STOP and SMELL the FLOWERS

Some days you just need to stop and smell the flowers...

*All flowers courtesy of our garden today. 

Thanks for stopping to smell the flowers!  Hope your day is beautiful.

Sherry


Smelling the flowers at:
http://maleviksrosentradgard.blogspot.com/2012/06/saturday-show-off.html

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Our Mini Garden Improvements

So far so good with our mini raised garden bed.  

Scott decided to add some edging bricks we had stacked behind the shed. They should keep the gravel contained and they really finish the little area off quite nicely.

The kids like to walk along that edge too, of course! Who wouldn't?

 Everything is growing quickly now.

Carrots, radishes and green onions have sprouted up!

The mild sun and regular spring showers are really helping it along.

 Found a place to hang our cute new bird feeder.

This treasure was found at the thrift store for a few dollars.

I added some wild bird seed ~ I'm excited to see what bird visitors we get here!

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Mexican Grilled Corn

It was a nice long weekend, wasn't it?

We got loads of painting done.  WooHoo!!!

Click on photo to see more about our kitchen paint updates

We had some down time too.  Double WooHoo!!!

Strolled around a town called Silverton, Oregon. 
Tons of Antique stores to explore! 

Spent some time with friends BBQing.  YUMMY! 

Meet my darling, amazing, fun friend, Tina. She's a kick in the pants!
She makes me smile nonstop. She has the greatest sense of humor.
I'm trying to convince her to collaberate with me here on this blog.
Hope she decides to give it a go...you'd adore her!

Enjoyed some perfectly seasoned and BBQ'd flank steak, as well as some Mexican Grilled Corn and Pesto Artichoke Pasta Salad.  Double YUMMY!

How cute is she!?  And that flank steak was pure perfection. 
Some credit to her hubby Tony, of course, for manning the grill!

Scott and I first had a version of this corn at a La Fortuna Mexican Fiesta that's put on a couple of times a year here in our town.  After being won over by the flavorful grilled corn, I decided to give it a go!  It was finger licking good!  (Although I would soak the skewers in water if I had it to do all over again.  I think the "Grill Masters" have slightly burnt fingers from turning the corn cobs with the skewers!)

Here is the recipe I used for the Mexican Grilled Corn.  It's really quite easy and adds tons of pizzaz to corn on the cob. 

Ingredients:
skewers
10 corn on the cobs
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
3 fresh limes
fresh grated parmesan cheese
chili powder


Mix together Mayo, Sour Cream and fresh chopped cilantro.  Set aside in refrigerator.
Push skewers into corn cobs (soak skewers first to prevent burning).
Cook the corn, uncovered on grill at medium to medium-high heat, turning until cooked evenly.
Coat corn with with mayo mixture (we used a pastry brush to spread on).
Spritz each corn cob with a bit of lime juice.
Roll in grated parmesan to coat (I put parmesan on a paper plate for this step).
Sprinkle with chili powder to taste (personally I think the more the better!)
Garnish with lime quarters.
Enjoy!

Thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy your projects!
Sherry

Sharing With:
http://www.thistlewoodfarms.com/no-bake-chocolate-peanut-butter-bars-and-a-linky-party

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From Baby Pooh to Fresh Gray-Blue (Walls, that is!)

It was finally time to cover up the horrid yellow-green "baby pooh" color that has been on our kitchen walls forever.  We never liked it from the day it went up, but we thought maybe we could live with it for awhile.  We did that...we lived with it for a LONG WHILE and NOT ONCE did I feel like it was growing on me. 
This room faces south and gets tons of sunlight.  The following shots demonstrate how horrid it really was!

Warning:  Colors in this picture are even worse than they appear.

Notice the blue-gray colored laminate counter tops?  They CLASH with the yellow-green baby pooh color of the walls.

If you aren't convinced it's bad yet, here are some more photos submitted as evidence: 

Isn't that little strip of wood trim on the counter edge cheesy?  We'll have to paint that too eventually.

While we're at it, why not freshen up the dining room?
  

So, in the spirit of making the best of it, we decided to freshen the room with some paint.  Since we cannot afford a kitchen remodel, or even new countertops....we're going to DO WHAT WE CAN with WHAT WE HAVE (and very minimal expense).

NOW FOR SOME BEFORE AND AFTERS!!!

Say Hi to Sadie!

No more clashing walls and countertops!

Fresh and bright in the dining room. 

The fake wood trim in here went white with a little enamel latex. 

So much cleaner.

 Even the outlet covers are clean and fresh - after a run through the dishwasher!

Amazing what a little color change can do, right!!!

 By hanging some curtains up the dining room window doesn't appear off center anymore. 
Seriously...what the heck were the builders thinking???

 Alex ready to take a shot with a big spoon.  Giving me his "tough guy" look! 
He said he didn't want to be in the pictures, but he JUST WOULD NOT LEAVE...

See him peeking again? 

It already looks so much better! 
It's amazing what a color change can do for a room. 

I can't wait to show you how it looks once the remainder of the To-Do list is done!!

Still To Do:

1. Purge and Rearrange items in the open wall cabinet
2. Paint wood trim on the counter edge
3. Add some type of backsplash
4. Build upper cabinets up to ceiling
5. Touch up paint on cabinets
6. Add hardware
7. Add pendant light over sink

Shwew...that's not much at all!

Hope your weekend was fantastic.  Thanks to my family and some really great friends, mine was.

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