Heart of the Home

The heart of our home has always been the kitchen.  Growing up,

I spent many happy hours in the kitchen with Momma and my sisters, baking, cooking, and painting (we always painted ceramics in the kitchen--as Christmas approached, the table was almost perpetually covered with newspaper, dozens of bottles of paint, and little ceramic figurines scattered about, waiting to be colored.)

Momma's remodeled kitchen

Although we didn't have family dinners on a daily or weekly basis, food was an important part of our experience. We had favorite things to eat and to make.  Momma's kitchen was always full of food and we were free to munch and nibble at our leisure.
It seemed to work best for our family that way.  When we moved to a bigger house outside the city, with a ginormous kitchen, we just spent more time in it together.  Tea parties, shrimp dinners, Saturday morning breakfasts, all happened in the kitchen.  Holidays were birthed there--the cookies and sweets and cakes and candies that shaped our savored memories of those family times could happen nowhere but the kitchen.  

 the goodies tower

tea party with the grandkids

helping Grandmama with breakfast

When we were little, she used to preheat the oven so it was warm when we got out of bed, and she'd open the door to let the warmth out while we got dressed in front of it.  I remember she used to sit on a stool in front of the oven watching her food bake.  We had many good chats in front of the oven.. such lovely memories.

"this kitchen is awesome!"

If you've ever wondered where I get my penchant for remodeling/refurbishing/building things, look no further than my parents :)  They were always tweaking things here and there in our house(s), improving little by little, making it more their own. I remember so many projects we did around the house, but especially in the kitchen. 

So it only stands to reason that my kitchen now is the heart of my home.  I gather people with food from the kitchen, and it's fun to work with others in preparing it.  Learning to make sushi rolls, chatting while the pizzas are baking, waiting for the delicious-smelling cake to come out of the oven, stirring the soup in between sips of your favorite brew surrounded by friends.  You can tell a lot about a home by its kitchen.

"the food's good, who cares what the cabinets look like!"

And I have spruced mine up a bit, having a week-long opportunity while T was out of town (it's still hard for me to cook only for myself).  I figured, if I won't be using the kitchen all that much anyway, what better time to repaint it?

So I did.

Here are some pictures. Enjoy :)

Kitchen