As I mentioned last week, it feels funny to call this a “kitchen tour” since it takes, like, three steps to walk through our kitchen.  :) 

I tried my best to get the camera settings right - but the kitchen is windowless, so I apologize for the slightly skewed colours!

This space is 9’ by almost 7’.  Yup, it’s small - but it was a fun challenge to design.

First, let me show you the before:

Hey, is that a dark little hallway with a fridge in it?  No.  That is the entire kitchen.

The pictures don’t accurately show how scungy this place was.  Ew.

Sean measuring.  Measurements were key in planning this small space.

Our condo was a rental apartment for years and the kitchen was original, neglected, and nasty.  It had ugly old cupboards, big old appliances, a whole lotta’ ugly.  And dirty.  (The whole apartment was filthy when we got it… good thing we were gutting it!)

The cabinetry is from Ikea - Adele cabinets in birch.  I probably did 15 different mockups on the IKEA kitchen planner to find a plan that fit the small space, was most efficient, and cost effective.  

Originally I planned the kitchen in the white Adele cabinets, and planned to use the same pretty Woodlawn Blue (Benjamin Moore) that went throughout the dining and living room area.  I was 8 months pregnant with Little M when we made the 8 hour trip to the nearest IKEA (in Calgary).  

Upon arrival the “IKEA kitchen expert” let us know that the white Adele cabinets were special order and we could pick them up in three weeks. Ummmm… not gonna’ happen.  So right there in store we had to revamp our plan - picking another door front and changing every single piece in our order over to the birch colour.  It was on the drive home that I decided to change the paint colour too, opting for a dark navy (Newburyport Blue from Benjamin Moore).  I knew it was a little risky to use such a dark colour, especially in a windowless space.  But I figured the cabinetry was light, and the space was small, so we could give it a shot.  And I love it.  the kitchen looks modern and sharp, unexpected, and completely different than it did before.

The layout is also highly efficient for the space (the most efficient layout and most storage I’ve had in my adult life).  The “Big 3” (fridge, stove, sink) are pretty close to their original places (a key to saving money), but the appliances are narrower and the sink is pushed over to the wall, because a long stretch of counter space was a major priority for me.

Having the sink and the stove so close to walls is not ideal (because of splatter), but it’s worth it to have the counter space.  This does, however stress the value of a backsplash, which I skipped for a number of reasons. (We didn’t want to spend the money on it - our condo is really about renovating to look great, but not sink too much money into it considering our potential return when we sell it.  Also, in such a small space I didn’t want another element to chop up the visual space.  And finally, my husband and I were rookie renovators who didn’t feel that installing tile was a job we were up to.)  But in our next house?  There will be a backsplash tile.  A scrubbable one.

Before I began planning the layout I really considered our needs and how I work in a kitchen.  Thinking through how I work and what we had was really valuable (“So when I’m cooking I want to have a drawer for large utensils and a spot for spices nearby…” or “I need a deep cabinet to store all our big platters we got for our wedding…”, or “I need shelves for dishes and drawers for utensils near the dishwasher, but I also want them close to the dining room for setting the table…”)  Considering how you live is key to an efficient kitchen.  

A few other things we did to maximize efficiency and storage: we opted for the taller 39” upper cabinets (hard for me to reach, sure, but we just put lesser-used stuff up there), deep drawers on the bottom are awesome (wish we’d put them on both sides, actually), and the adjustable shelves within the cabinet are great to customize the space to our stuff.

The countertop was a happy happenstance.  It matches the dark blue walls perfectly (the countertop is a blueish charcoal grey).  It looks great and was the cheapest in-stock countertop at Rona.  Of course I would have loved a stone or solid surface, but it didn’t fit with our frugal restraints, so it was nice to find a laminate that looked good in the space.  And it was nice that the counters blended with the wall colour to keep things from getting visually “busy”. 

I really wanted to include a fun light fixture in the space (I was thinking of spray painting a secondhand chandelier apple green to match my Kitchenaid mixer and the tea towels), but two things kiboshed that: the clearance of the upper cabinet doors when opened into the narrow kitchen, and my stick-in-the-mud husband (whom I love dearly, by the way.) ;)  But he’s right - the bright green chandy may not have been the best thing for resale.  So we opted for a small track fixture which gives us some good task lighting.

And that’s my kitchen!  It was a great experience to design it, I learned a lot, and for such a small space I really really like it.

(This is a post about a balcony makeover.  I promise.  But first…)

I once played bass guitar in a band that opened for a band named Saving Summer.  Long story.  But the highlights are: I wore a sequin shirt and cut-off jeans, and I learned to play bass that day, and haven’t played bass since.  Oh, and I also sung some 80’s power-ballad falsetto back-up vocals.  100% true story.

But that’s not what this post is about.  Nope.  I was just reminded of that occasion because of the words “saving summer”.  However, in this case I’m referring to saving up every ounce of summer I can before the cold winds blow and the snow flies.  So to do that I finally did something with our teeny-tiny scrungy apartment balcony.  (Still need to sand an paint the railing though…)

You see this?

and this?

Yucky.  Especially this part:

And while Little M likes to hang out on the balcony and yell “hi!” to “the guys” (that’s what he calls the older children who play in the courtyard), it’s not been the nicest place to hang out.  So I decided to work on it a bit.

Doing a balcony makeover in late August may seem a bit behind the times, but give me a break people - I had a baby in July!  And I also discovered that it’s the exactly right time to do it: outdoor furniture and gardening supplies are on clearance, and it turns out late summer is the perfect time to transplant perrenials, like I did!  And it gives me the chance to save up every last bit of summer.  Like a summer chipmunk.  (Summer chipmunk?!?  Sorry dudes.  Notta’ lotta’ sleep these days, so I get a bit punchy.)

So here’s the run-down.  It started with this chair: (Wait!  It actually started with cleaning everything - sweeping cobwebs and dirt, scrubbing the BBQ, washing the walls… but that’s boring.  So let’s start with the chair.)

It’s a director’s chair I bought on UsedRegina for $10.  My plan was to spray paint it and re-cover it in an outdoor fabric, following this tutorial from Chez Larsson.  But we picked up the chair and the wood looked great, and the fabric was already outdoor friendly (and sidewalk chalk wipes off like a dream.  I know.  Little M and I tried.)  So I kept it as-is.  But then I had already purchased my outdoor fabric (because I get a little trigger-happy when it comes to buying fabric…) and wanted to use it.

So I picked up a couple of ugly patio seat cushions on clearance from Canadian Tire and recovered them in my pretty quatrefoil fabric.  These can fit nicely on the chair, or Little M can sit on them on the balcony when he’s reading, playing his drum (he does that.  It’s cute), or yelling (nicely) at “the guys”.

Then there’s the issue of the mega-ugly air conditioning unit.  It’s big, old, and was covered with chunks of caulking and stryofoam (from past attempts at insulating it, I think).  So I scraped off the gunk, cleaned it all up, and spray painted it white.  SOOO much nicer!  Then I decided to make it useful.  I concocted a “shelf”:

Using a cheapy shelf from IKEA that we’d bought long ago and never used, and a decorative stair-tread-thingie (You’ll note I speak in very technical terms.  They love me at Home Depot), I spray painted them blue to go with the fabric and placed them on the air conditioning unit. 

Ta-DAH!!  Useful space!  For a tea light, a cup of chai, or maybe a plant!  Hmmm… a plant…

Turns out you can buy plants on UsedRegina.  Cool, eh?  People with extra (or multiplying) perrenials sell their extras to beginners like me.  I bought some Lily of the Valley plants from a very nice lady for $2.  Now, my green thumb is completely untested.  But my prediction is that it’s not very green.  I clicked on “Lily of the Valley for sale” because I thought “Ooh!  Those are pretty!” Not because I had any clue about the plant.  Turns out they need mostly shade (our balcony faces east.  Check.), and should be transplanted in late summer/early fall (Check.)  Sweet.  However I planted them with my two-year-old.  And I knew little more than he did on the process.  (Put plant in dirt.  water.  done.  right?)  So we’ll see next spring if they come back and flower.

I picked up the planter at Wal-Mart on clearance.  And I really like it.  So if the plant dies I’ll use it for something else. (Hmm… maybe a lamp?)  And the carpet is one I picked up at Canadian Tire.  (It’s just a simple brown mat, but it ties in with the wood on the chair frame, and is lovely underfoot.)

Finally, I wanted some mood lighting for when I’m sitting out there in the late evening. 

I still had the Knappa pendant fixture that used to hang in the nursery (but was replaced it with this DIY chandelier).  I figured its plastic frame should stand up to the outdoor elements, but didn’t think the cord/bulb would. 

So I placed a bunch of Christmas lights inside and now it’s a cool, weather-durable outdoor light!  Hooray!

So there it is.  My new favourite spot for early mornings, summer evenings and moments in between!

Well, I shared my plans along the way… but maybe I should also share the finished project?  So welcome to M & L’s nursery!  

In case you forgot, here is the original plan:

Over time the plan in evolved in the details, but stayed pretty true to my vision: cream with pops of colour (particularly deep red), with lots of fun, vintage-feeling, patterned fabrics.  Here are a few of the posts and DIYs I shared along the way:

• I sewed the drapes myself, and my dad built the bed then I upholstered it.
• Once I found a serendipitously perfect fabric I used it to slipcover an ottoman.
• I reused a side table from UsedRegina, which my mom painted.  (You’ll see in the link I’d planned to use two tables, but since I changed up the layout I only needed the one.  The other table still has its wood finish and is in my bedroom.)  I had also originally thought about painting the table red, but with the contrast between the dark wood crib, medium wood floors, the light canvas toddler bed, and the apple green chair I felt the need to neutralize the remaining furniture, so my mom kindly painted the dresser and side table in a colour to match the fabric on Little M’s bed.
• And after I knew I was having a girl I swapped out the IKEA knappa pendant (which I have a cool plan for) and created my own “capiz shell” chandelier.
• I also sewed Little M’s quilt - made with some inspiration from Pinterest.

Some other changes?  

• The layout was changed up because we actually had room for the change table between the crib and bed (instead of in the closet) - which is ideal.
• I did purchase the IKEA rug, but after living with it for a few weeks I felt the pattern was a bit too busy, and didn’t relate enough to the fabrics in the room.  Also, it has a pretty scratchy texture, so it wasn’t necessarily better to play on than the laminate.  So the rug’s in our room now, and I quite like it there.
• I also sewed some pillows and a crib skirt, spray painted the lamp and some hooks cherry red, Sean put up some display shelves and hung a second closet rod, and I added some adorable alphabet flashcards as art above the crib.

But enough of that… how about some pictures?

Our rocking/reading/snuggling/nursing corner!  (And though the drape over the closet is also the cheaper option - as opposed to adding doors - it also allowed us to have a spacious floor plan by placing the chair slightly in front of the closet.  Another bonus?  Little M loves to hide in his “tent” closet where I’ve stashed books and soft toys on the bottom shelf.

I sewed the stripes onto the store-bought curtain panel using the leftovers from the drapes to connect the two sides of the room.

Here’s the lamp I bought ages ago at Urban Outfitters on clearance, now looking kicky in deep red.  I love it.  L’s journal was purchased at Chapters and was designed by the same artist, Lorena Siminovich, who created the flashcards above the crib. (Underneath it is M’s journal, which coordinated with his old forest-themed nursery design.)

I actually bought these corner shelves when Little M was born, but they only made it onto the walls last week… isn’t that how it goes?  I’m loving the display surface now!  (Especially Baby L’s cute red shoes!!) :)

Here you can see the side table, a find from an estate sale on Used Regina painted to match the change table/dresser.  I love the extra storage space for more books!

In this shot you can see the crib skirt I made from the wonderful dot fabric using the instructions found in Amy Butler’s book: Little Stitches for Little Ones.  My sneaky cost-saving (and time-saving) secret?  I didn’t have enough fabric for the whole skirt, so I only sewed the visible panels, and left the other two wall-facing sides of the crib bare.

Obviously those cushions won’t stay in the crib once Little L moves in with big brother, but they’ll look lovely on the chair or Little M’s bed then. 

Here are the beautiful flashcards from Petit Collage.  Love ‘em.  And you can see Little L’s new chandelier and my beloved drapery fabric.

As you can see we painted our change table to match the side table and stand out a little less.

Here’s little M’s bed - loosely based on this tutorial from Design mom, with a headboard added.  And you’ll see those great ‘Monsieur’ prints by Blanca Gomez on the wall, which look so great with the ottoman fabric (and Little M loves that they feature bubbles and balloons - two of the coolest things ever.)

Speaking of the ottoman, I love that it can float around the room:

I spray painted these cheapy brass hooks red to hang outfits on.  I like to hang out their Sunday clothes on Saturday night to make getting out the door on Sunday mornings easier!

We kept the Ribba picture ledges as book shelves - a wonderful, changeable art display of storybooks!  However now that Little M is a ravenous reader I have to watch that he doesn’t use the ledges as a ladder…

So there it is!  I’m pleased as punch with it.  Even with two it doesn’t feel crowded at all, which is lovely.  …Oh, and I think the kids like it too. ;)

As I mentioned in this post, it was long past due for me to clean, I mean organize, umm… attack our laundry/storage closet.  So I finally did it, and I’m so glad I did! (Especially before I get any more pregnant.)  It’s like a breath of fresh air.  But I hesitate to show you pictures, because, let’s face it: it’s an organized closet that stores cleaning supplies, laundry gear, tools and building materials, fabric, batteries and light bulbs, and recycling.

It is not the dreamy-styled-for-TV/magazine-idyllic masterpiece that we like to look at.  These are some of my favourite laundry room pictures.  But let’s be real, shall we?

Design by Sarah Richardson from Sarah’s House on HGTV Canada

Wouldn’t it be lovely if all I had to store was an abundance of fluffy towels and toilet paper?

Source Unknown

Or how perfect would it be if I matched all of our clothing, linens, towels, and laundry detergent to my laundry room paint colour?

Source Unknown

A laundry room will always be perfect if you never bring any actual laundry into the room.  This is clearly the laundry room of a nudist.

Photograph by Donna Griffith for Canadian House & Home

And this is my most beloved laundry room.  But I’m pretty sure it’s as big as (bigger than?) my living room.  And I’m afraid we have more to store than a gorgeous bouquet of flowers and a single cowboy hat.

Truth is, my laundry room is a small windowless closet.  But to impress you more by the “after” photo I’ll give you the embarrassingly sickening “before” picture:

Yech.  So bad.  Step 1 was PLAN (click on the link to see how I did that)

Step 2 was EDIT: I started with unloading the whole thing.  I put up signs in the hallway to sort into piles “Keep”, “Recycle”, “Garbage”, etc.  The most valuable pile for me was the “Somewhere Else” pile.  This was so useful because I am quite easily distracted when cleaning.  So instead of taking these things to their new location and then getting caught up in other activities, I just made a pile and stayed in the laundry room zone.

Step 3 was CLEAN: After emptying it all I scrubbed the place down: machines, walls, shelves, floors…  Let’s just say I did some climbing that a lady as pregnant as myself probably shouldn’t do.  Shhh.  Don’t tell anyone.  But that place looked good!

At this point I taped signs to the shelves to assign space for the different things I deemed suitable for storage in this space.  I tried to ensure accessibility for frequently used items, and less used items were stored higher, lower, or deeper.

Step Four was ORGANIZE: I re-loaded the room mostly according to plan.  Some of those storage bins are actually empty, and it’s nice to know (especially with a new Little One on the way) that there’s space to spare!  But in my brain this is not the official “after” photo. There’s one more step left:

PRETTIFY!

So early this week I sewed a few items for the room.  I sewed a plastic bag organizer based on this tutorial from Martha.  I also created a new ironing board cover - partially to match the new scheme, and partially to fit the board better.  I based it on this tutorial, and I’m super pleased with it.  Finally, I sewed a pretty curtain to cover up the exposed pipes and such.

I still have a ways to go with finishing touches: Sean needs to sort through some stuff, I may want to figure out some different (coordinated) storage containers, I want to hang some hooks, and even find/create some art to cover the electrical panel.  So there you go.  There’s my real-life laundry room organization. :)

In case you haven’t guessed by my posts today, I’m revving up to tackle our storage/laundry room.  It has slowly become an abyss of disorder and mess.  I was up last night drawing out a plan:

With a little bit of help from a great book called “Organizing Plain & Simple” by Donna Smallin. Here’s what I did:

• I created a web showing the various categories of stuff that should be in the room - like cleaning supplies, laundry supplies, tools, etc. (and made a side note about what needs to be stored elsewhere.)
• I created two “To Do” lists of tasks that will need to be accomplished (such as emptying, cleaning, categorizing, purging, re-stocking, labelling, etc.), and things I’d like to do (coordinate storage boxes, add a curtain to cover the open pipes, adding hooks and art, etc.)
• I created a list of supplies I’ll need (garbage bags, storage boxes, marker and labels, etc.)

Now.  Wish me luck.  I’m going in.

My husband’s work is very seasonal.  He is both an agricultural accountant and a farmer.  This means there are 3 critical seasons in our family life: Tax season, quickly followed (hopefully) by Seeding, and in the fall is Harvest.

My least favourite of the 3 is tax season.  Maybe because Sean is just so darn happy when he’s out farming (he likes doing taxes, but looooves driving a combine.)  Maybe it’s because seeding and harvest can have the occasional rain day for a break.  Maybe it’s  because he just looks so hot in jeans and a ball cap fresh off the tractor.  Whatever the reason, tax season is my least favourite.  But this year I’ve felt it hasn’t been so bad.  Maybe because we’re used to it now, or maybe because we’re doing better at carving out family time. Or maybe because I’ve decided that Sean’s tax season = my DIY season.  If he comes home later (in the evening) then I have more time to make a mess with my projects and clean it up by the time he’s home.  If he’s working Saturdays then I can use those days for projects.  So here are a few of the things I’ve done in the last week…

…the pieces of paper mapping out the location for an art arrangement were finally replaced with actual frames…  (You can see some good picture wall techniques here and here.)

…the sad little phone table finally got a new outfit with a glossy black paint job…

…and I finally sewed a bench cushion to bring some “doneness” to our entryway!  (though we still need to find the black hooks I hid from Little M… or he hid from me… and hang those on the wall!)

I also decided to take on our poor “flood pant” drapes.  They were the first I sewed, and were unfortunately crooked and too short.  I added a band to the bottom to bring them to floor length and even them out:

Unfortunately I was insistent on using fabric already in my stash for this project.  So I used a white bed sheet, which, even beforehand, I knew wasn’t the best idea.  Here’s why: as the edge of the drapes it’ll get dirty.  Also the sheet material is more “true” white while the drapery stripes are more off-white.  Not to mention if you’d asked me advice on what colour to use I’d have recommended a darker colour to “ground” the drapes.  And the final reason the white sheet was a bad idea?  As you can see, the bottom of the striped fabric is visible through the white fabric.  But I’m stubborn and forged ahead because I already had my sewing machine out.  I don’t hate it, but I’ll probably change it when the right fabric comes along.  Until then, however, the drapes look far less nerdy than before.

And here’s the project I’m working on tonight:

My wonderful dad built the frame for Little M’s new bed this weekend, and I’m working on upholstering it and creating a headboard!  (Based on this tutorial from Gabrielle Blair of Design Mom)  I’ll show you more when I’m all done.  

But the best part?  The cutest “helper” in the world.

So have you guessed from my picture clues what’s on my mind?  Our new fireplace!  Woo hoo!

Sean and don’t buy each other Christmas presents.  But some years we buy something together for “us”.  Like the first year we were married we bought an old original Nintendo and some games and played during our entire Christmas holiday… (Oh, the carefree lives of university students…) ;)

This year we bought something a bit bigger than a Nintendo, and frankly, it came out of the blue.  All of a sudden about a month ago Sean suggested buying an electric fireplace.  We’d been discussing the need to get the TV a bit more out of Little M’s reach.  We’d talked about getting a higher console table, or even repurposing one we already own, but within the week we were shopping for fireplaces to set the TV on!

We just picked it up this week!  An electric isn’t our ideal, but for a condo it works great.  (Besides, electric fireplaces have come a long way since the light-up plastic logs we had in our basement when I was a kid!)

It tucks neatly into the corner and conceals all the cords.  (Unlike the ugly old Best Buy TV stand we had before!)  It’s too bad our TV’s so darn big, so I can’t really accessorize the mantel… but I’ll probably hang some stockings on it come Christmas time… and won’t it look lovely beside the Christmas tree?  How wonderful dark winter mornings will be now!  Plus, this little guy is already loving it:

So… how about some more beautiful fireplace pictures for you?  OK!

Well, I’ve just gone about this all wrong now, haven’t I?  Why would I post hundreds of beautiful pictures of gorgeous homes done up by professional architects, designers, stylists, and photographers, then post pictures of my own humble home?  Ah well.

Today I’m blogging about the one room that’s nearly complete in our renovated condo - Little M’s room.  I really love this room, which is good considering home much time I’ve spent in it.

So come in and take a peek, OK? 

I dreamed up Little M’s room before I even knew where we’d be living, or that he’d be a boy!  It all started in January (when I was 2 months pregnant) and I found this lovely birch fabric from Australian shop Ink & Spindle. (<- A shop I highly recommend!  INCREDIBLE customer service, and beautiful eco-friendly fabrics!)

The fabric was a little pricey for me, but I was in love with it and figured a green and cream scheme could work for a boy or a girl.  (And at that point the Australian dollar was only 75 cents to our dollar!)  So from that fabric a woodsy-themed room emerged…

I chose cream as the wall colour (and green and brown as accents only) because kids come with so many colourful things - clothes, toys, blankets, books… and you need a clean slate for all of that!

I love all of the furniture pieces in this room.  The chair was our splurge: the La-Z-Boy “Sheffield” glider-recliner.  I love that it has the comfort and quality of a La-Z-Boy, but doesn’t have that overstuffed ugliness of most recliners.  Not to mention it’s a relatively small chair so it fits my 5’4” frame perfectly (i.e. my feet can touch the floor!)  I love this chair and have slept in it a lot, so I recommend splurging on a good chair!

The crib is the “Lollipop” crib from AP Industries.  This was a gift from my mom, and it’s beautiful.  I found most cribs on the market (at least here in Saskatchewan) were either too spindly and cheapy, or massive beasts.  This crib is just the right size, and it will last a long time.  

The change able is the IKEA Leksvik dresser, and it works perfectly.  I love the open storage for diapers and wipes, and it helps that I lucked out with baskets from HomeSense that are the perfect size and perfect colour!

I had oodles of DIY’s, starting with sewing my own tab-back drapes with the inspiration fabric:

My dad helped me with a deer antler clothes hanger in keeping with the forest theme: (It works great for hanging up Little M’s outfit for the next day!)

And I created this tree mobile by painting a branch, creating paper leaves, and hanging it all with fishing line.  It casts beautiful shadows, the hanging leaves flutter in the breeze, and Little M’s loved it since he was tiny:

I bought a vintage Smokey the Bear book and framed the illustrations salon-style in a collection of white and cream frames:

I also created a large “wooden” M out of insulation styrofoam by carving it up with a utility knife, painting it, and attaching more paper leaves:

I love the look of old illustrated maps, so this was the perfect theme to create some maps of some imaginary campgrounds:

With only a strip of fabric left over from the window drapes, I used it to customize a store-bought panel that serves as a closet door:

And then there were a few IKEA “hacks” (creative uses of IKEA items) like flipping over a large IKEA frame that we had and tucking it under the dresser to pull out like a drawer with my son’s plethora of footwear:

Or (you’ve probably seen this one before) using the picture ledges as book shelves.  (I believe kids’ books are art!  And the more books kids see, the more they’ll want to read!)

So that’s our little nursery!  Thanks for visiting!

What is this a picture of?  Progress.  Sweet sweet progress.  And forgiveness.  Good good forgiveness.  Oh, and it’s also our bathroom floor.  Yuck.

My wonderful husband pulled up the nasty old lino in our bathroom this past weekend.  Two layers worth, both glued down well over 30 years ago.  Awesome.  He also used his remarkable IKEA-assembly powers to put together our sink and vanity and new storage tower, and got some of the flooring down already.  Woo hoo!  Unfortunately his progress was stalled when some of the old lino took up a chunk of the concrete.  So we went out and got some filler which needed to cure overnight.  He very specifically told me not to step on it.

“Duh.” I thought “I’m not going to step on it.  It’s a 4 inch span of stinky, wet, cementy goop.  Yeesh, give me some credit.”

Later I decided I was going to go and assess what needed to be done to the walls before painting.  Feeling quite smart, I even went and put on my flip flops so I didn’t have to feel the yucky floor underfoot.  And as I stood there, pondering the walls, I realized that under my flip flop was the one small 4-inch span of goop.  Which I’d been told not to step on.

You know that feeling you got when you were 8 years old and got caught sneaking cookies?  Or breaking your mom’s favourite dish?  Or snapping your new glasses in half?  That feeling like you drank jello with worms in it?  

I lifted my foot, now with a thick cementy heel on my flip flop, to reveal the gooey gap beneath.  Suddenly I was wracking my brain, “Where’s a trowel!  I need to cover this up!  I’m in so much trouble!  I hope I didn’t wreck this!”  And about a bjillion other frantic, nervous thoughts.  Then I paused.

I calmly, though sheepishly, walked down the hall.

“Um, Sweetie?  Do you have a trowel?”

“Whyyyy?”

“Um, I kinda’ stepped in that stuff in the bathroom that you told me not to.”

He could have scolded me.  Or complained.  Or rubbed it in my face that I was sooo sure I wouldn’t.  I braced myself.

And then, that most incredible man smiled at me kindly, and went to get his trowel.  He fixed it without complaint and assured me that “It’s OK, Sweetie.”

So, the good news is, my bathroom’s being renovated.  And my husband is freaking amazing.  

The bad news is, I’m not  gonna’ blog much until it’s done.  And you have to look at this ugly picture until I do.

But I’ll post pictures when it’s all done!