I thought that I'd better start with a general view of the kitchen. My parents converted this barn and outbuildings 17 years ago, the kitchen is in what was originally a stable, the manger was where the single glass door to the garden is now. Mum gave herself a project after my step-father's death, she decided to knock the kitchen and utility rooms together to make a better entertaining space. It's a great space in this house, loads of storage, but it still frustrates me, the triangle of kitchen basics (fridge, cooker and sink) aren't in the essential triangle but a straight line - that means you can walk miles preparing a meal! (Note, I had my back to the worst of the mess, I'm not revealing all!!)
Item 1 - the laminate floor, what a disaster! The dogs, Daisy most of all, hate to walk on it. It was an new system when it was installed, which doesn't work and now moves to create gaps between the boards, so nearly daily I have to stamp the gaps down the kitchen, also I can feel it move when I walk across it. Really it needs replacing but I don't know what to replace it with and don't want to spend more money on it. (Notice how all the dogs are around, that's happened more often in the last 2 days, though they're never that far away!)
Item 2 - bug zapper. The bulb's gone and it didn't work well to start with. Living close to the river we get a lot of bugs in at night (especially when Daisy lets herself in and leaves the door open!)
Item 3 - bread bits, the toaster and the bread maker. I love homemade bread, it takes the strain out of planning part of the shopping, I keep my cupboard well-stocked with the ingredients and I'm only ever 5 hours away from a fresh loaf, especially useful when I've got guests staying and at Christmas time when I find keep the house stocked with fresh things especially challenging!
Item 4 - the egg basket, that contains no eggs!! It should be called 'the basket next to the eggs', originally Mum kept eggs in it, now it's full of useful bits that would otherwise be homeless - the bit that fell off Alice's pushchair in China, my pills, receipts, pens without lids, all sorts!
Item 5 - Alice's exersaucer / activity thingy. Alice loves it, it gives me time to unload the dishwasher and sort the laundry. I love the fact that there are reminders of Alice's presence in our home.
Item 6 - the pile of post by the yard door, the first resting place when I come in. I hate opening post (not the cards and jolly things) so it sits here for a while and periodically I have a blitz. Nearly as much as I hate opening the post, I hate this pile(s).
Item 7 - the shelves. Our old dining room dresser was supposed to go here, but it was half an inch too wide, so Mum had more cupboards put in instead. The bottom shelf has evolved into my most frequently used cookery books, the clock I bought Mum from the Jersey Pottery (our family history is represented through the purchases from JP and no visit to Jersey is complete without a visit to the JP, already planning Alice's first visit for next spring!) The top shelf is more or less the way Mum had it. One of my most treasured possessions is in the background - the old family law firm's original brass sign, that was one of the few things of my Mum's that I coveted and now it always makes me smile. All the navy and white china was Mum's too and always reminds me of her.
Item 8 - a door! This kitchen has lots of them, not just the 24 cupboard doors. This door leads to the yard door, but there's also the door to the study, the door to the dog / utility room, 3 doors to the garden and a square 'archway' to the sitting room!I've spent hours trying to get the photos and text lined up, I'm giving up now!
Finally - I tag Janet and any reader in the UK with a blog who feels like revealing their personality through their kitchen!!
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2 comments:
Aaaaargh!! I'll have to go and tidy up!! I'll sort it out later when Little Prince has gone to bed (and after the mess has disappeared lol).
Hope you are ok, you sound a little better :-)
Love
Janet
Have followed your blog for a while but never posted a comment before. I just couldn't hold back after seeing your post pile! Thank goodness there is someone else with the same aversion to envelope opening as us. We must have accumulated 3 months worth of unopened correspondence when we first came home from China with Abi! Sadly, over three years later this still seems to happen on a regular basis! Goodness knows what we'll be like when we have 3 kids (LID March 06).
Sarah (member of ACUK)
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