House Tour: Kitchen

Our kitchen was my least and most favorite thing about this house when we bought it. I hated it for everything it was.... maple cabinets, gross smells coming from the cabinets, hideous blue laminate countertops (Are they laminate? I don't even know - they're just ugly). BUT, I LOVED it for its potential. The layout is great and there's lots of storage. Plus, I could totally picture it all white with new countertops and some subway tile etc.. We just had to move in, clean it up and redo the whole kitchen! Easy, right?

Ha!

Here's where we're at now, about 6 months after moving in:


Here's the view from the playroom.

Pros: Lots of light, easy access to the kids, and open floor plan!

Cons: Everything else.


We have this eat-in dining area with a lot of extra storage. Don't mind those seedlings we're working on for our garden. They're not usually up there. This extra counter space and cabinetry we wouldn't be able to function without. It's awesome!


Our pots and pans also hang over there. I've always loved displaying these and our cookbooks up top there.


This is the far end of the kitchen towards the formal dining room.


This is standing back by the fridge.


Lots of lovely blue counter space! The space is great! The counters... not so much.


Here is standing back the other way. In the past 6 months we've done a few things. The dishwasher and cooktop are new, the island has been painted this green color and given some amazing hardware. That's it though! SO much more to do!

Some of my favorite things:




This little area is just really decorated and colorful and I love it.



That's it for the kitchen! I'm HOPING to start the white paint this weekend so fingers crossed I'll have a good "after" shot soon-ish.

Sorry for the crappy iPhone pics. Life, you know?

What I Read: September

Wonder

This was truly the month of Young Adult literature for me, but that's ok! I can embrace my love of YA. "Wonder" has been on my list since I joined a book club in Colorado - probably about 2 years ago! It's the story of August, a child with a severe facial deformity who is entering his first year of public school after years of being homeschooled. So heartbreaking and warming all at once. A bit predictable, sure, but still really enjoyable. As far as YA's go, this was REALLY YA, I would say a 6th grader could easily read it and enjoy it just as much as I did, so there's that. Don't expect anything terribly deep or a challenging read and you'll probably enjoy it! 

Eleanor & Park

Another YA technically, BUT I recently heard a discussion about this book that was asking the question of whether just because a book has young adults as the main character does that make it a YA? Or rather can an adult fiction book be based on the lives of teenagers? I would thing this falls into the later category. I would never allow my teen to read this, let's put it that way.  There are a lot of really mature themes running through this book, but mostly it is a love story. I've joked recently that I only love books that are depressing but I think that I love books that are REAL. This story was really real. It's a teenage love story. Those rarely end well, as most of us know. But, you love them both and Eleanor is a true heroine. I really loved this book. 

Attachments

Another Rainbow Rowell book! This was cute and funny and easy to read. Nothing earth shattering, but super enjoyable. 

Room

What a haunting book. At first, I wasn't sure I could read it. The narrator is a 5 year old boy who was born to a woman who's been held captive for 7 years by her kidnapper. The only life he's known is within the walls of the room they're locked in. It's an amazingly well written book. The voice of the child is so well done. But, it's disturbing. I have a hard time with kidnapping/rape themes in general so that might be a personal issue for me, but just a warning that the content is intense and can be extremely difficult to read. I also didn't sleep the night I finished because I couldn't stop thinking about it. So, I don't know if I liked this book or not! I blew through it because I HAD to know how it ended for my sanity and it's incredibly well done, BUT it's not enjoyable? I don't know. Yes, I liked it but I also kind of hated it for its content. Helpful? No? 

Still Alice

Such a thought provoking and gripping novel about a woman who is diagnosed with early onset dementia. It's so real and makes you feel all the feelings. Also, because I'm a huge freak, I've been convinced I have this also. Well, okay - maybe I'm just not sleeping and I have 3 young children. Either way, you should read this. 

My goal for October? Keep it LIGHT!! Too many depressing books this month. 

An Outfit Post (To Catch Up)

I skipped WIWW this week. Whoops. So, here are a few of my outfits from last week. I've been HORRIBLE about snapping pics, so please forgive me, mkay?


Listen, don't be jealous of my photogenic quality. It's just something I possess, I can't help it. (Um, NOT)
sweatshirt: Whole Foods
Shoes: Toms
Jeans, undershirt: Nordstrom


Sweater: Nordstrom
Jeans: Nordstrom
Shoes: Sam Eldeman

And later that day...


Jacket: OLD (I have no idea)
Shirt: Anthropologie
Hair Flower: Stella & Dot
Leggings: Nordstrom


Shirt: Anthropologie
Jeans: Nordstrom (I have maybe 3 pairs I rotate regularly and two of them are identical. So, just assume moving forward that my jeans are from Nordstrom)

Necklace in every pic: Lisa Leonard

Those are the only pics I have! Yeesh. This week has been even worse, I'm sorry to say. I hope to have SOMETHING for you for WIWW.

31

I turned 31 today.





I've been thinking a lot lately about the things I really want in my life, what's really important. There are many a blogger following the model of monthly goals, one major accomplishment for each month of the year. I, too am taking on this model.

January:Organize the house 
What better way to start the new year than to get everything organized and clean and shiny :) I'm working on it - I'll give you an update at the end of the month.
February: Shower and get dressed and make a genuine effort to look pretty EVERY DAY. 
I spend most days in jeans and a sweatshirt of some sort with my hair in a hat and no makeup. I'm known to go roughly 4 days without showering. It's gross.
March: Learn Photoshop 
I think learning Photoshop would really enhance my business. I'm hoping to gain a good grasp of the basics in March.
April: Obtain a business license 
This is just something that needs to be done and it's also one of those things I'll avoid like the plague. It will probably get done at the END of the month.
May: Eat all meals at home 
We eat out WAY too much. This will be a crazy challenging month for us, but I think it's an important habit to get in to.
June: Exercise every day 
Again with the good habits! I haven't been exercising and my body can tell. I'm hoping to have begun SOMETHING prior to June, but it's my goal to do some sort of physical activity every single day in June.
July: Zero frivolous spending
No buying movies, no new clothes, no household items that aren't necessary, nada. Another tough month.
August: Learn a new craft 
The craft world is my oyster. Yarn wreaths? Sewing something? Knitting? Painting? What will it be? Even I'd like to know.
September: Dedicated 1 hour of unplugged time with the kids each day 
SO important!! I've been profoundly aware of how plugged in I am. I definitely spend time with the kids. 10 minutes here, 15 minutes there.... then I check the phone or my computer, or I make a call, or I take a picture for instagram. All fine things in moderation, but I want my kids to know that every day they have my undivided attention, even if just for an hour. One solid hour.
October: Read Pillars of the Earth 
Why this book intimidates me, I'm not quite sure. It's been on my list forever though, so here goes nothing!
November: Overnight trip with Ritchie 
Because of December's goal and how much money we're needing to save, I'm not sure where we'll go, but even if we get ONE blissful night in a nearby hotel without kids, sleeping in and enjoying each other uninterrupted it will be a huge investment in our marriage.
December: Apply for adoption 
I'm scared to even put this down. We've just begun to really save and commit to this in our minds and hearts. There's still a TON that could stand in our way. The longing to start this process grips me so tightly that I can barely breathe sometimes. It's a goal. An important one.

Follow along, will ya?

Paleo 30 Day Challenge

When we first moved to Colorado, I was in search of something that would put myself out there and help me meet other mommas. Enter Stroller Strides. We have a Stapleton branch of Stroller Strides at a park that's walking distance from the house. Perfect. Then, I went a few times and realized that it blissfully helped me pass the morning with both boys until Max would start preschool. Bonus! Before I knew it, I was going 5 days a week for almost a month solid. I felt GREAT! I was getting stronger, faster, and had more energy. My body was changing, too. I had more muscle definition and my face looked thinner. However, the scale did not reflect how I felt or the changes my body was making. The scale showed a measly 3 pound drop in over a month.

I know, it's not all about the scale. But, it's SOMEWHAT about the scale, yes? If I'm being honest, I've got a solid 35 pounds to lose before I'm at a healthy weight for my body. I haven't been that size since (early) college, but I didn't look sickly thin - I looked healthy. I carry weight fairly decently and most people are shocked to hear what I actually weigh, but none of this erases the fact that I NEED to lose some LBs.

THEN, Ritchie comes home and mentions that he's entered some sort of percentage of body fat loss competition at work and will win money if he wins. BUT, he's already starting with the lowest percentage of body fat PLUS he gained a pound the first week of the competition. Ritchie runs and works out regularly, but that alone wasn't showing results.

We had company for a week straight and indulged very heavily in foods and we both realized (for the umpteenth time) that if our bodies (and health) were TRULY going to change it had to start with what we put into our bodies.

Enter Paleo.

When I first heard about Paleo, I totally bunked it. I actually DO believe that you need grains (the right ones) and dairy to have a healthy, balanced diet. I still believe that. However, I'm not opposed to trying anything for a period of time. And, the Lincolns LOVE a challenge. So, we signed on to start Paleo tomorrow for a full 30 days.

This will not be easy. Paleo is a very restricted diet. No grains of any sort. No dairy of any kind. No sugar, Starbucks, cake, pizza, ANYTHING. Plus, we'll be trying to maintain this through Max's birthday (we'll let him have cake, we'll skip it) and two separate strings of out of town guests (hope ya'll are okay with meat and veggies).

So, what WILL we eat? Lean meats, tons of veggies, fruit (in moderation and mostly berries), nuts (not peanuts) and seeds, and eggs and good fats (coconut oil, avocado, etc).

Here's our first 4 days of Paleo dinner menu:

I've decided for this challenge not to weigh myself until the challenge is over. The goal really isn't weight loss so much as a body cleanse and getting on the right track with diet to add to the exercise. I'll check in with a weekly menu plan and if anything is amazing, I'll share with you all.

My friend from the bay area, Daphne has an awesome blog that shares Paleo recipes, as does her cousin. They can be found here and here. Check them out! It's where I'm getting most of my recipes from.

Also, I started C25K (couch to 5K) and am trying to gear up to run a 4 mile Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day. ALSO? I'm going to Stroller Strides 5 days a week again (I took a week + off when company was in town and BOY did I pay for it when I went back. OUCH.). Yeah, so let's hope that after 30 days you'll be seeing a lot healthier (and, okay - I want to be leaner) Jamie.

Oh, yes. And just to keep it real - I'm going INTO Paleo with a bang:

Just thinking...

Observation: As I get older I realize that there are more and more things I want to accomplish. My interests are broadening.

Someday, I would like to say I have done the following:

• Run a marathon
• Play in a large poker tournament
• Actually understand algebra and other advanced math
• Publish something that someone else would actually purchase

That about does it for now. I'm sure there will be more to this list as the years pass. 

-- Ritchie