Beginning the Installation – Tasty Tuesdays

Things are moving forward with the kitchen remodel. One thing about doing a remodel is coping with not having a kitchen sink! Ah, well, it will be worth it in the end, right? So, let’s see where the kitchen is at right now, shall we? C’mon, let’s go!

Let’s start with the number of boxes that held the new cupboards. This photo is from last week.

New cupboards arrive!

Our installer, Jay, began by setting the cabinets out. Most of the day was unpacking and breaking down cardboard. He worked from a map provided by the cabinet place that had each cupboard numbered. I took the photos after he was done for the day so I would not be in his way…

Here is a shot looking at the beginnings of the island. Behind this are the cabinets that will make the pass through.

Island and pass through

In this next area, the cabinets are situated under the windows. In the area where there is no cupboard, this is where the dishwasher will go. The kitchen sink will be located under the right window.

Counter top under the windows

To the right of the refrigerator is the utility cupboard. This will house the most used kitchen counter top appliances.

Utility cupboard to the right of the refrigerator

Next let’s take a look at where the pantry is. It is located in the background. The two lower cupboards actually pull out. There are a total 5 shelves in each including the base.

The pantry in the background

After the first day of the installation, here is what still has yet to be opened. This is only what is in the house as there is more in the garage.

Boxes left to open that are in the house

In case you are curious, the cupboards are made of a pecan wood.

Thanks for dropping by and stay tuned for the next installment of the remodel! Be well… ^..^

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Taking Down the Kitchen – Tasty Tuesday!

We encountered some issues as we took apart the kitchen. It has truly been a challenge taking it down. The other challenge is eating, and cleaning up when you do not have a sink! Anyhow, how about we head into the kitchen and continue on with tearing it out!

We pulled apart the remainder of the island in the kitchen.

We have taken apart the island

The next part of the project was the removing the remaining enclosure that used to house the electric oven and the dishwasher.

Working on the oven enclosure

We found a terrible patch job on the drywall in that area. Not only that but we needed to move the electrical switch for the garbage disposal. This used to be on the front wall of the kitchen sink. We were now going to move it to the wall where is really should be.

With the oven/dishwasher enclosure gone, we turned our attention to removing the tile countertop. Thinking that maybe we should try removing the tiles from the backsplash, we loosened a few only to discover that an inordinate amount of glue was causing major holes in the drywall.  We decided that we would tackle this after we removed the counter.

Removing the backsplash takes the wall with it!

Working on the counter, we had to jimmy the top up due to the huge nails in the side walls of where the cupboard and drawers are.

Next is removing the counter top

The countertop snapped in half and we moved the boards to the pile of debris outside. Here is the area now without the countertop.

Counter is gone

Removing the side walls was easy.

Removing the remainder of the cupboard

We pulled off the rest of the backsplash tiles, and began doing some patchwork.

All gone!

As we finished up the truck arrived to deliver our new kitchen cabinetry!

New cupboards arrive!

This is only half of it as the remainder is in the garage.

One final shot for today and that is of the debris pile! Goodbye to the ugly black appliances and the stainless steel sink!

The debris pile

Well, that’s it for today! Stay tuned for next week’s post which will feature the installation of the new cabinetry!

Thanks for dropping by today, and have a terrific Tuesday! Be well… ^..^

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Tasty Tuesday’s Kitchen Remodel

Good day to you dear reader! I will not be posting the usual recipe today for Tasty Tuesday, and instead have decided to share with you our project. We are remodeling our kitchen! When we bought our home, we fell in love with all the wood, and neglected to really give the kitchen a good look.

For today, I wanted to share the kitchen with you. Our new kitchen remodel will be done over the next three weeks, and I will not have anything to cook with, nor will we have a kitchen sink! I applied to HGTV to remodel our kitchen. Needless to say, they have not responded and we needed to get going. Here is the short video clip of our kitchen…

Now for photos today as we have begun the process of removing stuff…We have pulled out the electric oven.

The kitchen

Here is looking into the kitchen from another view. We have removed the drawers and will be disassembling this area of the island today.

Looking into the kitchen

And the area of the island…

The range area

Tiny room eh? Not much space!

Our new cupboards will be arriving on Friday with installation beginning next Monday and finishing on Wednesday. Thursday, the counter top people will be coming in to do a template of the counters for the quartz counter top we are installing. They will be doing their installation on March 3rd….I hope that I do not go crazy with no sink or kitchen to cook in…

Next week, I will feature more photos of us destroying the kitchen, and the week after that, installation of the new cupboards…Once the kitchen is completed I will return to posting recipes!

I can hear my husband cursing as he is pulling stuff apart! I have to go now to help! Stay tuned and thanks for dropping by today!

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Can You See Me?

While out in the yard snapping off photos before my first chemo treatment, I sat on a bench in the yard and sat listening to the birds chirping, the squirrels chattering at each other, hummingbirds whiz by. Then off to my right I noticed a movement. It took me a while to see what it was. Let’s see if you can spot what I finally saw!

Do you see me?

Well did you?

Can you see me now?

Well…

Where did I go now?

OK…how about now?

How about now?

So, what do you think of this little guy? You did see him didn’t you? He is in every photo!

Later!

Have a great Monday! And, thank you for dropping by! Be well!

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Home is Where the Heart Is – A WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge!

Home is the topic of this week’s WordPress photo challenge. Home can mean the place where you hang your hat, eat your meals, and sleep at night. Or it can mean a familiar or usual setting. It can also mean a place of origin. Here are some photos that encompass all these meanings!

So, let’s go home, shall we?

A Pacific Chorus frog at home

My home

Home is where you make it!

Where an eagle makes her home

A foothills historic home

A home for the buffalo

Home for the geese

Squirrel at home

One final one: Here is Toby doing what he loves to do!

Toby has made a home

Where do you make your home? Thank you for stopping by mine and the ones I took you to! Be sure to check out some of the other posts! Click WordPress Photo Challenge: Home

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Some Simple Home Remedies

As one goes through life, one comes across unusual remedies using ordinary items that one might have around the house. Let me tell you about about how I got rid of a wart on my pinky finger and tell you about the uses of some other items you might have in your home…

I had this pesky, unsightly ugly wart on my pinky that went over the top most joint from side to side. Can you picture that? Oh was it ugly. I tried the over the counter products. Didn’t work. My Dad bought it from me. Didn’t work. I cut a potato in half and rubbed it over the wart then buried the potato. Didn’t work. I had it frozen at the Dr.’s office. Didn’t work.

What did work was Castor Oil!

Castor Oil – Photo from BeautyWithinMe.com

I actually got this remedy from a book of Edgar Cayce’s readings. At night before you go to bed, take a cotton ball, and holding it against the top of the open bottle, tip the bottle to get some of the oil on the cotton ball. Take the cotton ball and place the castor oil side down on the wart. Secure the cotton ball with a band-aid. Leave this on overnight and remove this in the morning. It took me about two weeks of doing this for the little nasty to disappear! Apparently castor oil is a great anti-fungal!

Here are some other tips…

* Drinking two glasses of Gatorade will help to get rid of a headache!

Gatorade

* When you begin an exercise regime and have not exercised for a while, have you noticed how your muscles ache afterwards? To relieve this pain, add 2 cups of espsom salts to a tub of hot water and soak for a half hour, the results, no achy muscles!

Epsom Salts – Photo from LoveLifeWithEO.com

* Have a bad cold? From a Swedish remedy book I found this. Fill your tub with the hottest water you can stand and add two cups of thyme leaves. Soak for a half hour, and let yourself sweat. When you get out of the tub, dry off, don your bathrobe, then jump into bed and cover yourself with a load of blankets so that you continue to sweat. Stay there for at least a half hour. This helps to kill the germs that gave you the cold!

Thyme leaves – Photo from Herb-Magic.com

* Working around the yard, you sometimes find yourself with splinters. Teeny, tiny splinters. When you are unable to use the tweezers to remove the splinters, try some Elmer’s Glue! Put a drop of the glue on the splinter and let it dry. Once dry, pull off the patch of glue and the splinter will come with it!

Elmer’s Glue

These are just a few remedies that I have tried that have worked. Do you have any home remedies? Please feel free to share them with my readers!

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Stanley, the Stinky Sponge

Everyone, no matter where they are, who uses a sponge in the kitchen has had to deal with Stanley, the Stinky Sponge! No matter how hard you squeeze the water out of the darn thing, the next day, or two days after, the aroma rises up and assaults your nose! Once you get that stinky smell in your nose, you smell it the rest of the day…So what can you do that will get rid of Stanley and end up with Nice Nancy, the Good Smelling Sponge?

Is this Stinky Stanley or Nice Nancy?

Well, I found an article on what works to get rid of Stanley and end up with Nice Nancy! The article was written by Beckey Worley. Now, just so you know, I have tried most of the remedies that Ms. Worley indicates do not work. What have I tried that does not work?

* Microwaving the wet Stanley offender. What you end up with is a hot stinky Stanley!
* Washing the sponge in hot water with dish soap. No matter how much you scrub Stanley behind the ears, he still smells bad.
* Ms. Worley indicates that she soaked the test sponge in bleach and it fell apart. I tried this too, although not overnight. It worked for about 10 hours. Stanley went into the trash and was replaced by Nice Nancy!
* The top rack of the dishwasher. It works, for about 5 minutes! Nice Nancy comes out of the dishwasher and gets wet once, and Stinky Stanley is back!
* Ms. Worley also tried a vinegar bath followed by a bath of baking soda…didn’t work either!

What Ms. Worley did discover is this: Place Stinky Stanley outside in the full sun and let Stanley sit there for four days. When you go back out and pick up Stanley, you will discover that Stanley is no longer there but you will have Nice Nancy there in your hands. What causes the change? The UV rays of the sun! It kills all those bad critters that make their home on Stinky Stanley! Ms. Worley did indicate that she left the sponge out for less than the four days and it worked!

But, who uses a sponge once every couple of days? Hmmm…can’t think of anyone I know. So here is the suggestion for keeping Nice Nancy in the kitchen and Stinky Stanley out. First, always squeeze the water out of the sponge. Do not let it sit in the sink to grow allow all those ghastly bacteria and potentially dangerous other stuff grow! After using your kitchen sponge, rinse it well, squeeze it well and stick it outside in the sun. Then have a backup sponge to take its place. By rotating sponges maybe we can all have Nice Nancy in our kitchens!

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Favorite Moments in Hawai’i

In every trip one has a favorite moment. I had many, and wanted to share these with you. I need to tell you, that on this trip, I took over 1,000 photos. “1,000?!” you say. The answer of course is yes, but I took more at Yellowstone! Hey, do you want to see those photos? Let me know!

In no particular order…

Unexpected pleasures

You must click on the above photo! It was not until I was reviewing photos for this blog that I realized I captured a Hawaiian preying mantis. Not green like the ones here…so look closely!

A fern unfurls

A zebra on the Island of Hawaii

A pair of Java Sparrows

A stand of palms

Coming up for air

Eye to eye

Dessicated crab

Fish in a pond

If you click on the photo above, you will see the fish in the pond. The unique thing in this photo, taken on the Sacred Grounds, is the circles under the water. I do not remember seeing these the last time we were there. I wonder why they are there.

Hawaiian puffer fish

Look closely to see this little guy! He was dark in color with really blue spots on the body…

Lone tree in lava

Mushrooms in moss

One horny dude!

I have never seen such big horns! Have you?

Red sea urchin

Sneak peak

The ocean blue

Waves of Lava

I hope that you enjoyed these photos!

One repeat photo that made my day:

Friends

Stay tuned for upcoming recipes! And, I will be starting work in my greenhouse this coming weekend! Good to be home, and miss our new friends that we met in Hawaii!

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My New Buddies in Hawaii

Now my husband and I are sociable people, me more so than he, but we made some friends on our trip that we hope will be with us for a long time. They made our trip! We met every day with our coffee in the morning and with our cocktails in the evening which is when we recounted our day, B.S’d, told jokes, lied and shared other bits of our lives in the early evening hours!

Before we left from our vacation I was able to talk all but one, who shall remain nameless, Paul, into my taking photos of the group that we met…So this post, before I finish up my tripology, is devoted to those that we met and who made our trip!

Pat is the good morning diva!

Pat, the Good Morning diva!

Gregg and Ron, we met the second night that we were there. Gregg and I have a cooking connection! I think that I said something that surprised them both as Chuck, one of our other new bud’s, looked on!

Are you serious?

Then they realized that I was joking with them!

Thank God you were kidding!

Chuck is the resident artist. I loved it when he said to me after showing me a number of his artistic creations, “I love show and tell!”

Chuck, the resident artist

Bob was rather shy about having his photo taken, but he finally relented!

Chuck, what are you talking about now?

Good looking, don’t ya think?

My husband had to take a photo for me at my urging, and our new friends agreed to this photo!

The folks we met on our trip

And then, the fellow on the extreme left in this next photo, suggested that we take this shot. 🙂  Something to do with all the great butts we all have!

The fellow on the left insisted on a butt shot!

To all of you that we met at the Kona Reef, thank you all for making our trip so special, and for welcoming us into your lives! We will miss you and hope to come back and visit with you all!  To our new Hawaii friends, when you share this in the morning, please give hugs all the way around!  And my husband and I would like to thank you, Pat, Gregg, Ron, Chuck, Bob, and Paul for making us feel at home!

Next we finally get to Pololu Valley, then Hawi!  Stay tuned!

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Pretty Feet Contest Winner!

Scene: The Pretty Feet Awards Ceremony

The Announcer: We would like to thank everyone who participated and voted in “The Pretty Feet Contest.” I am pleased that I was given the opportunity to do the announcing today. We had quite a pair to choose from. We had the 10 year old leather toes, and we had the 2 year old, soft as a baby’s behind toes to choose from. While I am partial to the leather toes, and my own dogs are barking right now, I have the pleasure to announce who won this lovely contest. May I have the envelope please. (Background sound of an envelope tearing and the announcer gasping, raising his eyebrows, lowering the envelope, then looking over his glasses, sighing heavily) And the winner is: Toby, The Face to Love!

A Face To Love

Toby: (Sounds of clearing the throat). First I would like to thank my manager and all of those people who made this possible! Next I have to say thanks to Babso2you for taking such wonderful photographs of my amazingly beautiful feet! They are pretty aren’t they? (Rubbing of one foot against the face, holding it away admiringly, then tucking it back to his side.) Oh, and to my competitor Astro, I just have this to say: Sorry old pup, but the new kid is here to stay!And, I really love the prize: Astro’s bed!

The final score:

Toby 63.64%
Astro 36.36%

Thank you for voting!

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