Um, hands?

By day, I am a pediatric speech-language pathologist. By night, a home-remodeling junkie. Both require problem-solving skills. One requires more teaching of these skills; the other requires more using. 

I got a good laugh out of a recent conversation with one of my "friends" during a teaching task at my day job. Here's the gist:

Me: What do you need to wash dishes?

Friend: Uh...a sink. 

 Me: Yup. What else?

Friend: Water. 

Me: Okay. Anything else?

Friend: Oh yeah, a dishwasher. 

Me: Maybe. What do you use to get the dishes clean? *insert gestures of pouring soap and scrubbing imaginary dishes*

Friend: Um, hands?

Me: Well, you definitely need your hands at my house. I don't have a dishwasher.

Friend: *insert jaw drop to floor* 

Yeah, my friend was speechless. I mean, how do people live without a dishwasher? Let me tell you. In my experience, 1) you pile up dishes until the sink is no longer usable, then, 2) you initiate a dish-washing marathon, and finally, 3) you smell of SOS pads and Dawn soap for a few hours. Yes, we have been taking the slightly lazy approach to dish maintenance 'round this old house. 

Naturally, we have been planning and scheming on how to improve the current kitchen since we set foot in the house. While we would love to completely remodel the kitchen, there are a few many obstacles. Um...budget being the most glaring hurdle. The current cabinet layout is pretty functional, given the low windows and large Victorian-era cast iron radiator (which makes a great bum-warmer in the winter). A dishwasher is definitely on the list of kitchen wishes. But where? Hmmm. 

 

Ideally, the dishwasher would be near the sink. Problem? Maybe not. Did you know they make 18" dishwashers? Well, what do you know? The four-drawer cabinet to the left of the sink is 18" wide. Did you also know they charge an arm and a leg more than the standard 24" wide version? Of course they do. Custom costs coinage. 

Also on the kitchen wishes list - more storage. Big surprise? Yes, we have a pantry but I can't stand to see wasted space, especially space that could be should be storage. I have my eye on the 14" or so gap above the upper kitchen cabinets below the ceiling.

Another wish? Time to play "I Spy what's missing in the kitchen"...

 

If you guessed new flooring, you are wrong...for today. If you guessed a kitchen island, you are correct. Chris and I recently watched Julie & Julia during which I proclaimed my need for a kitchen island...about 12 times. Julia had some really great islands. And, she made fabulous food. Maybe the two go hand in hand? 

Despite my whining, I completely realize that I will not be satisfied with any 'ole kitchen island off the shelf. Solution? Design and build my own. I have been studying project plans and sketching modifications for an island for months...and it's not quite perfected yet. See, there was a reason I was an engineering major for a semester (and some reasons why I switched). But, hey, those three years of mechanical drafting in high school are coming in handy. Thanks, Mr. Vruwink.

There are many more things on the kitchen wish list, but that's enough kitchen talk for right now. In a few hours, it'll be time to brave the mud pit and hit the road to my day job again. 

P.S. J.J. and Jena, I have to admit that I am VERY envious of your nice, mud-free, asphalt driveway every morning as I dodge mud puddles.

Knock, knock, Who's there? IKEA furniture delivery....

This is officially the first blog post being written....drum roll...from our new couch. For the past few months, I've been watching IKEA's stock of the particular sofa we want, EXTORP (yes, I speak IKEA), online. Knowing this week there was a sale (get a free white slipcover), I figured they'd sell out quick so I headed to IKEA while Chris was at work yesterday. 

Since there's no way to pack a couch in a Focus (even an IKEA couch), I was planning on having them deliver. What I did not realize was that I still had to get the couch from the warehouse (I flagged down an IKEA guy for that), push it on my "cart" through the checkout lane, pay for it and then steer it over to the "Home Delivery" counter. I was quite a sight...all by myself. I had picked up a few other items, including wine glasses (read: fragile) and other oddly shaped items and had to manuever them on top of the sofa along with the slipcovers. People were staring...probably wondering how long it would take me to drop something. Amazingly, I didn't drop anything...or run anybody over. 

Fast-forward to today. At approximately 9:45am, three friendly IKEA personnel arrived with our new couch. After a near wipeout in the kitchen (wet shoes from snow), the couch was in place. Chris and I unpacked the couch and threw on the SVANBY Beige (again, yes I speak IKEA) slipcover and...tada!! It is so nice and clean that I have to admit I've been paranoid to sit on it all day.

Fun fact to know and yell: the EXTORP sofa has been around for 30 years. Another fun fact: It does not currently come flat-packed like the majority of IKEA furniture. However, I found out from the guys in the sofa department that a flat-packed version is in the works to be rolled out next April. Yet, another fun fact: the EXTORP is slipcovered (the easiest slipcover I've ever had to deal with) so it is washable...for all of you who think we are crazy for getting a light-colored couch. 

P.S. I am aware the walls look bare...I am taking my sweet time to figure out the perfect place to hang things since we worked so so hard on making the walls look so nice and smooth.  

Happy Thanksgiving...

Just a little peek at the table that inspired our love for Robbin's tables...

Food at the Fliet's is always awesome and Thanksgiving dinner was no different...hopefully my mom's cooking skills will rub off one of these days!

It is possible that Robbin's tables are magical...my dad willingly (after giving in to family pressure) ate a bite of Mom's new squash recipe...seriously, this was an event for the history books. 

 

Apparently, he has some texture "issues" with cooked squash...bwahahaha.

 

Hmmm....

According to Chris, I'm a  "realist" since I tend to take a practical, nuts-and-bolts, lay out the plan attitude toward most things. Therefore, you'd think I would have thought of chairs before signing on the dotted line when we bought the dining table. Nope. The question of chairs never even crossed my mind. Not even once. What's the first thing every one asks me about the table? What chairs are you going to use? Oh, chairs...right, minor detail. My lack of planning actually makes me chuckle. It means a) I liked the table so much I didn't care if I had to sit on an upside-down bucket around it,  b) I'm learning to be spontaneous and less-planned, and/or c) All of the above. Either way, I'm okay with it!

The find of the day...probably the year...

 

Some history. A year ago, I would not have known what a Robbins table was. This past summer, Chris and I went to the Allegan Antique Fair with my parents and found out. My parents had been looking for this specific style/make of dining table for about 18 years according to my mom and they found one that day. It was made by the Robbins Table Company in Owosso, Michigan which stopped making these tables (and/or went out of business depending on what your source is) in the 1920's. The table seats about 4 people without any leaves in but can have up to 6 leaves and seat 14 people. The best part is that the table is built to store all the leaves within so no more hiding extra table leaves in the front closet or basement. It's like the original Ikea but not completely flat-pack. The table also has a moving 5th leg under the center for support. It looks absolutely beautiful in their newly-remodeled dining room. 

Fast forward to today. Chris and I headed up to the monthly Kane County Antiques Fair/Flea Market in search of an island for the kitchen...since the dresser/buffet is now back in the dining room where it "belongs." It had been stored in the kitchen as a makeshift island while we redid the living/dining room...for the past 2 months. Well, we did not find an island but we did find something even better. A Robbins dining table. 

 I spotted it from about half the barn away, grabbed Chris' arm and whispered "Look, look, look!!!" I called my mom right away and explained the find. Now, these tables are kind of rare to find. The dealer who was selling it said that it was only the second Robbins table they'd had because people tend to keep them in the family and pass them down to the next generation. It was love at first sight from afar. According to my mom, I "bought the table at 500 feet." This is probably true. Chris' parents drove up with the minivan and helped us get the table home safely. Guess I don't have to sand the table top for our old dining room table anymore!

You can see the center support leg in this picture and the small handle opens the flap where the leaves are stored. 

 

Here you can see the four leaves inside. All tables were built with slots for six leaves but people didn't always buy all six leaves. Ours came with four- which makes it 10 feet long with all the leaves in.