Another Furniture Redo

I realized I never posted about my lasted furniture redo. I'd been really wanting some sort of cabinet/buffet in our kitchen table area for all the kids' craft stuff. It was in these clear plastic drawers and it always looked like this:

Well, not always, because we occasionally cleaned it up, but usually, and it was driving me bonkers. Unfortunately, I like things to not only serve a function but also look good while doing so, so everything I found that did both was more than I was willing to spend. I decided to try my hand at the chalk paint thing. I found a buffet on Craigslist for $40 that looked sturdy and solid and my supportive husband went and picked it up for me. This was just the week before Thanksgiving. I was planning on waiting until after Thanksgiving since we were hosting and I probably didn't need to start a project then, but my impatient self couldn't stand to see it sit there all ugly and sad, so I got right to work. I finished it about an hour before Jared's family came, the day before Thanksgiving. Just in time!

Before: We'd already started removing the hardware and took out two of the drawers. I had to fill the old holes and then Jeremy drilled new ones for the new hardware.

 And after! Ta-da! (This was taken at Christmas time)

I think it turned out really well! I got new hardware, obviously, and painted it with the chalk paint and then did a clear wax and a bit of an antiquing wax over the top. And the best part is it's actually working just how I hoped! The kids each have a drawer for their "stuff" and then we have other supplies in the other cabinets and drawers. I do have one bottom drawer for myself with cloth napkins and place mats, but other than that it's all theirs.  And I like it well enough that if someday I decided to use it in a dining room, I think it would be great in there too. Woohoo!

President's Day

Last year for President's Day we were sledding and building snowmen, and this year, we were hiking and grilling on the barbeque! Such is the unpredictable nature of weather, I suppose. Anyway, it was a delightful Monday holiday and we had a great time! We passed off our fifth hike at the Nature Center for 2017, which meant we got to pick a prize! I got a water bottle, Jeremy got chapstick, Anna and Eli got a notebook & pen, and Connor got a toy bug. It was a beautiful warm day in mid February!

 It's hard to see, but you can see some little wild flowers coming up!

 This tree above looked like a dragon. Raawrr! And look hard below to see the turtles! (My phone takes terrible pictures...)

Ah, that's better. Jeremy's phone:

 Grill-master Jeremy cooked us up some Souvlakia and potatoes. Delish!

 Opa!

Valentine's Day

Even though I think lover's day is a bit ridiculous with all the commercialism, I do get into it and like doing something extra special for my five most favorite people in the world.

Love these girlies!

The Monday before Valentine's we wrote things we love about each other on our heart garland. It was fun to look at them all week.

I decided to splurge a bit and got salmon to cook for dinner. It was a hit! All my kids love seafood thankfully, so that was a fun indulgence for everyone, and still much cheaper than going out!

Jeremy got me those pretty flowers! Way to go babe. 

  We busted out the china and red tablecloth too and then ended the night with an amazingly decadent dessert that was everything I hoped it would be and more.

 Chocolate "pots de creme". Rich, dark chocolate, smooth, creamy, decadent. It was divine. And WAY too easy to make. Seriously it took me minutes and was everything I usually want in a dessert. Very dangerous. 

 I also had some fun making chocolate covered strawberries. I wasn't sure if the kids would like the rich dessert, so this was my backup plan. And I brought some to my neighbor too. It was fun! The strawberries weren't very good or ripe, but they sure looked pretty. And you can see the cute little lantern Connor made me at school.

 
This year reminded me of the first couple years we were married (besides the four kids part of course). Instead of going out, we would usually splurge and cook steak or salmon or something at home and use our china and candles. It's fun to involve the kids in the fun now! They love it too.