A little

Today was a wee bit productive.  I purged down a bit more from the last time we worked in the kitchen.  Many a sippy cup disappeared (youngest will be 5 soon and he hasn't used them much in a long time), a random coffee mug, a tea box that was never used, coffee that was stale (meh, decaf!), and then an extra of instant decaf coffee was moved.  I'm not sure why these things were still here, but it was nice to let them go and out of the way.  That one cabinet sure got a lot of room back!  While I had loved that tea box, it just took up WAY too much room.  Time for it to go.  I thought of repurposing it, but I really have no use for it.  So, it's time for it to go. 

You know, I'm liking this trend I am on with purging.  I like that I am at a point in life where keeping things or letting things go is a choice.  The strainer was a great example of that.  It's wonderful being at a point where we don't have to keep something because we can't afford to get something else.  But it's also wonderful to have the skill to repurpose things.  LOL  I was reading on another blog about how the Japanese culture really honors their belongings.  Now, I wouldn't go so far as to have a conversation with my clothing and all that (it was a really funny blog!), but I do think that we are pretty much a throw-away culture in the US.  I think that's taken a turn with the economy tanking.  I hate the tank, but I love how we are getting better about not just trashing things.  With that said, it's a balance.  A balance to re-use things that can have new life, but also to not keep holding on to all of the things that don't make you happy at all.  It's funny, really.  Its the SMALL things.  Like that darn strainer!  Who knew?  You learn something new every single day.

So, the purging has been fun.  I'm seeing what we use and what we don't.  We finally purged all of the old non-stick fry pans and hubby bought a US made Tramontina set.  It's 3 pieces.  Perfect sizes for things like grilled cheese, eggs, and crepes.  They are light but well made and nest perfectly.  I can put all three on ONE of my pan shelves!  It's wonderful!  I'm done buying All Clad pans and now just need the pots.  I love that all freakin' four of the All Clad also nest on ONE shelf!  I still have one empty!  I plan on it staying empty.  :D  I'm ready to get rid of these pots though.  I need one deep pot and then 2 of the regular sizes.  Probably a 4 and a 2qt.  maybe a 1 for butter or small things like sauces.  So far, I've had no luck.  But I'll keep looking!  I will need to purge some of my utensils if I can ever find ones I like.  Truly, the wooden ones are what I use most.  And then the metal.  The only plastic ones I 'like' are the spatulas.  But it's really only one.  I need to figure out what I love and then purge them out.  And replace what I don't love but need with something I do love.  Slowly but surely.

On another front, I'm beginning to love my kitchen.  Not just from the purging.  It's also from the fact that more doors and handles when in today!  So did the bumpers and the shelf liners.  We did the Zip-n-Fit and I really liked working with it.  I'm not sure it's one of those things you 'need', but I'm using it because the shelves themselves were somewhat rough.  I debated over and over on painting them, but in the end, we passed.  It was just more work than I could do.  And in the end, I just didn't think I would get the look I wanted anyways.  So, I used the liner.  It's a foam style liner, and it looks really nice in my opinion.  The corner cabinet was a bit hard, but I think it looks pretty good, too!  Now, if this snow will ever go away and the weather warm back up so I can finish the pantry and island.  LOL

Yes, I am darn happy with the change in the kitchen.  We do have more work to do, but it's slow and steady when I feel decent.  The weather drags me down some, but I keep going on.  I'm still fighting it.  I've been making a point to clean up the house some every day.  Especially trying to stay on top of dishes.  That really helps.  I just try to stay busy.  I don't always succeed and I have restless nights and feel lousy the next day.  But I'm trying.  I'm not sure what we will do tomorrow.  My motivation was up earlier, then dropped, then went up, and now I feel down again.  HA!  It's a fun ride.  NOT.  I really need to find my motivation to stage and take pics of the dining room.  Then I need to finish youngest's room and do the same.  And I need to do the same in the bathroom.  Busy busy.  Maybe I will find some motivation tomorrow.  I hope. 

Not much else to talk about on this snowy day.  I guess I was just super excited about the purging and finishing more on the kitchen.  It's been a big process, but it's been good.  I can't imagine doing this again, but I'm guessing we will.  I'm not sure there is any way around it.  All of the homes we always love are older.  We are a bit wiser, but... I still can't imagine doing it any differently. 

Ok, off I go.  I need a shower, then some dessert, and then maybe bed.  Until later!