We love our neighborhood...quite the change from our 1930's house in Pittsburgh. An old house here was not in our price range. So we got a newer house that looks older and has some charm. And we plan to continue adding to that. Now that we know where the hammer and screwdriver are. :)

The neighborhood is great...full of ponds, walking trails and lots to take in. We ride our bikes, we walk, we swim every weekend...things we never did before on a regular basis. It is what we wanted...a change in lifestyle.

There are things I miss...I miss that old house, with it's beautiful stained glass windows and old soul. I miss looking around with pride to see all the work we did. I miss friends. But friends are friends no matter where you go.

I love our new home though, for different reasons. My kitchen is bigger...a huge plus for me. I plan to post more recipes regularly on here now. I actually really like the openness, much to my surprise. Different, but a good different. I love laundry that is not in a basement. :)

As for the change in the blog's title, it just made sense. Someone familiar with my neighborhood was asking where I lived in here, and when I told her, she said, 'oh, in one of the tall, skinny houses?' So there you have it. But the web address is still the same...way to much effort to change everything!

So here we are in a new home with a new adventure ahead of us. After all, home is where Rob and the kitties are. And so now, this is home.

Welcome to our new home. Hope you will stop back again soon.

Rest in peace, beautiful Chloe Miss

2010-03-31T09:59:00.006-04:00

I am writing this post with a heavy heart. Our sweet cat Chloe passed away early in the morning on March 25, 2010 at the age of 15. I have not had the heart to post about this until now. We are in transition between Pittsburgh, PA and Summerville, SC, as we cannot close on our SC house until late April. We are staying with friends in Wilmington, NC. Our sweet girl made the journey with us to our hotel in SC (to put our things in storage) and then here. She stayed with us for 3 days here before going to Heaven. If you have ever had a pet, you can understand, our hearts are broken.

I got Chloe in January 1999, just a bit over 4 months after I got out of college. Chloe was about 4 when I adopted her, and I had her for 11 years and 2 months. She was sweet, could be shy at times, but sassy and funny at others. She was the light of our days (along with her brothers).

Chloe loved to snuggle with her brothers Woody (above, center) and Brutus (above, left). She snuggled with Woody, but, even at her old age, she loved to play with Brutus and was so feisty.

It is hard to make peace with her passing, but my aunt said something that brought me some comfort. She told me that she has had animals leave her during times of transition in her life. Chloe has had her ups and downs the past 9 months (ironically, about the length of time we considered and planned a move to South Carolina), and old age had set in. Her personality was so beautiful and bright, but she was getting older, and we noticed small changes over time (although her last visit to the vet brought back normal test results on every single test they ran on her). So, I would like to think that Chloe stayed with us to see us through to this next part of our lives, to see the town we would be living in, to meet friends she had never met, and to make sure that we would be okay, that we had people to watch over us in this new journey. When she was satisfied, she decided it was time for her to rest in Heaven.

I found this poem online, and it it hard for me to read, but also brings me some comfort.

I Am Always With Her

And God asked the feline spirit, "Are you ready to come home?"

"Oh, yes, quite so," replied the precious soul, "And, as a cat, you know I am most able to decide anything for myself."

"Are you coming then?" asked God.

"Soon," replied the whiskered angel, "But I must come slowly, for my human friend is troubled For, you see, she needs me, quite certainly."

"But doesn't she understand?" asked God, "That you'll never leave her? That your souls are intertwined. For all eternity? That nothing is created or destroyed? It just is....forever and ever and ever."

"Eventually she will understand," replied the glorious cat, "For I will whisper into her heart that I am always with her, I just am....forever and ever and ever."

We love you and we miss you terribly, Chloe. We hope you are resting peacefully with a healthy body, eating all the delicious treats you want, sitting in the sun and enjoying a warm breeze. You will always be in our hearts and in the memories we will cherish forever.

Rest in peace, beautiful Chloe
1995-March 25, 2010
You will be in our hearts forever.

Such a slacker

2010-03-14T11:46:00.003-04:00

At this point, I don't even know if anyone is reading this blog, since I haven't posted anything in soooo long. But that is the byproduct of packing and preparing to move. I do miss blogging about home improvement projects, favorite recipes, etc. But, time has just not allowed for blogging lately. Sigh. Hopefully I can get back on track once we get settled into our new life.

So, we did sell our house in Pittsburgh...the first day it went on the market. We were stunned!!! Our Realtor did not think it would take long, but holy cow! There have been a few snags along the way (LONG story that I don't want to rehash), but everything turned out fine. We have a great silver lining...we got full asking price (which we did not expect) and we are getting that returning home buyers tax credit...and we are getting the house we really wanted (see picture!), in Summerville, SC (about 25 miles west of Charleston). We do have a period of 3 weeks where we will have to stay in an extended stay hotel before we can get into our new house, but in the big scheme of things, it is not that bad. Heck, my parents moved 10 miles and had to live in a hotel for about a month, so it happens. We are excited to embrace a warmer climate and spend more time outside. Our new community has a pool, walking trails, tennis courts, etc. We even picked up tennis rackets at TJ Maxx. That should be a sight for the new neighbors...watching my poor hand/eye coordination. Ha, ha, ha...;)

Summerville is a great little town with a terrific main street and lots of historic homes...perfect for us. Now, granted, we are not buying one of those historic homes (waaaay out of our budget), but we are getting a newer home that is built to look 'old'. It even has a detached garage, just like an old house. That seems to be the way things are done in this area, and we love it. No cookie cutter boxes, please.

We are excited for our new adventure as we live among boxes and prepare to move. Our big move is next Saturday. We will take a few weeks to relax before starting our jobs. We will stay with friends in Wilmington, NC. A little vacation before the chaos begins!

So, hopefully in the next few months, I will get settled and have some new adventures to blog about! Until then, take care!! :)

The blog is moving south

2010-01-09T14:07:00.003-05:00

Well, it certainly has been a while since I have posted anything. That is because we have been busy...preparing to move. Rob and I have always talked about living in a warmer climate, and, a few months ago, I accepted a position in Charleston, SC. So in the next week or so, our house will officially go on the market.

This is all bittersweet. We are excited for the move and our upcoming adventure, but at the same time, we have put so much into this house, our first house, and we love it.

I can only hope that the person who buys this house from us will love it and care for it as we have. :)

Pasta anyone?

2009-11-30T22:46:00.002-05:00

After months of milling over it, I decided to break down and buy Kitchen Aid's new pasta attachment at Williams-Sonoma. If you like fresh pasta and want a quick and easy way to make it, well, here it is! I LOVE this product!! I used it for the 2nd time tonight and felt compelled to write about it. It is AWESOME! :) :) :)

Click here to see a video of it in use...

http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/e223/?pkey=celectrics-kitchenaid|eltkadatt

Gotta love a bargain!

2009-11-08T21:53:00.003-05:00

Don't you just love it when you find a great, unexpected bargain, or surprise? I sure do!

Check out these great LeCrueset bowls that I found recently at Tuesday Morning...I did not even know LeCreuset made mixing bowls. They are nice and sturdy. Oh how I just love my LeCrueset...:)

And look at this fun little 'locker' crate that I eyed at Target for weeks, before snagging it on clearance...sweet.
I found another great wire basket on clearance at Target, but I will have to share a picture of that in a future post (it is too dark to take a picture now, as it is on my front porch).

:)

DONE!!

2009-11-08T21:49:00.002-05:00

It has been a while, hasn't it? :-)

I wanted to share this picture of the back of the house...we finally finished our paint job on the back of the house a few weekends ago. Phew!!

Comfort food

2009-10-11T22:14:00.002-04:00

A cool fall day is the perfect time for comfort food. :-) The recipe below is delicious and perfect for a cool fall day. It is terrific left over, too. And that is exactly what I am doing. I made a big pot of this tonight for our dinner tomorrow night. :-) And a little apple crumb pie for dessert never hurt anyone!

Sausage and Lentil Stew (recipe courtesy of Katie Lee Joel, although I have made a few modifications)
3 carrots
2 celery stalks
1 small yellow onion
bay leaf
1 pound of sausage, casings removed, cut into bite size pieces
1 bunch of kale, washed and chopped
8 oz lentils
6 cups chicken stock
2 cans (28 oz total) tomatoes with juices OR (1) 14 oz can tomato sauce
3 slices of bacon
salt and pepper to taste

Chop bacon and saute over medium heat until crisp
Remove bacon from pan, and add chopped veggies and bay leaf. Saute over medium-low heat until soft, about 10 minutes
Add chicken stock, lentils, sausage, tomatoes (or sauce) and kale. Turn up heat and bring mixture to a boil.
Once boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer for one hour.
Ladle into bowls and top each serving with crispy bacon pieces.
Enjoy! :)

Have some soup!

2009-09-23T15:15:00.010-04:00

Well, let's face it, there has not been much for me to post about lately in the way of home improvement projects. So, you are gettng a recipe post. :) I had a large amount of potatoes to use up, so I made 2 large batches of potato soup this weekend. The recipe below will make about 2.5 quarts of soup. Here is what I did.

1. Peel and cube 4 large yukon gold potatoes.
2. Add 3 Tbsp. of butter to a preheated pot, then add the potatoes, kosher salt and pepper, 4 chopped sage leaves and the leaves from 2 sprigs of thyme.
3. Sautee until the potatoes are golden brown, about 5 minutes.
4. Add 6-8 cups of chicken stock (depending on how thick/thin you like your soup).
5. Simmer over medium heat until the potatoes are fork tender, about 12-15 minutes. Turn the stove off.

6. Use an immersion blender (one of my favorite kitchen tools!) to puree the soup. If you like chunks of potato, just pulse with the blender several times, and you will have a creamy soup with some chunks.

7. Stir in 1 cup extra sharp cheddar chesse and 4 strips of bacon that have been pan fried (cut the bacon lenthwise, then into cubes before cooking to get a nice amount for the whole pot).

This soup turned out tasty, and it does not have any cream, so maybe it is a bit more figure friendly than regular potato soup (which leaves room for more bacon and cheese...LOL).

Enjoy! :)

All better

2009-09-18T17:04:00.000-04:00

I just wanted to share a quick update on Chloe. She is doing great! It has been (knock on wood) 2 weeks since she had any accidents, etc. She looks better, is acting like her old self, and, as you can see in the picture, is even feeling feisty enough to spend some time on the deck outside. :)

I heart Ikea

2009-08-20T14:20:00.003-04:00

After months of pondering about improved storage and organization in our kitchen, I finally went to Ikea last week and did something about it! First, I picked up this handy magnetic knife rack. Rob came up with the great idea to place it inside a cabinet door (so you do not come in the kitchen and see a wall full of sharp knives...a bit intimidating!). This freed up a nice chunk of real estate on the counter next to our stove, as the knife block I have, while really nice, takes up a lot of room! This is much better!

Onto the back of the kitchen...we had lots of usable wall space above our table and chairs that I was craving better function for. I picked up 2 more Grundtal shelves at Ikea to join the one we already had...and presto! More storage that was desperately needed! It was inexpensive and makes use of wall space that was going to waste!

I love the ability to use these shelves as shelves, but also the ability to hang utensils, etc. from them. So clever...I am so glad I got more of these! You may recall that I have one hanging over my window by our sink...it is a shelf and doubles as a curtain rod(http://kristinandrobs.blogspot.com/2008/10/idea-from-better-homes-and-gardens.html ).
I just love double duty solutions! :)

Chloe Miss

2009-08-20T13:42:00.003-04:00

So, I have been MIA for a few weeks. Our cat, Chloe, has been having a bit of a hard time lately. I had her at the vet a few weeks ago, right before our vacation, for what appeared to be a UTI. Everything checked out normally, but the vet gave us a prescription just in case, which really seemed to help. But, over the last few days, we have had trouble with accidents outside the litter pan...again. Chloe (a.k.a. Chloe Miss) is 14, and so we think old age is setting in. Of course, I have read everything I can on cat behavior (I am a behavior analyst, after all!) and have made a few changes based on some suggestions I have found online. In the meantime, if you read this blog, please send a positive thought in Chloe's direction! We would really appreciate it! :)

Back from vacation

2009-08-02T21:36:00.003-04:00

Rob and I got back from our vacation in North Carolina yesterday. We had a fun, relaxing week. Why can't there be more weeks like that in the year?

While we were away, I picked up this cute antique kitchen scale in an antiques store. I saw it and just had to have it. And, from what I have seen on Ebay, I got a good deal on it! :) I love old kitchen scales and would love to collect more of them, if I had the room to display them! For now, this will join my newer, functional kitchen scale.

I hope you all had a great week! I have some blog reading to catch up on! :)

On a mission for new house numbers

2009-07-17T10:14:00.002-04:00

As you saw a few posts back, we got rid of our old mailbox, that, while cute, became very pitted. We had our house number on that mailbox, and decided to take advantage and get some nicer house numbers, and come up with a way to mount them someplace besides the mailbox.

So, here is what Rob came up with! We got these nice mission style house numbers at Restoration Hardware (FYI, if you go to the store to order them, the shipping to your home is free!). While we were taking down our shed last year, we came across a few nifty items, including what appears to be a panel from an old door. We kept it, thinking we would sand and refinish it and use it for some decorative purpose. So here it is, freshly sanded and stained, and serving as a beautiful backdrop to our new house numbers.

Look at the lovely detail on this door panel and the grain of the wood. They just don't make 'em like they used to, that is for sure!

Happy Anniversary

2009-07-12T23:19:00.002-04:00

Rob and I celebrate our 7 year anniversary on July 13. :) I am grateful for a happy marriage, a best friend and someone I truly look forward to being with every day. Happy anniversary, honey. :)

Did I ever mention...?

2009-06-25T09:40:00.006-04:00

...how much I love the Restoration Hardware and Pottery Barn outlets?

Ha, ha...of course I have....;)

Last weekend, we stopped there during a visit to my parents' house. We got this nice new mailbox (our old one, while cute, got all nasty and pitted....hopefully this one will fare better).

Remember the magazine rack I put in my kitchen to hold my cookbooks? We love it, so we got a 2nd one for our entry hall. This was actually holds magazines. It is so nifty and barely takes up any space (depth wise). Very handy...

And last but not least, the light that Rob and I have always admired, but were not willing to pay full price for. Our patience paid off, and we got this beauty at the RH outlet for a great price. :) It matches our living room sconces!

Thank goodness we don't live closer to these outlets (they are about 4 hours from us), or I could be in serious trouble. ;)

There, that's better

2009-06-25T09:33:00.003-04:00

Here are some after photos of the porch floor, following a good cleaning, scraping, and a fresh coat of paint.

Much better, wouldn't you say? :)

Pretty? or Pretty ugly?

2009-06-24T13:36:00.004-04:00

No, pretty would not be the word to describe the current state of our porch floor. Pretty ugly would be more accurate! But I am doing something about it, and will post after pictures later on! :)

Garden

2009-06-22T15:23:00.001-04:00

When I went out to water my garden today, I saw that the cucumbers, tomatoes, and celery made some nice progress this weekend (while we were away). Yippee!!! I'll post pics later on! :)

Congratulations Pens and Pittsburgh!

2009-06-16T21:55:00.004-04:00

Rob and I headed down to the Pens rally on Monday to celebrate their Stanley Cup victory! It was CRAZY; an estimated 375,000 people attended. Check out the pictures of people spilling out of any place they could!

What a great time for Pittsburgh....a Super Bowl victory and a Stanley cup in one year, being named America's most liveable city for the 3rd year straight (by a different publication each time) and preparing to host the G20 summit in September! :)

I am not a Pittsburgh native, but I am proud to call this diverse, reasonably priced, friendly city my home!

Painting progress

2009-05-25T20:55:00.008-04:00

Here are some pictures of the painting we did this weekend. We ended up selecting a dark brown color to give some 'pop' against the yellow/tan brick on our house.

Here is the flower bed....

A closer shot of the flower bed; see the paint behind it?

A shot of the side of our house...

Here, Rob wraps up the day's work. This section is what we have left to do (across the whole back of the house; it is not all in this picture). We have some stuff to clear out of the way from the shed remnants before the paint job will be complete. But we made some good progress this weekend, so I am pretty pleased. ..easy to say now, even though I mumbled and cursed under my breath several times while painting!! ;)

The yellow/tan brick house

2009-05-25T20:47:00.003-04:00

I know what you're thinking...wow, what a pretty wall of ugly old cinderblock. Yes, I know. It definitely needs a little freshening up. Rob and I have been back and forth about what color will actually compliment our yellow/tan brick house (which, by the way, I have never seen outside of Pittsburgh...anyone else?). We went paint shopping Saturday and got to work this weekend.

Stay tuned for more pics!

Drop cloth drapes on the porch!

2009-05-23T10:06:00.006-04:00

Well, Layla over at the Lettered Cottage has done it again. Her blog is one of my favorites to read. A while ago, she posted about making drapes out of drop cloths (http://theletteredcottage.blogspot.com/2009/04/dropcloth-drapes.html). Good idea, and I thought it would be neat to try, but I don't need any drapes in my house. But, I did want to do something on one side of my porch that faces my neighbor's uglyish (sorry) green and white metal awning, which you can see by clicking this link: http://kristinandrobs.blogspot.com/2009/05/finally.html. So I decided to try Layla's idea, since it was cheap and seemed easy. The drop cloths are also washable and pretty sturdy, and the side of our porch where I placed them does not get sun, so I think they will hold up well.

Here is what I did:
1. Purchased a tension rod that extends to 84" (I wanted 72") and drapery clips (2 sets of 14, ) at Bed, Bath and Beyond (all on clearance, thank you very much!)
2. Purchsed two 6 x 9' drop cloths at Lowe's (on sale...woohoo...every little bit counts)

I washed the drop cloths on gentle and dried them partially on low (just so they did not weigh a ton when I hung them). I used iron on hemming tape to hem the bottom of each drop cloth to a more reasonable length. I used 14 clips on each drop cloth. And here you have it:

A closer shot....

Of course, I can open them up if I want, but I thought this provided a nice backdrop, privacy, and protection from that metal awning. :) Plus the rest of our porch is open. I think it makes the porch, which I already loved, feel more like a real room. :)

Thanks Layla! :)

Lounging

2009-05-22T09:06:00.003-04:00

On a nice cool morning like this, it is not uncommon to find kitties lounging in the upstairs hallway, catching the breeze. ;)

What a tough life....:)

Finally...

2009-05-17T21:30:00.003-04:00

At long last...a day completely free of rain!! I finally got around to potting some herbs and getting some veggies into the garden out back.

You can see all my herbs lining the wall of our front porch; I decided to put them here this year because I have easier access to the front porch from the kitchen.

Here are some pots with larger herb plants and one tomato plant that is getting started in a pot (which I did last year and it turned out fine; it had to go somewhere during all that rain!).

Here are the different pepper plants that went into the garden out back today. There is still more to do out here, but hey, it is a start! I'll take it! ;)

Rain, rain....GO AWAY

2009-05-16T22:44:00.004-04:00

It has been a while since I have posted anything related to home improvement...because most of our current home improvement goals involve the outside of the house. But we cannot get anything done with the seemingly non-stop rain we have had here! Mother Nature, if you are reading this, it is not funny anymore. Time to turn the water works OFF. Sigh...

Before all the rain started, we did manage to finish taking down the little bit of our shed that was remaining, and get a new patio set in place. But the yard is NOT photo worthy yet, so pictures will come later. We have a lot more to accomplish in the yard. We picked up more herbs and veggies today (some have been planted already in containers; I am debating how much I want to put in the ground this year since most of it does not come back). During one break from the rainy weather, I noticed that the mint and chocolate mint, along with thyme, that I planted last year are coming up quite nicely in the garden.

The only good thing that has come from all this rain is the lovely flowers you see pictured in this post. During a break from the rain this morning, I snuck outside and got a little bit of work done with my herbs. I clipped some flowers to bring in the house when I was done. I do love having fresh flowers in the house. :)

The 5 day forecast is promising some sunshine and dry weather...we shall see. Fingers crossed!

Have a cookie

2009-04-21T20:48:00.004-04:00

I messed around in the kitchen this weekend and came up with a tasty cookie recipe. Enjoy!

Lemony white chocolate cookies

Cookie batter:
1 cup butter, softened
1 egg
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. lemon zest
2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
pinch kosher salt
1 heaping cup of white chocolate chips

Glaze (courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis):
zest of the rest of the lemon (from above)
juice of 1 lemon
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar (plus up to 3 extra tablespoons of pwdr. sugar if your lemon yields a lot of juice)
whisk all ingredients together and set aside

Directions:
Beat butter, egg and sugars, along with wet ingredients (extract and zest)
Gradually mix in the dry ingredients
Stir in chips

Bake cookies at 375 for 8-11 minutes

Allow cookies to cool and then top with the glaze (apply with a spoon and use the back of the spoon to spread). Allow cookies and glaze to sit for about an hour so glaze will harden.

The virutes of chalkboard paint

2009-04-10T08:54:00.016-04:00

Anyone who knows me or has been to my house knows of my love for chalkboard paint. A few years ago, I painted the door to our basement (from the kitchen) with chalkboard paint. I put our dinner menu on it each week. The photo on the top is a small shelf/chalkboard in our guest room. I like to write little messages on it when we have guests. In the photo on the bottom, you will see some chalkboard painted wine tags that I got on clearance years ago from Pottery Barn. I recently added them to my baskets in my kitchen. Aren't they cute?

Here is the door to our broom closet turned mini pantry. I use this for my grocery list. It looks so much cuter than when it was just plain white. ;)

These canisters were a clearance purchase from Marshall's a few years ago. To dress them up, I taped off an area on the front with painter's tape and added some chalkboard paint. It was a cheap and easy project. In many cases, canisters like this are expensive! Do it yourself; it is much cheaper! Disclaimer: there is no coffee or cocoa inside the canisters! They are empty! :)

This canister really does have cocoa in it. It was on clearance at Target (a.k.a. Tarjay!) for under $4!!

If you decide to paint any of your household surfaces with chalkboard paint, make sure you use a primer first (the directions for specific surfaces can be found right on the can). As a side note, using a damp microfiber cloth for cleaning really helps prevent streaking when you erase any writing. :)

Kitchen before and after

2009-04-03T16:33:00.005-04:00

All of this writing about little kitchen fixes made me think that I should upload some before and after shots of our kitchen.

This top photo is what our kitchen looked like on move in day. I forgot how stark it was!

This is what our kitchen looks like now. :)

"Custom" touches for stock kitchen cabinets

2009-04-03T16:00:00.007-04:00

When Rob and I bought our house, we were lucky to inherit a brand new kitchen as part of our flipped house. After some personalization, I am pretty pleased with my kitchen (without going berserk financially). But the cabinets needed some details, some personalization. So, I started with the brackets under the cabinets (recent post), and then decided to move onto the bottom of the cabinets, which were begging for some detail. After perusing through many magazines and Lowe's kitchen department for some ideas, I came up with something that I think looks nice, and cost around $17! Not bad!!

Before photo of one of our base cabinets; notice that it's just very plain under the doors, no detail:

After photo 1: drawer base with nifty little legs that don't block the vent

After photo 2: this is actually a wall cabinet that the flippers placed low for some extra cabinet space without taking up the depth. But it looked like it was suspended in mid air! These lovely brackets, turned sideways and trimmed to fit, make nice little 'legs'.

The same 'leg' detail has been applied to my other 2 base cabinets. Again, just a little sanding and trimming with a circular saw, and I was done!

These were really easy, inexpensive additions to make our cabinets look a little more dressy without going too far. Try them out in your own kitchen!

TJ Maxx rocks

2009-03-26T17:23:00.002-04:00

Yes, they do. During a recent excursion there, I was able to add this beauty to my growing collection of LeCrueset cookware...for a fraction of the original price (as with all my other pieces; Rob helps me hunt down insane deals on these pieces; I got an entire set of cookware after Christmas for 50% off!!!!). Yippee!! All of my other pieces are red, but I loved this bright green color and thought it would be cute in my kitchen. It has a nice wide base and is more shallow. LOVE IT!!!! :)

Tasty bread recipe for cast iron pot

2009-03-24T16:20:00.004-04:00

This recipe is modified from one I found Williams-Sonoma's website, and I decided to give it a try. The only bad part about the original recipe is the very slow rising of the bread dough. I wondered if I could modify the yeast and water content and make this bread more quickly, and it worked. It is really easy and delicious! I put all the dry ingredients in my food processor, then added the active dry yeast/warm water through the feed tube with the food processor on the dough setting.

Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. active dry yeast

1 1/3 cups warm water
1 3/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary
2 tsp. chopped lemon zest
Cornmeal as needed

Directions:

Dissolve the active dry yeast into the warm water and let stand until just slightly foamy, about 5 minutes.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, salt, rosemary and zest. wrap. Set the food processor to 'dough' and pour the water mixture through the feed tube until all liquid is absorbed by the flour mixture.

Knead the dough in the food processor for about 45 seconds.

Place dough in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place for 45 minutes-1 hour.

Using just enough flour to keep the dough from sticking to the work surface or your fingers, gently and quickly shape the dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel, preferably a flour sack towel (not terry cloth), with cornmeal. Put the dough, seam side down, on the towel and dust with more flour or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise until the dough is more than double in size and does not readily spring back when poked with a finger, about 1 hour.

At least 30 minutes before the dough is ready, put a 2 3/4-quart cast-iron pot (I used my 5 quart pot and it was fine!) in the oven and preheat the oven to 450°F. Carefully remove the pot from the oven. Slide your hand under the towel and turn the dough over, seam side up, into the pot; it may look like a mess, but that is OK. Shake the pan once or twice if the dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes.

****NOTE: If you have a Le Creuest pot, make sure you cover the knob on the lid with foil. The knobs are only oven safe up to 375 degrees. Other pots might be the same, so cover it to be safe! :)

Cover with the lid and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and continue baking until the loaf is browned, 15 to 30 minutes more. Transfer the pot to a wire rack and let cool for 10 minutes. Using oven mitts, turn the pot on its side and gently turn the bread; it will release easily. Makes one 1 1/2-lb. loaf.

Adapted from Sullivan Street Bakery (New York City) and Mark Bittman, "The Secret of Great Bread: Let Time Do the Work," The New York Times, Nov. 8, 2006.

Here is the link to the original recipe just in case you want it, or don't have a food processor, which the original recipe does not require: http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/recipeDetail.cfm?objectid=3D454627%2DDD8E%2D4D0B%2DEE3171FF7FEA996D

Enjoy!!

Staying organized in a smaller space

2009-03-22T22:38:00.010-04:00

How do you stay organized in your space? It seems that everyone could use more storage and ideas for organization, no matter how much square footage you have. I have been reading a lot of articles about organizing lately and thought I would share a few thoughts.

Furniture that serves multiple purposes is helpful. Our coffee table has nicely sized drawers for storing DVD's, phone books, and an open shelf for more storage. Our entertainment stand has nicely sized drawers as well. We have an ottoman for extra seating that is nice and deep and holds plenty of blankets.

This buffet used to be in our dining room, and got moved to the hallway a few months ago. I did not want it to look too formal, so I put some fun baskets on it to make it look a little less stuffy. But the baskets are not just for show; they can (and do!) provide storage for small items.

I had my eye on this cute basket stand for MONTHS at Pier One, but thought it was kind of over priced. Lucky for me, it went on sale about a month ago. Score! It has a spot in the corner of our kitchen and holds extra snacks, etc. It looks cute doing it, too!

That little bit of extra floor space is not going to waste in the dining room. The little table has a basket under it that holds miscellaneous items, and the two stacked baskets hold table linens and decorative items that do not get used every day.

More baskets on top of the fridge to hold lunch snacks and dish towels...

Do you see a theme here? If there is room for a basket, I will fit one in! Here, the baskets store remotes, cat toys and books.

These small baskets are great for compact spaces...and it just flat out looks cuter than having bottles sitting out.

More baskets and using vertical wall space for additional storage whenever possible.

What are your ideas for staying organized?

Thank you, Lettered Cottage, for a great idea!

2009-03-22T22:09:00.007-04:00

I know, it has been a while since I have posted. During my hiatus, I have come across a few new blogs that I have been following, one of which shared a wonderful idea! The Lettered Cottage (http://theletteredcottage.blogspot.com/) recently featured pictures of brackets under kitchen cabinets as an inexpensive way to dress them up. So, this weekend, I decided to give it a try.

The brackets I selected are smaller than the ones featured on the Lettered Cottage, because I have more stuff on my counters and thought the larger brackets (which hang lower on the wall) might look too busy under my cabinets.

The total project cost under $20, and I am pretty happy with how it looks! I was considering painting or staining the brackets a darker color for a more custom look, but left them alone for now. I want to look at them for a while before deciding if I want to do that. And, I find myself very drawn to painted cabinetry lately, and if I ever decide to take the plunge and paint ours, the brackets can get painted then. For now, it will stay like this.

Thanks again, Lettered Cottage! :)

We're addicted to....lighting

2009-02-16T09:51:00.002-05:00

Yes, we are addicted to lighting. We just cannot help ourselves. I guess if one has to have a vice, this is about as harmless as they come. And hey, our house benefits in the end, right?

We found this great schoolhouse light this weekend during an outlet excursion and decided to place it in our upstairs hallway. The light that we had up there will be saved for outdoor use (it was actually an outdoor lantern; Rob thought it hung too low).

I love it!! :)

Some Restoration and Rejuvenation for the windows

2009-02-16T09:12:00.012-05:00

I am sure many of you reading this have experienced the COLD temperatures that have hit the northeast over the past month or so. Rob and I decided to pick up some new curtains for our living room that are heavy, lined, and help block the chill on windy nights. We picked them up at the Restoration Hardware outlet in December.

To hold the curtains back, I made my first purchase from Rejuvenation. I love this company and DROOL over their catalog. I picked up these nice holdbacks on sale. Now, if only they would put the Alameda light fixture on sale....sigh. Um yes, that would just cost a teency bit more than the holdbacks did....but a girl can dream, right? ;)

Okay, moving onto the other window hardware. We got the curtain rod at the outlet too, with these pretty amber glass finials. They remind us of our glass doorknobs in the house. They also match the amber glass in our fireplace screen very well! See?

Published!

2009-02-07T09:13:00.003-05:00

In case you are interested, my rant about McMansions (posted on this blog) made it into the current issue (no. 61) of American Bungalow magazine. Check it out!! :) It is part of the Open House letters to the editor section. How delighful! :)

Boo Hiss

2009-01-29T16:26:00.003-05:00

I got a notice in the mail after Christmas that one of my favorite magazines, Cottage Living, is no longer being published. Just like that! Bummer. I enjoyed this magazine. My subscription will be completed with another publication. :(
I have been consoling myself with my "American Bungalow" subscription, which makes me want to live in a craftsman bungalow more and more. I asked Rob if he could buy me an actual American Bungalow (and not just the magazine) next year for Christmas. Um, yeah, we'll see how that goes! :)

Moving away from the McMansion; an article about downsizing

2009-01-26T17:53:00.002-05:00

My friend Kristin sent me this article and I wanted to share it with any readers like me who don't need a home that is overinflated in size to be happy! Enjoy! :)

http://realestate.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=17092507&GT1=35000

A good day to bake...and a recipe for you!

2009-01-25T17:45:00.002-05:00

Well, it was another cold and snowy day here in Pittsburgh. Ugh. So it was a good day to stay in, hang around the house, and do some baking. I wanted to share this recipe for 'Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti' from Giada de Laurentiis. They are actually more of a cookie, not biscotti, which are hard, crunchy cookies that you bake twice. Anyway, here is the recipe; they are very easy and very tasty! Enjoy!
Ingredients
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup chocolate hazelnut spread (recommended: Nutella)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts (Note: I tossed in some dark chocolate chips instead and this was also tasty)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In another medium bowl combine the butter, chocolate hazelnut spread, sugar, and brown sugar. Using an electric mixer, cream the ingredients together, about 4 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until smooth, about 1 minute. Using a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, stir in the flour mixture until just combined. Add the hazelnuts and stir until just combined.
Using a tablespoon measure, spoon out the cookie dough onto a cookie sheet, spacing the mounds about 4 inches apart. Use the tines of a fork to flatten the cookie dough. Bake until lightly golden around the edges, about 10 to 12 minutes. Use a metal spatula to transfer the cookies to a wire rack and let cool.

A little reorganizing

2009-01-24T20:34:00.007-05:00

This is a picture of a very basic baker's rack that I have had for over 7 years. Nothing fancy, but it stores a few odds and ends, so it has stayed with us. I added the curtains to the bottom last year to dress it up a bit and cover the shelves, which can get messy! But lately, I have been thinking that I could better utilize the vertical wall space if we chopped off the top of the baker's rack and hung shelves. Rob said it could be done, so we went for it last weekend. We picked up 2 new shelves and brackets at Ikea, and planned to hang them and take the top off the baker's rack. But then, I had ANOTHER brainstorm...wouldn't it be great if the counter on this was larger? I have an old dining table in the basement from Ames (does anyone remember that place?) and thought the nice solid table top would make a great counter. So Rob cut it down to fit better, and attached it to the rack. So now, we have this :

Having that extra shelf has already been helpful for storing cookware, and we had an extra utensil rail that we put up so we can still hang utensils as we did on the original baker's rack (and we have a utensil rail on the opposite wall to catch the rest). And, the conversion of the baker's rack was a great, easy project...especially since it was free! :)

A day in the life

2009-01-16T15:54:00.003-05:00

Today's 'to do' list:

1. Wake up and meow for food like we have not eaten in days

2. Eat food, getting some on the kitchen floor, of course

3. Jump on the blanket and knead

4. Fall asleep

5. Beg for any food the humans are eating

6. Repeat as needed

;) Chloe, Woody and Brutus

New template? No!

2009-01-16T15:51:00.002-05:00

I tried to create a new template (again!) after looking at all the great options my friend Rebekah posted (from Our Family Tree; see my blogroll). Apparently, I am not meant to have a new template. This is as good as it gets, folks! The current template would not completely go away, although I deleted it a few times. Oh well. Better luck to the rest of you! ;)

Mmmmm....tasty

2009-01-01T10:37:00.002-05:00

I wanted to share this recipe for buttermilk cheddar biscuits from Ina Garten's new cookbook, Barefoot Contessa, Back to Basics.

Ingredients and directions:
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced
1/2 cup cold buttermilk, shaken
1 cold extra-large egg
1 cup grated extra-sharp Cheddar
1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water or milk
Maldon sea salt, optional
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Place 2 cups of flour, the baking powder, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low, add the butter and mix until the butter is the size of peas.
Combine the buttermilk and egg in a small measuring cup and beat lightly with a fork. With the mixer still on low, quickly add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture and mix only until moistened. In a small bowl, mix the Cheddar with small handful of flour and, with the mixer still on low, add the cheese to the dough. Mix only until roughly combined.
Dump out onto a well-floured board and knead lightly about 6 times. Roll the dough out to a rectangle 10 by 5 inches. With a sharp, floured knife, cut the dough lengthwise in half and then across in quarters, making 8 rough rectangles. Transfer to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Brush the tops with the egg wash, sprinkle with salt, if using, and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops are browned and the biscuits are cooked through. Serve hot or warm.
Tasty!!!! :)

Storage solution

2008-12-31T11:02:00.002-05:00

I find myself becoming a bit of a cookbook junkie lately. I love trying new recipes. The problem is, there never seems to be enough room for all those cookbooks! We found this piece (from Pottery Barn teen, at the outlet) which is supposed to be a magazine rack, but works well for my cookbooks, It fits nicely on a small wall as you enter our kitchen from the entry hall. I cannot find this particular piece on their website, but they have some other offerings that are similar in size, so check it out if you need some compact storage.

More help from Santa

2008-12-31T10:52:00.003-05:00

Here is another nice light fixture that Rob and I picked up as a Christmas gift to our house. While we both enjoy old style lighting (mission and prairie style in particular), we thought this would look nice on top of our bar (not to mention it was very budget friendly). As an added bonus, we actually have the matching lamps, which we found last year on clearance.

Santa helped us find some new lights

2008-12-31T10:43:00.003-05:00

During our visit home with my family in the Philly area, Rob and I did our usual shopping at the Pottery Barn and Restoration Hardware outlets. We were THRILLED to find these Madera pocket sconces http://www.restorationhardware.com/rh/catalog/product/product.jsp?productId=prod1274046&navAction=jump from RH, and get both...for less than the retail price of one! We have been eyeing these up for a while, so it was a nice surprise to find them at the outlet. What a great find!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2008-12-31T10:39:00.001-05:00

I'm a little late with this post, but just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and happy, prosperous new year!

McMansions

2008-12-22T22:08:00.004-05:00

As I sit here watching 'House Hunters' on HGTV, listening to these people say that they 'need at least 3300 square feet, a 3 car garage, and a pool for their kids (the poor deprived children were apparently promised a pool and mom and dad did not deliver in their current home....heaven forbid!!), I am compelled to share something I read recently in a magazine.
I picked up issue 59 of American Bungalow Magazine recently. The publisher, John Brinkman, wrote an insightful post....here is a portion:
..."over the years, as we grow to adulthood and our experience of the world widens to encompass a more acute awareness of how others see us, our homes can easily become not so much sanctuaries as statements. An adult, given the house-planning software or the services of a trendspotting builder, may be tempted to envision a house not from the inside out and for the ages, but from the outside in and for the moment".
I just loved this statement....so true!
Maybe there would not be so many people foreclosing on homes if they chose to live within their means instead of living beyond them and trying to outdo their friends, work associates, etc. I often wonder what will become of all these McMansions in 10-20 years....
Oh, now they are looking at houses over 5000 square feet...they are moving up even as I type! ;)

A makeover for the blog....

2008-12-22T21:46:00.002-05:00

just in time for the holidays. After decorating the house, I guess I figured the old blog needed a little glamour, too. :)

I'm already sick of the cold...

2008-12-06T15:53:00.002-05:00

...but the snow does look pretty sitting on our pine trees in our back yard.

Pet odor solution

2008-11-19T15:43:00.002-05:00

I am so excited about a new product I tried that I have to share the information here. If you:
-have pets
-have an old house that someone else had pets in and left odors behind
...then listen up!! :)
We pulled up all the carpet on the first floor of our house early this year. We exposed the original hardwood floors, which were really in great shape...except for one spot in the corner of the dining room. It smelled like pet urine (and a neighbor of mine confirmed that the previous owner of our home used to take in stray cats). Not a constant smell, but we would notice it the most on humid days. I did Internet searches on 101 ways to remove pet odors...none of which worked. And then, I did a Google search that changed everything!!
The product is called 'Odor Destroyer' from a company called PowerHouse Products. It works on upholstery, carpet, and hardwood floors. I was skeptical, but ordered it and used it on my hardwood in the dining room last week. One application and poof!!! No more odor!!! It is unreal!!!! And it does not harm the finish on the hardwood floors (as it is not water based)!!!! You would not even know I sprayed anything on them!! If you have pets or an old house with mysterious pet odors lurking in the flooring, check it out! It is worth every penny!!!!! Check out this link for all the information!
http://www.odordestroyer.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=OdorControl

Snuggle time

2008-11-02T20:12:00.002-05:00

This was just too cute to keep to myself. I walked upstairs today and saw Woody and Brutus cuddling in the guest room. Woody usually cuddles up with Chloe, but discovered the blanket that I placed on this chair and apparently decided that this looked more comfortable. :)

About that shed...

2008-11-02T19:59:00.002-05:00

So, it has been a while since I wrote about the shed tear down that began late in the summer. Long story short, it has been completely taken down, although there is still a lot of stuff to dispose of that was inside the shed (from the previous owner of our house). The final day of tear down involved Rob needing stitches on his head, but again, a long story. It is down, Rob is fine, and we are glad it is done.
Rob had the idea to use the salvageable 2 x 4's from the inside of the shed to create a shelving system for one of our coal cellars in the basement. I tried my best to get a good photo of the finished product, but the shelving system is big, and I just cannot get a good picture because I cannot get far enough away to do so. Now if that is not living green (tearing down a shed and re- purposing all the 2 x 4's into a shelving system), then I don't know what is! ;)
But here is another nice byproduct of the shelving system that Rob made for the coal cellar...I got back some of the Ikea shelving that we purchased a while ago and created a fully functioning pantry. Before this, I had one shelf, now, as you can see, I have three (one is courtesy of Rob's work, a shelf they did not need and allowed us to keep). I am just tickled pink that I can actually go into the pantry and see how many cans of chicken broth I have, or how many rolls of paper towels are left, without digging around. It may be in the basement, but I don't mind. It is neat and organized...pure heaven for me. :)

Garden harvest

2008-10-18T20:06:00.003-04:00

Since the temperatures are beginning to dip down pretty low at night, I brought in all of my herbs and veggies from the garden today. It really seems like a lot when you lay everything out together! I decided to freeze all the herbs instead of drying some of them. Hopefully, this will work out. Wish me luck! :)

End of weekend road trip

2008-10-13T13:39:00.012-04:00

We concluded our road trip with a stop by the Pottery Barn outlet, also featuring several excellent deals, including 50% off furniture. We ended up purchasing this bar cabinet for our dining room, which opens up and provides lots of storage, which we can always use more of! The top also unfolds, doubling it's size, and features a built in ice bucket. We were able to bring it home by removing the doors and the top of the cabinet, and then loading everything separately (which we determined after measuring the piece and the trunk twice...we came prepared this time with our measuring tape and a small tool kit!). It is a beatiful piece and we love it. Look, even Chloe is admiring the selection inside...perhaps she wants a cocktail.

Weekend road trip, part 2

2008-10-13T13:23:00.002-04:00

The 2nd leg of our road trip led us to the Restoration Hardware and Pottery Barn outlets in Lancaster, PA (which was only about an hour and a half from the warehouse sale we went to). Here are some new bathroom lights that we picked up at the RH outlet. Rob has seen this light before and liked it, but we never found 2 of them until this weekend. It was a good time to find them too, with an extra 20% off at the outlet this weekend! We picked up another set of bathroom sconces; not sure if we are going to keep them for the future or sell them.

Weekend road trip, part 1

2008-10-13T12:58:00.004-04:00

This weekend, Rob and I took a road trip to Edgewood, MD to check out Restoration Hardware's warehouse sale. They open this warehouse to the public once a month. We just found out about this recently, and decided to check it out. We found out when we were there that this location is actually closing at the end of this year, so there are just a couple of sales left. It was nice to check out; we got away with a TON of cabinet hardware for next to nothing, and a nice little shelf that actually fits in our small bathroom. We were hoping to find more lighting, but we did not, so our road trip continued to Lancaster, PA for some outlet shopping....

What a good friend does

2008-10-13T12:46:00.003-04:00

A good friend of mine recently attended a book signing with Giada DeLaurentiis, one of my favorite chefs on Food Network. She surprised me by getting me a autographed copy of her new cookbook...what a great surprise!! :) The day she called to tell me what she did, I was literally driving home from work and planning to stop at Target to pick this new cookbook up. Waiting for this version was so much better!! :)

An idea from Better Homes and Gardens

2008-10-06T16:32:00.002-04:00

In several issues of Better Homes and Gardens, I have seen articles about kitchens where people placed a shelf in front of a window to give light to plants. At first, I thought it seemed strange. Wouldn't a shelf block light? But last month's issue featured an idea that I decided to try out. I purchased this shelf at Ikea, tied my exisiting curtains to the back rung on the shelf (they have tie tops), and voila, I have a place to put a few seasonal decorations, herbs, etc. And guess what? It does not affect the light coming in at all (which you cannot tell here, as I had to close my blinds to take this picture. This window actually lets in a nice amount of light.). It also worked well here, as I never open this window, because it is kind of hard to reach. So now I have a better use for it! :)

Happy fall

2008-10-06T15:23:00.009-04:00

Happy fall! Here are a couple of pics of the front of our house, after I got my pumpkins and other decor all set up. I am happy with the way it turned out, except that my eyes always go to the flaking paint on our front porch. I secretly curse the person who ever painted this porch in the first place. No amount of scraping, chemicals, etc. will take the paint all the way off the concrete, so we are left with repainting it over and over, or finding another alternative, which we did not get around to this year. Sigh. Oh well, in the meantime, enjoy the fall decor...and try not to look at that paint!

Woody

2008-10-06T15:17:00.003-04:00

Rob won a gift basket at his sales meeting a few weeks ago, and he thought it would be funny to put this bow from the basket on Woody. Clearly, Woody thinks he looks pretty fetching! I told Rob to save the bow to wrap my Lexus in at Christmas time. Ha, ha, ha, ha!

You know there is a chill in the air...

2008-10-06T15:12:00.001-04:00

...when Chloe and Woody are snuggling in this cat bed. Normally, this is Chloe's territory, but it looks like she invited Woody in to keep her warm.

Visit from Mom and Dad

2008-10-06T15:09:00.002-04:00

My parents came to Pittsburgh for a visit a few weeks ago. We enjoyed having them here! Here is a picture of us!

Lazy day

2008-10-06T15:05:00.001-04:00

Check out Brutus and Woody, snoozing the day away in nearly identical poses! Too cute! :)

If you live in Pittsburgh....

2008-09-23T20:51:00.002-04:00

...anywhere in or near the south hills, then check out the Dor-Stop restaurant, located in Dormont on Potomac Avenue. They serve delicious breakfast at reasonable prices, and after eating there with my parents the other day, I felt compelled to post about it. Their eggs benedict was the best I have ever had. Check it out if you live nearby!

Outlet bargain

2008-09-09T09:44:00.000-04:00

When Rob and I went home a few weeks ago to visit my parents and see their new house, we stopped by two of our favorite outlets, Pottery Barn outlet and Restoratio Hardware outlet. The RH outlet requires a little digging, but we managed to come away with 2 new light fixtures at a GREAT price. Here is one of them in our upstairs hallway; love it!!! :)

Hungry hippos

2008-09-09T09:41:00.000-04:00

I thought this shot of all three of our cats chowing down was just too cute and had to share it!! You would think they had never eaten before; jeez!!!

A good day for the porch

2008-09-09T09:35:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, our front porch got treated to some bargain additions! We picked up some new sconces during a store closing sale, and Rob found a lovely resin wicker bench with cushion on final clearance at a great price! Aah, I jsut love a good sale!! :)

Weekend trip

2008-08-27T09:06:00.000-04:00

Rob and I are heading to my hometown this weekend to visit my parents. My parents just moved into a new home a few weeks ago, and this will be our first visit to see it. We are excited, and very happy for them!

Of course, no visit to eastern PA would be complete without the ceremonial stop at Pottery Barn Outlet in Lancaster, PA. If you have never been there, I would highly recommend it! I love Pottery Barn, and I pride myself on many of my good clearance finds from the store and online shopping. But the outlet....what can I say? It is AWESOME!!! They have everything you can imagine, and we have gotten some great deals there. I can't wait to go!!! :) Woo-hoo!!! :)

It's a tough life....

2008-08-27T08:52:00.000-04:00

Lying around sleeping and relaxing all day is HARD work, but as you can see, our cats Woody and Brutus are determined to perfect this fine art. :)

Just plain funny!

2008-08-26T10:17:00.000-04:00

We have a cutout in our screen door in the basement for a hose....and when Rob was outside the other day, he saw this through the hole. Yes, that is our cat, Woody, staring Rob down through that small hole. He is a hoot!!

I can't help myself

2008-08-26T09:56:00.000-04:00

A little over a week ago, I decided to 'take a peek' at the hardwood floors under the carpet in our upstairs hallway. Just a peek....that is, until I saw that they were in okay shape. No water marks, no pet stains, etc. So....that peek turned into me taking the carpet and padding out, and removing lots of staples. Rob was, um, surprised when he came home. But he should be used to this....I did the same thing with the living room back in the winter. I strapped on my Shera muscles, moved and lifted furniture to pull the carpet out myself...while he was at work (I think it was a holiday for me). :) But I think I am done removing carpet for now; the floors upstairs are okay, but are not in the same shape as our floors downstairs (I say floors, because all old house owners know that the floor condition can change from room to room!). The only thing I still want to do is remove the carpet that is on the steps and replace it with a runner or carpet treads. We are still undecided in which will be better, so, in the meantime, I will take a rest from ripping our house apart. ;)