The fourth and her blueberries

HA! and you thought I was revealing the gender of our upcoming baby. Only the docs know.......

Sittin' in the evening sun.... at our cabin for 4th of July weekend is my absolute favorite summer activity. Jeff, Mad, and I arrived just a evening ahead of the rest of the crew... and 7-8 pm is the most wonderful time to just watch the waves go by.



....or examine your toes...



oh, I wish I was back there now!




This picture is from my kitchen!!! Not finished yet, but with just enough capability to make me want to put something in jars. I put together this blueberry sauce with the gallon that I bought at the lake. I love how their sweet little blueberry cheeks press themselves to the sides of the jar.

Here's the recipe: (thank you Tyler Florence)


2 tablespoons butter
2 pints blueberries
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 lemon, juiced

Combine the butter, blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice in a small pot over medium-high heat. Bring up to a low boil and stir gently until the berries break down and release their natural juices. The consistency should remain a bit chunky. It will thicken up when it cools down slightly.

It's wonderful over anything- ice cream, pound cake, cheesecake, the back of your hand.....as it barely drips over the spoon. Excuse me....

Shiny Happy Counters

I cannot tell you how pleased I have been with this company, and how stunning I think these are in our new kitchen. We debated for weeks over what type of countertops to do. Because I'm so tough on a kitchen (read: messy!!) but still so OCD as to cleanliness, these were the perfect solution. You can't hurt them- set a hot pot on them, buff the scratches out with the pad that they provided, and soap and water in between! I can't wait to make my first mess- uh, meal on them!


It took all five of the Specialty Stainless guys plus our contractor to haul in these beautiful things!


Check out the depth of the sink base!



I'm so excited about how easy it's going to be clean up my kitchen from now on. Look, no caulk!




The countertops came in exactly as I imagined them. They have a slightly raised "mariner's edge" to keep liquids from streaming off the ends, and the guys created a perfect radius on all the corners to keep little heads from being bonked.





This beastly floor has been what's been holding up progress for two weeks. It looks great and we are really pleased with the final product. But I had no idea how long they would take! One week was taken up with the installation and this past 5 days has been sanding, staining and coating with poly. Super stinky; it kept me out of the house most days.

End of Week 4

Cabinets are up! (and no longer warehoused in my basement- hallelujah!)


Pantry on the left, drawer units for pots/pans, gas range, microwave, and refrigerator on end.



Sink base, dishwasher, and prep area with extra huge drawers. This will also be a bar top for kiddos to participate in the cooking.




This is my newly expanded pantry and a major reason for the total gut job. You can see where the spackle ends and tell how much space we were able to increase it by. I love keeping all of my dry goods in here versus the cabinets. One glance and you know what you are out of or have too much of.

Hardwoods are being installed next week! I'm hopeful that all the stinky smelly part will be done while we go to visit Aunt Allyson in NC.