Big Changes

Sorry for the blurry photo, this is our first meal cooked on the new range.  It's fabulous!  This picture reveals other newness, countertops (Bianco Carrara Marble) and floor tile.  

 Here's a better shot without me in it.  The stove, microwave/oven and countertops are in and the backsplash area has been prep'd for the tile.  You can see the new lighting my DH installed above the range.  Big improvement and he didn't electrocute himself.  Yay!

The most dramatic change  happened over 3 weeks in January with the installation of new tile throughout the entire house.  It's a dramatic large format tile that contrasts wonderfully with the white walls.  Now we just have to do something about those nicotine colored (thanks LZ) cabinets.  We'll be installing our backsplash tile and then choosing a color for the cabinets. Deb, I need color help! 

Second Oven

Here's Larry working on the removal of our vent hood in preparation for installation of the new Micowave/Convection Oven Combo.  I really would have liked to have a professional vent hood but since we decided not to change the footprint of the kitchen or replace the cabinets, this seemed like the best way to go.  I'm loving the space we gained to the left side of the range now that the old microwave is gone.  

Now that it's installed and I've used it, I'm loving having 2 ovens.  It really works great as a small oven that, because it vents through the roof, doesn't heat up the kitchen.  I asked Larry to mount it a little higher than is normal so that it would look less crowded over the range.  Wait till I post the pictures of the new range and backsplash.  It really looks like we know what we're doing in the kitchen!

Tomato Time

I haven't given up, even after last years non-crop.  We had beautiful tomato plants with almost no tomatoes.  My neighbor, Rose tells me not to be discouraged as last year was an unusually hot summer.  Second hottest on record to be exact.  But I think Ann had it right when she said my garden looked a little crowded.  This year I've scaled down the number of plants in a box and my DH built me another to plant in.  Hopefully, I'll have enough to share this year.

Here's a couple of pics to see how they started.

 The first garden has 4 tomato plants, 3 are BHN 602s, 1 is a Black Krim.  The BHN 602 was voted best tomato at the San Antonio Rodeo this year and the Black Krim is an heirloom type that had a very dark skin and interior.  My heirlooms last year didn't do well.  I may have picked varieties that don't do well in the heat here. On two opposite corners I've planted basil and rosemary.  We have a very mediterranean garden going this year.  Wish me luck.

The new box has 3 tomatoes,  all are Celebrities, and I added 3 globe eggplants to the far end.  Maybe one to many but I'm greedy.  I also planted two small herbs, thyme and oregano, that will grow until the tomatoes crowd them out.  

Architectural Salvage

Gonzales Texas is the place to go for anything old, crusty and fabulous.  We found two old porch pillars (they're not exactly the same, but close) to place on the short wall that divides the kitchen from the family room.  We're not sure if this is a load bearing wall (do you remember the 3 cedar log posts that were there in the beginning?)  but, these two pillars seem to be holding things up.

Here's a before shot of the post we put in temporarily after taking out the cedar logs (I'll find a pic of the logs and post later).  It's also a great shot of the front of Larry and Domingo and a fabulous old jack, with chippy green paint and rust, that Larry has refused to sell me, so far.  I plan to wear him down though so watch for a future post on my new (old) jack.

Last thing, notice the black and pink granite counter tops?  Stay tuned for changes... 

Did we tell you about the tree?

Hello to all of our followers out there in blog land.  So sorry for not posting in ages.  We've been busy!  I'll try to catch you up on all of the happenings here, especially after receiving a personal plea from an Argentinian follower who explained he was "hooked" and thought we might have died!

So, about the tree.  Seems that when the master bedroom was added to the house there was a little tree in the way.  Our renovations (about which I will post soon) uncovered the trunk that they had just left in place and put tile right over the top.  No mortar or anything down into the hole, just a tile over the top.  I'm still hoping we'll find money or treasure buried somewhere but so far, just this tree.  

County Fair

What a blast.  The annual county fair with roosters, chickens and all kinda farm animals.  And the exhibits, I have talents I didn't even know might qualify for a blue ribbon.  Just wait till next year!

Too bad the blue ribbon obscured the head of this beautiful rooster.  I told the people waiting for me to take the picture that this was Suzy's bird.  They were impressed.

The rodeo was fun too.  Best part was watching about 50 kids chase calves around the arena to grab a ribbon for a prize.  Great hometown fun.

Official Texans

Yep, we've finally made to Official Texan Status.  We're the proud owners of a truck that's too big to fit in the 3 car garage.  Who woulda thunk?