No Happier Hour: The Difference a Year Can Make

Hey guys- if anyone is still out there. Long time no chat!

It's been close to a year since I've updated my blog. When I left you, my mom had just been diagnosed with cancer, my husband and I had just bought our first home and were remodeling it, and I was driving three hours a day for work.

Well, I'm still driving three hours a day for work and, almost a year later, we're still remodeling. My mom is no longer suffering from cancer, but that's unfortunately because she passed away just three short months after being diagnosed.

I'm not going to get into the details, out of respect for my family, but it was quick and painless and the one thing she always told us was that she didn't want to spend significant lengths of time in the hospital. She was only in there for two days and she was very comfortable.

She also always told us that she had lived a life beyond what she could've dreamed, and that if she died the next day, she would die happy. So we have that comfort.

Thank you for your thoughts.

On a happier note, we have settled into our home nicely. The kitchen remodel has been an ongoing process over the last ten months. We got delayed during my moms sickness and for some time after as we grieved, but we are back to work.

Last I showed you, we had cut out a wall in the kitchen and taken out the drop ceiling. We've moved a lot further along from there, but we're still nowhere near finishing. Here are some updated photos for you.

You can see that we bought new appliances and we got a coat of paint onto the cabinets. The walls are a light grey, but it's hard to tell in the photo. We haven't yet replaced the counter tops, but I'm fine with what we have for the moment. We're going to leave the doors off of the cabinet above the fridge, and the two flanking the window.

We have to replace the underneath of the kitchen sink, as there was a leak and it destroyed the cabinet underneath. We treated for mold and have bought the board to fix it, but we haven't quite gotten there yet. We need a plumber to come in first and fix a few things.

We bought these curtains at Walmart, in a hurry, when my mother in law was coming to stay with us. They're alright. But they cover our entire window, so I'm going to sew them to just cover half. I'm thinking I'll cut off the stripes and just keep the floral. I don't really like the combination. (Photo links to item.)

We got the large and small carts from Target for an absolute STEAL. The pictures below are linked to them. They arrived quickly, they're super sturdy, and the grey has a sort of minty hue to it in person, which worked well for us. Both of them did have small cracks in the boards on the back of the drawers, but that wasn't of consequence to us.

I've also been working on my office a little bit. We painted it that celery green color to coincide with a rug I had gotten for free from the interior design firm that I work for. Well, I no longer like the rug and I now regret the celery green wall decision. They're pretty, they're just not me. BUT, I'm going to work with them.

Here is my new inspiration:

And here is what I'm working with (excuse the mess).

I want to get rid of the rug (I'm just SO VERY OVER red) and the Ikea red locker cabinet. The cabinet will probably move to the garage, because I guarantee that Jason won't let me paint it. I've offered the rug to my best friend, who is moving into a house with hard floors and has a 3 year old and a 1 year old to think of. She may or may not take it.

That room is an OBVIOUS work in progress, still. If you have any suggestions, please feel free to throw them my way!

I want to get another, or a bigger, book shelf for the office. I also want to get a new desk. I currently have a small chrome and glass desk. I'd like a nice, deep wooden one like in the inspiration photo, but I also don't have $300 to spend. So I'm looking at Ikea and I'm torn between a few options.