So someone pointed out to me that I hadn't put up a "before" pic so you could really see what a drastic improvement we had made in the kitchen. So, here is the "before" pic. This was made a couple of years ago. The original wallpaper is there, along with a sample piece I had taped on the wall. I was "auditioning" it. After a while, Lars decided that it was good enough and he bought 3 rolls of it. I threw them out when we moved. He had painted the cabinets green a few years earlier when I was away at a quilt show. That particular weekend, he killed the stovetop and replaced it, and then decided to paint the cabinets also. In this picture with me, are my friends Dot and Cathie V. from VA.

So, in the "after" pic, you can see that we kept the stovetop since it was still in good shape (and the oven and dishwasher), we replaced the counter top and put up the tile backsplash, replaced the rangehood, and removed the wallpaper and painted the soffitt and cabinets, and replaced all the hardware. So, as my friend Tom says, break out the crayons and color me done. Done with the kitchen anyway.

Every girl needs a pink room!

So, since we're trying to sell the house, the realtor suggested I "neutralize" a couple of rooms. One of these rooms was Naomi's bedroom. Naomi's room was painted pink and brown. 3 walls pink, one wall brown. Her bed is also painted bright pink. As you've probably guessed by now, Naomi loves pink. We also chose the brown because Naomi loves horses, and horses are usually brown. I love the simplistic way kids think.
So, anyway, the room had to be painted, so I've posted a couple of before and after photos here. It took 2 coats of primer and 2 coats of paint to cover it all. Naomi hates it, of course.

This old house....

My new (old) kitchen!

Wonder why I've been quiet lately? Been busy "making over" my house!

I thought I'd post some pictures of our kitchen renovation. It was the most work, and the most rewarding project we've done!

The first pic is the kitchen cabinets, freshly painted white, and the counter top has been removed. The backsplash is still there and the countertop was the same material.

The next picture shows the new countertop, and the beautiful new sink. The last one shows the new tile backsplash going in.

All in all, it was a lot of work, but made such a HUGE difference. We're very pleased with the results, and actually looking forward to doing some more projects with tile in the future!

Sum Sum Summertime

Been cleaning up the yard lately and enjoying watching everything in full bloom! I've added some pics here of the girls, helping me plant some flowers near the front door, and the blueberry bush (we're enjoying fresh blueberries in our yogurt and pudding, and on waffles....), and my lillies, and my rose bush in bloom. Hope you enjoy these!

Going to a show!

See, I promised to do better, and here I am again, already!!
Today's post is not quilting-related, but I had to share. We went to a concert with friends last night. We went to see .38 Special and Styx. This is quite amusing to me because I saw both of those bands in the mid 80's, so here I am nearly 20-something years later, listening to the same music! So, we took the boat across the bay, parked it at a restaurant that we were really looking forward to eating at, and planned to leave the boat there while we went to dinner and the concert. Turns out, everyone else had the same idea! The restaurant was absolutely packed. So we wandered on over to the concert, just down the road, and ate at the food stands there.

The concert was wonderful! Except for the 4 people who were 2 rows ahead of us and refused to sit for the entire show. I have a lot of wonderful pictures of their backsides, but I won't share those with you. I will add a couple of pics from the show here, though. So, of course, by the time the show was over, it was dark and we had to take the boat back across. I had not been out for a couple of years, and I had completely forgotten how much I LOVE being on the water at night. No sunburn, no skeeters, no jet skiiers ~ just calm peaceful water and the company of good friends. That was my favorite part of the whole event!

Alright, alright, alright, quit naggin'! I KNOW I haven't posted anything here for a long time....but I do appreciate that you all keep coming back, just in case!
So....here's the scoop.....we moved back to MD, I had to get it together to teach MQX shortly afterward, and since then I've been up to my neck in boxes and painting rooms and now the kids are out of school for summer (whose bright idea was that anyway??) so I can't get anything done. Planted some flowers out front and as soon as I can find the camera I'll post some pictures of those. Got a beautiful shot of the magnolia blossoms.
So, we got a few machine sales from MQX, and now we're in the middle of delivering and setting up those. Got one done last week, and will do 2 more this weekend, and then we'll be all caught up. So I have several used machines and frames, if anyone out there is interested!
And we spent a couple of weekends up in PA. Kids had a blast on Uncle Justin's new go-kart and are begging for one of their own now.
Must close now and pack tools and stuff for tomorrow's machine delivery. I promise to look for the camera so I can post those new pics and I promise I will try to post here more often. 2 months is definitely too long!

Until next time.....

On my way home now from MQX in NH. Had a fantastic time with old and new friends!

My friend Jody (from high school!) came to hang out with me this week. We had a wonderful time reconnecting and renewing our friendship. PLUS, I got to hang out with all my quilty buddies and teach a few classes. What a FABULOUS week!