Kitchen ~ Pattern Binder Purge

 

Friday was an extremely foggy day.  I was a bit worried about my husband's drive to work. By 11am, the fog had lifted.

My husband and I were not happy with the glue-down flooring that was installed in the kitchen, after half of the floor was torn out for joist replacements and new subfloor over a year ago.  it was coming up, spreading apart and dirt was sticking in the cracks.

A wrench in my winter hallway repairs, but the flooring was on sale, and the installers were free, so my husband made arrangements.

On Wednesday, we emptied the entire kitchen, other than the refrigerator.  The flooring/installers were to arrive at 10-11am Thursday to install (same flooring as hallway).  Around noon, I am notified that they are not going to make it.  Friday they arrived, but had to come back on Saturday to finish up.  Hence my delay on posting.

During my waiting process, I had collected all of the pattern binders (but one), purged them all, tossed out what was junk, and gave away a pile of unwanted patterns.   Whew!  Project binder purge is DONE!  Checked off the to-do list! 

In the process of re-flooring the kitchen, we removed the only base board electrical heater and a new electrical outlet was installed.  We do not need the heater, and it was malfunctioning anyway (a hazard if left installed). 

New floor trim was installed where the heater was, and I had to paint a bit, but it all looks great.

I would say 90% of the hallway, and kitchen floor trim was re-installed. I painted the kitchen trim, so that saved us money, but we needed trim for the hallway.

Also, the computer chair, at our kitchen desk area had to be replaced.  I was not prepared for that expense.

Kitchen ~ Pattern Binder Purge  © Feb 2024 by Kristina at Pioneer Woman at Heart

Sunshine ~ This and That

 We had the most gorgeous 60°F day Wednesday.  It was also one of my most busiest days of the week for me as well. 

Sheesh.  There were lots of dishes, more laundry, cleaning, cooking and so on.  I also started on the stairway clean up project.  It may take a month to finish, as I am fitting it in my cleaning schedule, as I have time for it.

I finished dusting and cleaning all of the kitchen blinds and windows, and the valances were washed and put out on the line.

It was so nice to open windows and let the fresh air flow for a day.  So intoxicating for the soul.  Winter can seem so long sometimes, and this day was welcomed by all.

To focus on what's in the freezer and pantry. . .

I made a batch of Einkorn pumpkin pancakes for us for breakfast, and more egg cups, as I had one more cup of cooked sage sausage to use.  I used thawed frozen pumpkin puree from last year's garden, for the pancakes.  Einkorn flour pancakes are the best.  These pumpkin ones are more of a scoop and spread type batter.  It is much thicker, but so good.

Today the rain moves in, but the temperature is still nice.  For now anyway.  

We have been enjoying some organic snack bell peppers lately.  Especially when I have a very busy day, and lunch is eaten standing up (ha ha!).  We add a slight layer of cream cheese topped with homemade everything bagel seasoning.  Some days we add a few slices of turkey pepperoni or other meat.

I have also been making us a healthy peanut butter fruit dip, to have alongside our daily fruit - apple slices, banana slices, blueberries, and grapes.  It's very good, and so easy to make.  To be honest, most days, I just mix some peanut butter in some yogurt without measuring.  It's good either way.

One of my daughter's gave me the idea for this dip, vs. using plain peanut butter on fruit.

1 cup of organic Greek plain yogurt

1/4 cup organic peanut butter, creamy*

1 Tbsp. honey

1 tsp. homemade vanilla

Mix and store in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.  Our dip does not last that long.  I pack it in little containers for my husband's lunch too.  You could leave out the honey too.  Especially if you do not have access to wildflower honey or other honey that is not from bee hives left in or around sprayed crop fields.

*We buy the organic peanut butter that requires you to stir it.  If you buy the "no stir" kind you will see that they add bad oils to it, so read your labels.

By the way, the bell pepper snack and fresh fruit with homemade peanut butter dip are both great take-a-long food ideas for gatherings.  Especially if you want to make sure you have something there for you to eat that is healthy.

Stay tuned for an update on the hallway repairs/renovation project.

Sunshine ~ This and That  © Feb 2024 by Kristina at Pioneer Woman at Heart