Why I Love My House- The Kitchen

I think what I love the most about my kitchen is how pretty it is. 

Between the cabinets, subway tile and the beautiful granite it’s a place I enjoy just looking at, not to mention all the cooking that will happen here. 

Recently we bought some new barstools and are enjoying sitting at the island for meals. 

Most of all, though, I’m looking forward to all the memories that will be made in this kitchen over the years. 

Why I Love My House- The Carport

The last time I had a carport was when I was ten and living in Florida. Ever since then every house I’ve ever lived in has had a garage. 

You know, a garage that you may or may not be able to fit two cars in, a place full of tools, and castaways that you are not quite ready to part with. Garages definitely come in handy, but since we knew that Chuck was getting a barn there really was no reason to have a garage.

 

Now I may feel a little differently when it’s freezing outside, but so far I’ve loved having a carport. Even in the hottest summer weather the car has remained cool while parked underneath its shelter. 

When I first saw the carport the first thing out of my mouth was, “We could square dance here!” Now to the best of my knowledge I’ve never actually square danced before, but its size was pretty remarkable.

Our carport not only is large in square footage, it is also the height of the house. It does a good job of capturing the breeze, and actually gives a view of the pond in the winter months when the leaves are absent from the trees. 

It looks to be the perfect place for outdoor entertaining, with plenty of room for tables and chairs. 

I like the noncrowded feel of the carport when both vehicles are parked there. The boys have even ridden their bikes here. 

One decision we did make, though, was to place it at the southern end of the house vs the northern end. This required completely flipping the orientation of the original plan, which at first was a little confusing to both Chuck and I. 

You’ve heard the expression about not being able to make heads or tails out of something. That was us for a while!

However, I couldn’t be more pleased with our decision. More to follow later about the barn. 

Why I Love My House- Snack Central

Now you would think with a walk-in pantry there would be no need for additional pantry space. 

Well this would be true for most items, but in our cabinet configuration we went ahead and included an area that could be used as an additional pantry. 

We call this pantry Snack Central since it is closer to the living area. It has several pull out drawers that house snacks, and other items. It’s easily accessible to the grandsons if they get a hankering for superhero fruit snacks or goldfish crackers. 

In addition to a snack shelf another shelf is dedicated to tea. It holds an electric kettle, and a variety of different types of tea. 

A third shelf holds my popcorn popper, popcorn, and dog food and treats. 

What I like about Snack Central is its ease of accessibility. The top cabinet, and the bottom shelf are available for overflow storage as well. 

Snack Central has quickly become a favorite at our house. 

Why I Love My House- The Play Nook

What I love about the Play Nook is that it was a totally unexpected surprise. We had not planned for it at all, and it kind of just happened. 

When we set up our living area we had a section across from the front door where we placed our pew bench. 

This bench in our last house served a dual purpose. It helped fill up the long foyer, and it could also be used for extra seating at our dining room table. 

The living area in our new house is long, and about three quarters of the room is filled with our living room furniture. We were quite pleased with how well our furniture fit, and thanked our daughter Brittany for the room setup suggestion.

 

After we placed the bench against the wall I added the rug that used to be in our foyer. When the boys first pulled out some of the toys from the moving boxes they gravitated to this area to play. 

They had plenty of room, and the living area was separate from the play area so it seemed to make good sense. Brittany suggested putting baskets under the bench for some of their favorite toys for easy accessibility. 

I had two baskets that were in the little mud room bench at our last house that worked beautifully. I added one of my Longaberger baskets for books. 

It warms this Mimi’s heart to see the boys feel comfortable to immediately get to playing when they come to my house. Along with the baskets there are toys in two of the other closets, and they do a good job of dragging them out, and setting them up in the Play Nook. 

Above the bench is a framed photo of the original Republic of Texas, and a Rocking H whiskey barrel lid that was a gift from our friend and realtor Debbie Boyce. 

Each time I walk through the door this is the first thing I see, and it brings a smile to my face. 

Why I Love My House- The Cookbook Bookcase

When we were designing the kitchen with the cabinet maker I knew that I wanted a dedicated place for my cookbooks. 

I had seen many photos over the years of kitchen islands with built-in bookcases for cookbooks. 

Although, I knew I could store them in the pantry, I envisioned sitting at my kitchen desk, and reaching over to grab a cookbook while planning my meals.

Having a dedicated place for them, not only looks good, but is very practical as well. 

I must admit that many of my recipes come off of Pinterest, but I’m still a sucker for a beautiful cookbook. 

In choosing to add the bookshelves it did take away from other storage on the island. Originally, we had considered a cabinet for cookie sheets and cutting boards. 

When we decided the island needed to be a little shorter to allow for adequate flow, I knew that between the cookie sheets and the books there was no way the cookie sheets would win. 

That being said, I do have some nice pull outs inside my cabinets which make retrieving these items quite easy, so I’m pleased with our final decision. 

Why I Love My House- The Desk

               

                One of my favorites parts of my new house is the desk in the kitchen. 

In the original plan that we used as our inspiration there was a coffee bar set up between two sets of cabinets. What really caught my eye, though, was the large window over the coffee bar.

 

Now as little as I drink coffee I knew there was a better use for that space. Instead of a coffee bar, I requested a desk. I also made sure that the window over the desk would provide a view of our property from a sitting position. 

Along with the desk, the cabinet maker suggested adding some floating shelves on either side of the window, which turned out just great! I’ve had fun pulling out some beloved treasures to decorate the desk and the shelves. 

Now the actual desk ended up being larger than I imagined, but I LOVE all the space. I also love how we were able to configure the different sizes of the drawers in the desk. With a total of six drawers there is plenty of room for everything.

Sitting at that desk looking out at the cows grazing in the pasture has made bill paying an actual pleasure. Who knew that the right environment could make a not so pleasant task something to look forward to. 

I’ve also continued the tradition of my old house by keeping a bouquet of flowers on the desk in the Happy Everything  vase that my sister gave me. 

I can’t help but smile when I look over at my desk, and am so glad to have moved from the kitchen table which has served as my work area for the last thirty-six years to this inviting space. 

An added bonus, too, is that I even have a view of the property from the kitchen sink.

Why I Love My House- The Closet

I’ve seen some pretty remarkable closets in my day. Most feature a chandelier, and some sort of island in the middle with wonderful drawers for things like jewelry and scarves. In addition there usually is a plethora of shelves dedicated to an Imelda Marcos sized shoe collection. 

Considering that when my son-in-law was moving boxes for me he noticed about two boxes of shoes, and thirty boxes of books, you can almost guess that the master closet is not my favorite.

Instead, my favorite closet is in the library. It’s a retired teacher’s dream, and in fact it reminds me a little of the supply closet at my first school. As a beginning teacher on a tight budget I loved visiting it to peruse the shelves for supplies to make the things I needed for my classroom. 

Along with floor to ceiling shelves, the size of the closet is almost the size of a small room. In fact, there is even room for a card table in there, which is perfect for two little boys I know who like to do crafts. 

I have an entire section dedicated to “school stuff” for the boys. Last year I did a little homeschooling with the oldest grandson. Alongside the school materials are toys for the boys.

 

I have several tubs filled with memorabilia, lots and lots of notebooks, some Christmas decorations, a file cabinet and an art cart all tucked away inside. 

I also have several tubs full of crafting supplies for some of my hobbies. What I love about this set up is that everything is easily accessible. In the past I’ve had to sift through so many tubs to locate what I was looking for I found myself reluctant to do so because it was too much trouble. 

Even filing has become easier because I actually have a place to hold all my papers, a chair to sit on, and a surface to sort through everything. 

The reality is that because we’ve chosen for this closet to be so big, and have added bookcases to this room, the actually living space is less. That being said, you still don’t have a crowded feel in there, and in fact the other day I moved the card table out to the center of the room for my grandsons, and had plenty of room. 

It worked beautifully, and Chuck said he knew I was in my element as a teacher. Yes, it was kind of like riding a bike...you never forget!