A Kitchen Makeover

Hello my friends!

I hope your week is off to a great start 😀 It's only Tuesday, but feels like it should be Thursday already. Not sure why. 

Anyway, we had a great weekend. I had to work half a day on Saturday, as the library is open from 10am-1pm on Saturdays. When I got home David surprised me with the start to a project I had mentioned to him last week. 

In several of our past homes, I've taken the cabinet doors off and had open shelving. I mentioned that I wanted to do that in this house, not expecting that I would get home from work and the doors would be gone, but that's what happened and I was not upset at all!

With all of my Pioneer Woman dishes, which bring all the color, it's a shame to hide them behind cabinet doors. So after lunch on Saturday I papered the shelves and put everything back, moved things around and brought out my tins and lunchboxes that were hidden away and now all my favorite things are out front and giving me so much joy when I walk into the kitchen. 

On the top shelf are the two I Love Lucy lunchboxes that my DIL Alex gave me. I love them (and Lucy)! The cracker tin reminds me of my childhood. We always had these crackers and they came in a metal box! The rusty old lunchbox actually belonged to a great uncle of mine. One day David and I stopped by the piece of property where my uncle used to live. David walked around the garage that was still standing and found this lunch box. It's very fragile, but so cool to have a memento from my dad's family. And speaking of my dad...the "Jim's BBQ" tin is in remembrance of my dad, whose name was Jim and was known for his BBQ. He would cook every Sunday - bbq, a big pot of beans, mac&cheese - and he was a great cook. 

On the bottom shelf, the Hints from Heloise books (there are 3 of them), are from a time long ago when women would turn to Heloise for household wisdom. They are still full of pages of great advice. There's also the Junior Bettye Crocker cookbook that my aunt gave me, plus various cookbooks that I turn to now and then. 

The yellow bread box and cookie tin (on the right side) say Collin's bakery on them. We bought those on one of our many trips to Dallas, when David used to run some offices there. Collin would travel with us, of course, and there was a bakery with his name on it, so of course we stopped and had to buy some things. The hand towel draped over the toaster was a gift from Morgan. So many little things, but they all have meaning. The only thing I'm missing is something that says "Ted" for my older son. I often look at antique stores, but so far, haven't found anything. 

The open shelves have added so much more personality to the kitchen. And it's always a good incentive to keep everything nice and neat. 

Saturday night I cooked a big pot of Santa Fe Soup, which is so easy and so delicious. It's basically Taco Soup by a different name, but it's one of my favorites. You brown the ground beef, add cans of beans (any kind you like. I use Ranch Style with jalapeños and black beans), corn, diced tomatoes, taco seasoning and some water and let it simmer for about an hour. That's it. I eat mine with tostada chips, but you could add sour cream on top and cheese if you wanted. We had enough for Sunday lunch and two bowls for the freezer. 

Sunday we watched church online. With working every single day, Sunday is my only day to be at home without having an obligation, so until that schedule changes, we might be at home for church. As it turned out, Morgan wasn't feeling well, so I made a quick trip to the store for some Vitamin C and other things she might need and dropped it off to her, got my hugs from Asa and then it was back home to spend the day working around the house. 

My work schedule will be changing soon and I'll be working longer days, but with a few days off each week. I'm looking forward to that. I'm really enjoying my job at the library. I'm learning so much and have discovered that the library is really a great resource for the community, for various needs. Who knew?!

I don't have much on the agenda for this week. Just the usual - cooking, paying bills, laundry and then family dinner on Saturday. I have been reading a lot and every time I straighten the books at the library, I see so many more books that I want to read! This will take a lifetime 😅 but it will be fun!

Well, that's all for today my friends. I pray you each have a wonderful week ahead and that the Lord is speaking in ways you can understand. Listen for his still, small voice. If he's whispering, it's because he wants you to lean in real close and hear him. 💚

Until Next Time...

Blessings!