House Tour #2: Kitchen Area

THE KITCHEN IS THE HEART OF THE HOME

No matter what, the kitchen always tends to be the heart of the home. Regardless of how comfortable the living room, everyone congregates within our kitchen and it's adjoining area. In this photo you can see our pantry area, fridge (with photos & items of home, recipes, and a few restaurant menus), and large counter space. The candles and African violet are actually left overs from friends that moved, as well as two other plants not pictured. Top of the fridge has some glass storage containers (thrift store finds), a large thermos for hub's work, and usually bones for the dogs. In the background is the entryway to our home.

I'm not a huge fan of cluttered counter tops, but unfortunately that's how the back corner of our kitchen survives: bamboo and glass cutting boards, knives, microwave, bread basket on top of microwave, and well, booze. Right of the stove, utensils in the holder painted 5 years ago by my nephew and an old strainer which is our fruit basket. To the left of the sink we place a towel for drying dishes washed by hand. On the stove, you see an espresso maker (Italian style) and a pan of brownies (thanks hub!).

One of my favorites things about this space is being able to look out the huge window. Two stools up to the counter, the hand-me-down desk in the corner (which will get passed on when we're back home with my old desk), the bench my dad made for an apartment (storing our breadmaker & crock pot), and the futon (via hub's friend) finish off this space and make a comfortable area for company in the kitchen. The drapery rods are some that have moved with me from two different apartments and happen to match the hardware in this house perfectly.

These last pictures demonstrate some of the dog areas. To the left of the futon, their water bowl. To the right of the futon is a large outdoor/indoor rug to catch dirty paws that we can't wipe in time, their leashes hanging on the wall, and a basket that holds their toys and old towels for said paw wiping. ;)

House Tour #1: Guest Room

I've been spending the afternoon thinking about how happy I am that we have reached a comfort level with our home. Sure there are little decor items we'd still like to do, but for the most part things are how we intend to have them and the furniture is perfect for our needs for the future. I've spent part of the afternoon rounding up pictures of the house and looking through home magazines and blogs. Our home will never be designed to a T but it's incredibly perfect for us, and still with enough blank spaces to allow us to add artwork that has meaning to us down the road. SO I thought I'd share some photos and details with all of you over the next week :)

"If you want to make a difference on the planet, this is it: Have nothing in your home or life that you do not know to be useful, believe to be beautiful or know that you will strive to keep in your life forever."

--Natalie "Alabama" Chanin

 GUEST ROOM

 Those of you that have followed this blog for years probably recognize most of everything that is in this first photo. The mattresses are slightly smaller as now we have the full that came from the neighbors in exchange for our queen. The duvet is one my mom and I made out of two old sheets and the blankets are some I've had for years. The sheets are organic cotton. The chair used as an end table is now blue and the other is an original from my grandparents-sister-me. The photo on the table is courtesy of my brother and under it is Lady's favorite sleeping spot--right between my old rabbit fur slippers from my family in Argentina! The print above the bed is my favorite painting from the father of a childhood friend. The lamp on the left was from Granny for my first apartment and the lamp on the right is part of a set picked up at a thrift store.

The chest of drawers and shelf in this photo are from my childhood. My parents had them custom made when they were stationed in the Philippines and I recently repainted them dark brown and modernized the hardware. The shelves hold a few token travel items and a part of our varied books, while the drawers have work-out gear and undergarments. The clock on the wall is from my parents house, the rug was a Granny gift for an apartment, and the curtains were a set I bought for our living room here. 

 The closet is probably the messiest part of this room but the husband and I keep separate closets and this is mine. We removed the doors about six months back for easier access. We have the spare TV (from my coworker who moved) in there so any guests can watch a movie. You can see my shoe basket and a couple other boxes I have stored as well. ;) On the wall is my cork board with a few inspirational items and then push pins which hold up necklaces and my hook earrings go into the corkboard on the top. (I got this idea from a magazine a long time ago. You can also use push pins to hang hook earrings on if you need more room.)

And this is from the guest room looking out which hopefully will bring a smile to your face as its an example of decorating compromise. My husband and I have battled over his Kramer poster since we moved in together and I finally can see the humor in having it greet our guests on the way to the spare bedroom. (Where they can be sure to be greeted by interested dogs as well.....) :)

It Was a Great Week

It was a great week....and not for any particular reason. My sleep was sporadic with fits and starts but I decided not to let it affect me during the days, and the hub was fabulous about letting me sleep in this  morning. The dogs wore their usual smiley faces and we did our usual evening runs. We ran 3 miles in the rain one evening and next day I matched my high school cross country season personal record running 5K in just under 28 minutes on the gym's treadmill. Three weeks in a row, I've covered ten miles each week.

Work was slower (and probably will be most of this month) but I spent some time looking for jobs and housing options back home (technically now qualifying as a client). Amazingly a great housing offer was on craigslist making me feel more optimistic about our return options. The hub and I talked some more about upcoming work schedules and our transition among other things. We also discussed tightening the reins this month (NO extras) so that end of August we're only left with truck and student loan payments. We've had a few more unexpected expenses arise but they too will be paid in full next month and we've budgeted for my mom and granny's trip. We're really getting excited to have them here and have been working with the dogs for improved behaviors with company.

We haven't eaten out in the last week and have done dinners in, usually scrounging together remains from last weekend. Yesterday, the hub made it to the grocery store and we fell into our natural cooking pattern: Him doing most the cooking and me prepping the small things. He grilled burgers (garden for me and turkey for him) and I made guacamole, sliced up tomatoes, and made milkshakes. We both stacked our burgers quite high and I have to say it was probably one of the best variations I'd ever made--quite delicious!

The week also included texts with a good friend back home and setting up our phone date next weekend. Offering support to a friend who is living over in Turkey. An evening phone call to Granny with excitement over their trip being a month away! I set up chat time with one of my public health gals from back home for mid next week. Invited some wives here for a bday celebration next weekend (two of them have bdays this coming week). This morning had a phone call to my parents and my excitement is growing over our return to Oregon--still 7-8 months away but it's closer than before! ;) A card got mailed for the Summer of Mail Love and I'll be wrapping up a package today.

Three loads of laundry last night, our sheets and bedding cleaned, dishwasher emptied, and the house vacuumed--leaves us with a relaxing day ahead of us. The hub works all day tomorrow and then starts a week of nights, so we'll relish the relaxation and "emptiness" of today.

So while nothing of this week was huge or out of the norm, that might just be what made it so nice. After  a long weekend of resting up, it was quite enjoyable to have a simple week that followed. Sort of like the long lazy stretch of a river after heading around a curve. Its always nice to see how much easier it is to enjoy the simple things of life when my head space is in the right spot. When I take the time to slow down, to not stress, and to just relish, life is so much...More.

Here's hoping everyone had their own wonderful week!  Wishing that each has a relaxing weekend too!

Friendships

Throughout my life it's taken me forever to make good friends. This probably has to do with the fact that I'm very particular with the type of people I like to invest time in as I tend to be the type of person who likes lifetime friendships rather than short-term buddies. I'd much prefer to spend my days alone than hang out with people who offend me/who I offend or who I have trouble relating to/conversing with/having much in common. It could also be due to my shyness as a kid with my peers and a lack of self confidence at numerous points in my life. Ironically, I used to be really good at small talk and could chat up just about anyone in a customer service manner. However those skills pretty much go out the window when I'm meeting someone who could potentially be a friend. I also will be the first to admit that I have a tendency to be judgmental--chalk it up to participant observer training--but I'll also admit that sometimes those inital assumptions are invalid. Some of my favorite friends have been people that I wanted to write off within the first few outings and several of my closest pals are some that I never would have imagined continuing our relationship.

So where is this post stemming from?....Well any life transition leads me to re-evaluate my friendships, so for the last few years I've been doing a lot of thinking about them--what it means to be a friend, what is important to me in a friendship, and wondering when its best to let go of a friendship and move on. It's been hard for me to meet like-minded people here on this military post, but many other outlets have made the time here fulfilling in other ways and I still feel the love and support from many of my favorites back home (both friends & family). Maybe I've become a country cliche, but I'm pretty sure that my dogs have become my new best friends.  My husband has the ability to be a great companion, but I'm pretty sure I'm always going to be one of those women who needs another woman as her confidant. (Not that I'm always great at maintaining the communication and consistency.)

Breaking all my research rules, I looked up what wikipedia had to say about friendships. The gist being that the intensity and number of friendships has decreased for individuals over the last decades, that friendships have positive health gains, and that the following factors tend to increase VALUE in friendships:
--the tendency to desire what is best for the other
--sympathy and empathy
--honesty, perhaps in situations where it may be difficult for others to speak the truth, especially in terms of pointing out the perceived faults of one's counterpart
--mutual understanding
--mutual compassion

Not bad, wikipedia, not bad---definitely things that I look for in my friendships and as each of those items can take a lot of work, it's no wonder I don't take investing in a friendship very lightly! I had already been contemplating this post earlier today and I happened to finish the book The Friday Night Knitting Club this evening. The story is an interesting journey of a handful of women who happen to come together--a very unlikely crew but still able to bond, to support, and to demonstrate compassion for their individual journeys. Not unlike my best gal pals from my senior year of high school and also not unlike my favorite gals from my public health program either. In both cases, a handful of very different women bonded together over a mutual environment and objective. And in both cases, each individual brought her own beauty, personality, and insight to the collective.

I feel so blessed to have been a part of such amazing relationships (among others!) and I've been interested over the years to see how many relationships have the ability to ebb and flow. I've never been one to be very good at letting go of certain friendships, but slowly and surely over the years I've come to understand that sometimes you have to just let it be and eventually it can come back when you least expect it but most need it. There are still friendships that I need to learn to let go, others I should take the time to relish the memories, and still others that I need to do a better job at maintaining. And maybe, just maybe there is something true to the old Season, Reason, and Lifetime prose:

SEASON, REASON AND LIFETIME
People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. When you figure out which it is, you know exactly what to do.

When someone is in your life for a REASON, It is usually to meet a need you have expressed outwardly or inwardly. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally, or spiritually. They may seem like a godsend, and they are. They are there for the reason you need them to be. Then, without any wrongdoing on your part or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end. Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away. Sometimes they act up or out and force you to take a stand. What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled; their work is done. The prayer you sent up has been answered and it is now time to move on.

When people come into your life for a SEASON, It is because your turn has come to share, grow, or learn. They may bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done. They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe it! It is real! But, only for a season.
LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons; those things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation.Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person/people (any way); and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life.
It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.
--Author Unknown

So whether you are a lifetime, season, or reason friend, I thank you for your participation and I cherish the moments, the thoughts, and hopefully the laughs that we have shared. May we all have loved friends, near and far, who continue to bring joy, humor, and grace to our lives!

A Weekend of Freedom

As much as I maybe like to complain about the societal norms of my country or who/what may actually be running it, I always know that I am able to voice my opinion as much as I do because (for the most part) I live in a nation based on freedom. I am free to send emails and letters to my elected officials. I am free to vote and to consume in a manner that supports my ideals. I am free to debate and talk with my fellow friends. I am free to protest should I so choose. And for the most part, I can do all this without fear of repercussion (although I still avoid some terms or topics while communicating via phone or email).

In comparison to many other nations, I feel the reality of my freedoms every single day. And in reality, I strongly believe in what this nation was supposed to be about, before it was over-run by industry and a miscontrued idea of how domestic growth should be calculated.

So while it may come as a surprise to some, the Fourth of July is one of my very favorite holidays. And this weekend was a great one!

Many days to appreciate our freedoms: 3.5 days for me, 7 for the hub--a break from the mad rush of work and expectations. Time to just relish what things should be about: Time to take Anna in for her yearly exam and shots. Time to put the finishing touches on our cozy living room (moving the mirror and finally painting our last blue shelf!). Time for the hub to relax with his video games, perfect his newest grilling rub and BBQ sauce, and put together a most delish key lime pie. Time to have a handful of friends and their pups over (10 people and 7 dogs total)--to play, to laugh, to cook, to enjoy good food and drink, to share. Time to enjoy free concerts, fireworks, and  deliciously melting cotton candy. Time to regroup and pick up our surroundings and our lives. Time to lay around, chat, share and enjoy the company of my husband. Time to laze along the shores of the river. Time to read and time to sleep. Time to restore.

And with the freedoms of our nation and the lazy freedoms of our days still so present in our minds, we begin again to take care of that which is most dear to our hearts.  I hope you too had a relaxing and enjoyable weekend thinking of the rights that you do have and of the freedom to live a life that you hold most dear.

More Interesting Articles!

I know, I know. Many of you aren't big fans for resources and links presented this way and I'm sure most of you don't even check the headlines that I do post....but to be honest, I sort of like having these postings so I'll be able to find some of the articles I've been interested in from the past. ;)

These resources and articles are pretty ecletic, but without further ado:

New anti-rape female condom, Rape Axe, debuts at South Africa's World Cup

Granny always discouraged my attempts at giving up coffee in the past. Maybe this newest research is why: Coffee's Mysterious Benefits Mount

This site let's you see how far the oil spill would cover your home area: If It Was My Home.

Interesting renovation: In the Catskills, Comfort in a Gingerbread House

AMAZING RECIPE CENTRAL: TasteSpotting

FDA seeks less use of antibiotics in animals to keep them effective for humans

Ending the Consumption Addiction presented by Treehugger

And while consuming of a sort, this is a neat lil' app for the Iphone that Treehugger wrote about the other day: MyNature App Makes You an Instant Expert on the Outdoors