Clean & Seal

Almost done with the kitchen floors! WOOTY WOO!! All that's left is one more cleaning (This is taking forever. I have lightly mopped a few times! We were told not to mop it hard until it was sealed!), then we will apply the spray sealant. We will finish first thing tomorrow morning!

We went from this:




to this hideousness:



And finally, we are HERE!!!


The bottom pic shows truer colors.

I want to find a dark bar table that seats four, instead of this old hand-me-down table my father bought many years ago. I am also thinking about swapping out the inherited curtains. While they look great and simple (IMO), I'm intrigued by the weather blocking curtains that look similar. We lose a lot of heat in the winter, and in the summer we have the opposite problem. We have great windows, but since they are a substantial size, you can still feel the outdoors coming in!!

For now we are done with the kitchen. In the spring, we will paint the cabinets, replace the hardware, and install new countertops.

Here is the counter sample I have picked out for now:




Originally, I wanted light colored cabinets (white?) and brushed nickel hardware, but I'm not sure that goes with the rustic and earthy tones in our house.

I have also been perusing home improvement blogs, and I really like the darker painted bottom cabinets paired with pale upper cabinets. Leave it to me to NOT save the pic that caught my attention. And, of course, my memory fails me, and I can't remember the blog name to save my life. BOO!

I also love this, and I think the color scheme and feel can easily be tied in with our current decor (what little we have!).


What can I say? It's a S L O W work in progress! You can find all kitchen posts here.

I'm going to concentrate on the main bathroom in February! Oh the excitement!! I started last year and made it somewhat presentable. It is way past time for the finishing touches! Does anyone know where I can find cheap affordable sconces in brushed nickel? :D

Kitchen Progress Pics

Progress is being made in the kitchen! WOO HOO! Unfortunately, their saw broke yesterday. They have to rent one now. Apparently it is not as good, so they are moving slower than they expected. The saw rental is also an extra expense for us. BOO!

Here are the "progress pics"! It looks better already!! I need to start shopping for drawer pulls next. I'm thinking brushed nickel cup pulls.

For before pics click HERE!

Cuttin' a Rug

Uhm. Yeah. So, last night was another lack-o-sleep night. We were forced to stay up until the wee hours of the morning to clean up a disaster area. Carpet and laminate floor removal ended shortly after ten. Seth's uncle then left and asked us to clean up so that he and another contractor could lay tile in the morning.

Please ignore the mess. This was sort of a last minute project. We have been planning to do it for a while, but due to unforeseen circumstances, the project was indefinitely postponed... then we found out this week (maybe Seth knew beforehand and failed to tell me. He is notorious for that!) that last night was D day.

Before:

Oh! Lookie here at what we found under the laminate flooring in the kitchen!! We'll call it vintage. Or we can just call it ugly. I'll let you decide. ;)

And, just because a multi-tonal, nearly psychedelic yellow print wasn't exciting enough, we found this lovely hunter green stone-look linoleum under the carpet. CLASSY! Want to know the saddest part? The boys liked it. Seriously guys?

Note to self: I am no longer living in a college dorm room. Time to take down the Starry Night framed poster.

So, now that we have a mess on our hands, a stove in the living room and a fridge by the bathroom, I can't help but sit back and think WTF?! The contractors are supposed to be at the house laying tile this very second! Hopefully I will be able to share some updated pics with you tomorrow.

It should look a lil' somethin' like this:

Once again, I missed my date with Jillian and the 30 Day Shred. Heck, I didn't even consider doing it this morning after getting to bed so late, and let's face it, with all the kitchen furniture and appliances in the living room, I just don't have the space.

The cabinets and/or countertops are next on the hit list. And I want to finally complete the main bathroom in the not too distant future.

Spent

Lack of sleep is prevalent in my life this week. Monday I fell asleep during my lunch break. Tuesday I fell asleep amid an IM convo w/ a dear friend (who does that?!), and this morning I fell asleep while sipping coffee in preparation to do The Shred. I'm not one to nap often, especially ON ACCIDENT and DAILY! LOL! I'd like to blame a seemingly subtle work schedule change that has thrown my systems offtrack. I AM SPENT!

Also, in other spending news, our 2010 budget is moving along quite swimmingly in the grocery department. Our restaurant budget has dwindled down to a whopping $3, and our entertainment budget is also down to $3. BOOOOO! I am looking forward to February already!

And completely off topic, tonight we start removing our kitchen floors! WOO hoo! I can't wait to see the finished product! The new floors should be installed by the weekend, then I have some cabinet work that I am doing. I also need to check with Lowes for new countertops. YAY!

Did any of you set spending/budget goals for 2010? How are they holding up? I hope you are doing better than us. $3 doesn't get you far these days! LOL!

129.8 - Thirsty Thursday - Sugar Free Margaritas!

It's Thirsty Thursday! WOO HOO! I want to share with you my favorite "diet" alcoholic beverage. Of course, these can be made non-alcoholic as well and are mighty mighty tasty! Introducing *drumroll please* Sugar Free Margaritas by Baja Bob's! Just add booze (optional), water, and ice and you have a delicious, festive beverage without all the guilt! I plan on indulging in one or two (non-alcoholic) this weekend! You know I add my tequila in the off season, though. ;)

My favorites are:

Wild Strawberry Daiquiri & Margarita Mix (Packet)

Bob's Wild Strawberry Daiquiri & Margarita Mix is so berrylicious he couldn't risk getting stuck without his own personal stash when traveling. This 60 gram powdered packet makes 1/2 gallon (64 oz.) of mix.

Simply mix with water and then add Rum for a delicious Strawberry Daquiri or with your favorite Tequila for a Strawberry Margarita.

ZERO calories and ZERO sugar per 4 oz. serving! *

Makes TWICE the amount of mix for the same cost as other brands.

Sweetened with Splenda. Other sugar free mixes are made with erythritol or aspartame, which have an aftertaste and can have a laxative effect. Bob says: "That's just not right."

Mango Margarita Mix - Singles

Baja Bob listened to all of your requests and created these portable packets that you can take wherever you go! Each box comes packed with 10 single-serve packets. Use one at a time or all 10 to make a batch for your guests. Simply...add water and tequila. Try substituting club soda for a refreshing non-alcoholic calorie and sugar-free mango soda. Either pour into glass filled with ice or blend with lots of ice to make slushy. Just $4.49 per box!

Let Bob break it down for you: ZERO calories per serving! * That's right, ZERO! The average sugar-loaded margarita mix can run over 250 calories per serving!

Definitely check them out! They are SO good!

FITNESS

This morning I checked my ego at the door... or shall I say the foot of my bed, since I did cardio in my basement. The plan was to pick up the Spark your way to a 10k program over at SparkPeople (LOVE THIS SITE!). Anyways, my legs were like lead this morning and tonight is legs day! No way was I running 3 miles! This program is designed for someone who can easily run 3 miles. I, on the other hand, am enduranced-challenged. I decided to back on down to the Spark your way to a 5k program. It was a great call. I warmed up with a brisk 10:00 walk, then ran my half a mile, and finished up with incline walking. I actually felt GREAT! not tired. I am now energized and my legs are feeling like they had a wonderful pick-me-up this morning. So YAY!

As you can see, the scale bumped up a smidge. Have no fear! 'Tis a bit of hormonal bloat. I can definitely deal with the .4 pound increase. ;) Not too shabby.

FOOD

The diet was a struggle yesterday. Hunger was a'raging, but I pulled through. I had nagging cravings for chocolate, icing, ya know, the sweet stuff! the STRONG sweet stuff. LOL! But, we all have days like that. Sometimes you just have to suck it up! although sometimes this seems impossible ;)

Also, I know that many of you have requested my blueberry muffin recipe... It is STILL in the works, but I'm hoping to make some minor tweaks this weekend for the BIG REVEAL for next week's Tasty Tuesday. I'll be making these muffins every weekend until I get it right! LOL! I'm determined to get this recipe to you all. ;)

FUN

I finally have hubby excited about fixing up the house! WOO HOO! I've done some minor home improvement DIY type things (the main bathroom is a work in progress, and I installed a digital programmable thermometer), but I haven't done much. Seth is very frugal (thankfully!), so I always feel a little guilty fixing things up. These things aren't that cheap. Now we will start budgeting for it. I am so SO excited!! Of course, I'm going to scope out the deals and try to do as little financial damage as possible!

Here's an item we have on the way... A new chandelier for the eat in kitchen area. Our old (and ugly) hanging light broke (yay!), so this is a forced upgrade. This area of the house has a warm goldeny paint job (not our doing, but I have grown to love it!), as well as a very rustic feel. I think it will look fantastic!

I would like to paint or get a new chandelier for the formal dining area as well, but that will just have to wait.

I'll be sure to post upgrade pictures as they occur or upon completion. :)

MAKE TODAY COUNT!