One Part Inspiration...

It's hard to believe that we bought The Pokeaway five years ago. .  I no longer turn the corner to our street and feel like a visitor.  Every once in awhile, I think of where we were five years ago, and marvel at the journey.  Last week, I put these flowers out along with my sign.  Some friends who came to visit said it looked like a Pinterest cover. And even though the kitchen is not complete, I agreed.  When I think back...I envision all it has taken to get to this stage, and I know there are many more stages yet to come.....  ( If you were to pull back from the frame you would see that although we now sport cupboards in the kitchen, I have a psuedo-counter and still use a black bucket for my "kitchen sink".) A long-time friend of mine gave me this sign as a house warming gift when they came to look at The Pokeaway shortly after we began this adventure.  I have kept it front and center through each of the stages of our re-build.  It has be...

Ever since March, when we got the green light to go ahead and begin another phase of the reconstruction of The Pokeaway, my life has been in reverse.  What do I mean by this, you might be asking.  Good question.  I will try and explain. First, there was the pulling up of the floor in the dining room to drill a hole through to the crawl space, so that the plumbing could be installed.  Once the plumbing was in place, we had to find someone who would know how to treat the radiators we bought - they were very grungy-looking and needed testing to make sure that they wouldn't leak once they were installed.  [We had found them on Ebay.  They were working but had been taken out for a newer application.]  This actually took a VERY long time.  Radiators, and the care of them is not something that is common anymore.   But because my designer husband wanted to restore the look of this  house built in the 1940's, work was stalled until...

I was thinking about this post the other day.  I haven't looked at it since I posted it, but I wanted to know what I'd written and how I'd done.  Things I wanted  to do in 2011 and how it worked : 11. Go for more walks .  Yes, I definitely went for more walks. It was one of my favourite things to do with my friends who came to visit.  Especially since we have a dike to walk along, that makes you feel like you are walking inside of a postcard.  10. Get organized .   Hmm..well, I'm not sure about this one.  I have organized a lot of things.  I think I should have been more specific.  One of the differences between now and then, is that I have more of a feel for how to make things work here at The Pokeaway. 09. Make a difference. I think I made a difference.  Especially at my work.  Using music to connect with people, is an easy way to make a difference - even if it is just in giving people opportunities to have new and i...

In the beginning, was the mess. And the mess was great indeed. Food supplies, containers, and all sorts of 'stuff' was out and about, creating chaos. What to do? What to do? Well, along came my father-in-law, with a beautiful cupboard. It was at least 8 feet high. He helped move it in, and there it sat for several weeks, promising great things. By and by, my husband analyzed the situation and measured once, twice, three times, and then began the modifications for fitting it into the pantry/boiler/furnace room. He did it while I was out and about, making sure my son arrived on time to soccer practice. When we returned, we helped move it into the room. And the re-loading began. Flour and sugar, cereal boxes, cans, and other goods were placed lovingly. Amazingly, there was still more room in the cupboard for future additions. And even more wonderful, is the space it has created in the kitchen. Bring on the chocolate chip oatmeal cookie baking!