Changes in the Kitchen & a Party

This past week we were on vacation... well sort of.

It's was supposed to be one of those relaxing, fun vacations.

 

Hubby was supposed to go on a fishing trip and I was going to stay home
and work on some home projects.

 

Well it didn't turn out that way.

 

Hubby was having  foot problems from an old injury which prevented him from going on his trip.  So we ended up staying home and doing a few changes around the house.

 

One of those changes was to install a new stainless steel sink.  We are slowly switching out our old appliances with stainless steel ones as our budget allows.  We had an old white cast iron sink that was way past its' prime. We removed the old sink, which by the way, those sinks weigh a TON.

 

 

And installed a new Kohler 9 inch deep Stainless Steel Sink with a new
Glacier Bay Touchless faucet and soap dispenser.

 

 

This faucet is so cool!  It has a light in it!

 

 

This will come in handy for nighttime use!

 

Here is a wider picture of our beautiful sink area.

 

 

Hubby did a fantastic job!  I love my new sink and faucet!

 

The other change was the wall where I have my new chalkboard.

The wall looked a little bare on each side of the chalkboard.

 

 

So I created a few letters to hang on one side,

hung a few plates on the other side,

and swapped out a few items.

Now it looks finished.

 

 Yesterday we spent the day with our Son and DIL.  They just bought their first

home and had a house warming / birthday party.

 

 

They had a nice turn out.  Lots of family and friends stopped by.

 

 

Their house was bursting at the seams with people. 

The kitchen and dining room had too many people in it for me

to get a good picture.  Here is their living room.  It's HUGE!

 

 

It's too bad the weather wasn't warmer so we could have enjoyed their deck.

Although, we did go out here and eat corn on the cob.

Everyone who came brought a different dish to pass.

There was so much food that they will be able to eat on it for 2 weeks!

 

 

Here is the Birthday card I made for our DIL.

 

 

 

It is 7:40p.m. here and this is what is in our front yard.

 

 

That's it for this week.

 

Next week I will show you how I created my letters in the kitchen

and how to hang them.  It's another quick and easy project.

 

Until next time,

Veronica



 

 

DIY Linen & Room Sprays

During the winter months our homes tend to get a stale, closed in smell.

I love to burn or melt candles to freshen the air.

I only burn soy candles because they burn cleaner with no soot.  Unfortunately, when I use these my allergies and asthma start to act up after a while.  I've tried numerous scents and brands with no luck.

I don't care for aerosol sprays because they are either so strong smelling or just plain artificial smelling.

 

So what's a girl to do when she loves to have her home smelling fresh and clean?

 

Why she makes her own all natural linen and room sprays by using 3 simple ingredients!

 

And the best part......It doesn't bother my allergies or asthma!  EVER!  No matter how much I use.

 

That's right, 3 simple ingredients.

 

Vodka, water, essential oil.

 

 

The vodka is essential for the spray.  Oil and water don't mix, by adding a little alcohol it helps the oil disperse and also helps the scent linger longer in the air.

 

 

 

This spray is safe enough to spray on linens.  I love to give our pillows and sheets a few spritz before bedtime.  Try using a mixture of Lavender and Vanilla for their calming effects.  Such a pretty smell.

 

My bottles are 8 ounces.  The following recipe will yield a 2 ounce bottle.

 

Linen & Room Spray

 

1 Tablespoon Vodka - any brand

1/4 cup Filtered Water (I use our filtered water from our refrigerator)

10-40 drops of Essential Oil of choice

 

Place the vodka into a small spray bottle.  Add the desired drops of essential oils and shake well to mix the two together.  Add the water.  Label your bottle and you're ready to use your homemade linen & room spray.  Shake before each use to distribute the essential oils.

 

 

Give this linen and room spray a try.  I'm sure you will be pleasantly surprised.  No artificial smells or unwanted chemicals being released into the air.  This smells so much better than the aerosol brands, plus you get to control the scent level.

 

I love the smell of fresh air, it's so invigorating.  I love being able to have the windows open with the fresh air blowing through.  When that's just not possible I pull out my bottles of homemade sprays.  I usually keep a bottle of this in each of our bathrooms year round for those just-in-case moments.

 

Yesterday it finally reached 70 degrees here.  We put all the screens in our doors and windows and also set the back porch up. It's so nice to be able to open our doors and windows to let in the clean fresh air and enjoy a cup of morning coffee on the back porch.

That's it for this week.  Enjoy your week!

Until next time,
Veronica

Homemade Cough Syrup & April Chalkboard

Can you believe that it is April already!

 

I love when Spring arrives and all the summer birds return
and the Spring flowers start to peek out of the ground.
 

I love to wake up and hear the birds chirping, it's a sure sign of Spring.

 

We've had a lot of rain here lately which helps the flowers and grass start to grow.

Our daffodils are already starting to open.

 

 

One thing I don't care about Spring is that it brings on my allergies!

This year has hit me pretty hard.  I'm talking knock me off my feet hard!

I do take prescription allergy medicines year round but even those weren't enough to keep the allergies from creeping up on me.  This year I developed a bad cough because of all the sinus drainage down the back of my throat, preventing me from getting a good nights sleep.

 

So I thought that I would share my recipe for Homemade Cough Syrup.

 

This stuff WORKS people!  Plus it doesn't make you feel lethargic.

 

*DO NOT GIVE TO CHILDREN UNDER ONE YEAR OF AGE*

Their little digestive systems cannot break down the enzymes in honey and can cause botulism.

 

All you need are 3 simple All Natural Ingredients.

 

 

Raw Honey - make sure the label states RAW.  You want all of those good for you enzymes and probiotics that you only get with raw honey.  You should be able to get this at your local grocery store.  It isn't any more expensive than the processed honeys.

 

Extra Virgin Olive Oil - for it's natural anti-inflammatory

 

Lemon Juice which is a natural antiseptic.  I didn't have a lemon for the photo thus the lemon juice bottle.

 

All Natural Cough Syrup

 

3/4 cup Raw Honey

1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2-4 Tablespoons Lemon Juice

 

Mix all ingredients together and give it a good stir.  Store in an airtight container.  I use the honey jar.

 

Dosages:

 

Children 1 year and older - 1 teaspoon as needed for cough

Adults - 2 teaspoons as needed for cough

 

 

I take 2 teaspoons of cough syrup before I go to bed at night and am able to sleep all night without coughing!

 

Hubby had a bug a couple of weeks ago and used this cough syrup.  He only had to take one dose in the morning and one dose at night.  That's it!

 

As promised I have my April chalkboard completed.  I worked on it a little each morning before I headed off to work.  I wasn't sure if I would get it done because my allergies stopped me cold for a few days.  This morning was the first day I actually started to feel better so I was able to finish it up.

 

Here is my April chalkboard.  I thought I would use colored chalks this time around.

 

 

I should have added at the end...and allergies!

 

I wanted to give the kitchen a lighter look for Spring.  Here is how I set up the little

stand and area that sits under my chalkboard.

 

 

 

This is the whole SHABANG!



 

 

I hear that we are supposed to have temps. in the 70s this week.  I'm so ready for nice weather!

That's it for this week.  Hope you have a beautiful week.

 

Until Next Time,

Veronica

 

 

 

 



Happy Easter and a DIY

Happy Easter Everyone!

 

Yesterday we spent time with our Son & DIL.

They just purchased their first home and moved in.

We are so excited for them!
 

 Today we are enjoying a quiet day.

I'm glad that I was finally able to complete this next project last weekend.

I've been wanting to make this project for some time but

wasn't able to find what I wanted until two weeks ago.

I happened to stop in at our local thrift store and spotted this in the back of the store.

So I grabbed it and brought it home.

It's 27 inches x 39 inches.

It's BIG!  It's exactly what I was looking for.

 I finally had everything I needed.
 

 

Hubby saw it sitting in our laundry room and shook his head

and said, "I can't even imagine what you are going to do with that".

 

I wiped the whole picture down with a damp rag to remove any dust and dirt.

 

I took the picture completely apart and painted the frame with white paint.

By taking the picture apart I didn't have to tape anything off.

So much easier and faster to paint with no worries about

getting paint on unwanted areas.

 



 

Next I grabbed my chalkboard paint and painted 2 coats right over

the picture using a foam roller.

 

 

 

Once the paint was dry I assembled it back together.

 

By now you probably have guessed what I made.

 

It's a Chalkboard!

 

 

Before you can write on your new chalkboard you have to cure it.

This makes erasing your images easier and prevents it from

leaving behind any permanent images.

 

To cure your chalkboard simply rub chalk all over the

board, completely covering it.

 

 

Using a rag, or eraser, erase the chalk from the board.

No waiting time required.

 

Your chalkboard is now ready to use!

 

 

I LOVE my new chalkboard.

 

This is what I drew on it for Easter.

 

 

I love that I can change this by simply erasing and drawing

a new design whenever the mood strikes me!

 

I have this hanging in my kitchen.

I drew the image on it while Hubby was sleeping.

When he woke up and walked in the kitchen he noticed it right away.

He likes my new chalkboard and thinks it is a neat idea.

Just think of all the "To Do Lists" I can leave for Hubby!

Just kidding, sort of.

 

Check back in next week I'm hoping to change my design to welcome

in Spring.

 

 

See you next time,

Veronica