Back from hiding

Well I guess now that I have this schmancy new phone that lets me post without having to get on a computer (which is likely to not happen after spending all day at work staring at a computer), I no longer have an excuse to not document anymore.

So here I am, several months since posting, in an attempt to start again. I think once I finally discovered the joys of Instagram I've realized the benefit of having our stories documented somewhere so we can look back.

What's the first thing I'm gonna post about after my hiatus? Food :D

My mom and sisters started a 21 day cleanse earlier this month to kick their eating habits into high gear. While it was a little too extreme for me (I refuse to give up animal products or go raw for three days...just ain't happenin), it's inspired me to kick mine back into gear as well. Lets just say I got a little "relaxed" after the wedding haha! We finally rejoined a legit gym, across the street from my office which is a super bonus! And I'm ready to kick my butt back into shape. Aaannddd I just signed up for my first ever running race, a 5k in town, with my lovely friend Monica and her husband and my awesome cousin, Shannon.

So what's always been one of my worst meals of the day during the workweek? Why yes, it's breakfast. Since I know wke up at 5am to go to the gym before work, it's essential to have my breakfast already ready to go so I can grab it from the fridge or freezer and run to the gym. This week I'm trying out an idea I've seen floating around for making breakfast sandwiches for the week.

All it takes is eggs, English muffins, bacon or Canadian bacon, and cheese and mustard if that's your thing. I'm using goat cheese because I inherited a huge chunk from my parents fridge when they left for holland and who can complain about goat cheese?!

The trick here to make this quick is to break the eggs into a muffin pan and bake them in the oven. No babysitting a pan to cook 4 or 5 eggs! Woohoo I'm all about convenience :) Topped with freshly cracked black pepper, these bad boys are ready to go.

Once here done ill pop them onto an English muffin (mine are whole wheat and were my first try at making them home made...they're pretty good, but I think I need more practice lol), top with some cheese and mustard, a slice of Canadian bacon, and they're donesky! Wrap them up in plastic wrap or bakers paper, just something that can be microwaved, and you're done. Love it. Quick and easy :)

Note to self for future: find a muffin tin with a slightly larger opening so the gigs aren't so deep. BREAK THE YOKE BEFORE COOKING! Totally forgot to do this and the little round yokes keep wanting to pop out haha. Otherwise this recipe is a keeper!

Live Shrimp and the World's Smallest Catfish!

Yesterday evening we were supposed to have engagement photos taken...which we already postponed once from April when someone forgot to ut sunscreen on during training and got burnt to a crisp

So it was only natural that we woke up Monday morning with a "special weather alert" letting us know there was a record-setting heat wave coming through town that ame day, and the high between 4 and 5pm (about when we were to meet our photographer OUTSIDE IN A FIELD), was about 103 degrees.

Yeah, no. Who wants to be all cute and cuddly when its a million degrees outside and you sweat just looking out the window inside your nice air conditioned car? Luckily we have an awesome photographer who admitted to not wanting to be outside either...looks like we have once again rescheduled!

Good thing I had woke up at 4.30am, so I could get to work by 6, and leave by 4pm....grrrrr

In my bitterness over my luck, Shayne suggested we take advantage of the extra time and bust down to Galveston as soon as get home to go fishing.  So we did.

Apparently I have never seen LIVE shrimp before...Shayne thought I was joking.  I wasn't.  Those little suckers are frisky (seriously all that foam in the bucket is from them flying around)!  During the 3 minute drive from the bait shop to the beach, we had like 10 shrimp jetson out of the bucket into my car.  I wouldn't be surprised if there were still a couple under the seats!

I also apparently suck at fishing.  Ok no, I don't, I just can only focus on one thing at a time and I was so focused on making sure I threw the line out correctly and didn't get it jammed up, and then that I was "popping" it (not dragggiiinnnggg), so I pretty much ended up feeding the fish because I always missed when they were biting.

Except for when I ACCIDENTALLY, WITHOUT REALIZING IT, caught the world's smallest catfish...see Exhibit A:

Exhibit A:

See how that fish is the size of the shrimp it just ate?? Don't even know how I did that, and the hook was perfectly centered in his mouth...that's raw talent right there people.


Anyways, spur of the moment dates are my favorite :)

Mostly Finished Kitchen!

So last night I FINALLY finished the kitchen.  I was about 95% finished two weeks ago it feels like, and then I hit a stopping point because : a) ran out of leftover wall paint that matches the rest of the main areas of the house and then b) the hardware I had originally picked out for the bottom cabinets didn't fit on 2 of the cabintets...yes 2 cabinets out of the entire kitchen made me have to completely rethink the hardware, then return it and and order replacements.

Now, when I get on a roll with something, I can just get in a zone and bust out a project.  Which is what happened for the first 95% of this kitchen...literally every day after work I went straight to work, filling, sanding, priming, sanding, painting, sanding, painting, flipping, sanding, painting, and on and on for two whole weeks.  Literally.

So this little mishap, which left half of the cabinets without hardware and the one bump out section with the fridge with old yellow paint kind of killed my zone, and thus, it sat that way for two weeks.  Let's just say Shayne was not a happy camper.  He hates half-finished things....though I hope he realizes who he's getting married to because I am the queen of long spurts of "doing nothing" in the middle of a project when something messes up my ZONE!

Anyways, enough babbling, here are some before photos:

Because of how the ceiling cuts down in the back of the kitchen, the bright yellow walls made the kitchen feel reeeeaallly squat compared to the soaring ceilings in the family room...okay soaring is an exaggeration, but they're pretty freakin tall...

Also, while I love the dark gray-ish blue on the island, there were too many colors going on.  I like a more neutral, stream-lined look when it comes to large open spaces.  Otherwise it gets choppy.

And then just don't get me started on oak cabinets...I despise oak cabinets.  No offense to anyone with them!  Yours are beautiful!  I just don't like them.  Especially since out hardwoods are the same tone, there was just orange EVERYWHERE

AND AFTER!

Of course my cell phone photos look drap compared to the beautiful before photos from the listing :(

Horrendous picture, I know.  And the walls look peach...but I swear, NO peach

The walls and island are painted the same Kilim Beige as the rest of the main areas of the house.  And win of the year...finally convincing Shayne to let me paint the pantry door and back door black.  Haven't done the back door yet, but the pantry looks so cool....my next project is convincing him to let me do all of the doors in the house black!!

Cabinets were refinished (seriously, takes FOREVER) using Benjamin Moore's Nantucket Grey.  I love the grayish green, it's classic without being white, which would have been too much with the white Corian counters....and given that replacing counters is in the thousands of the dollars, that won't be happening anytime soon, so workin with what I got!

There are still several things that I personally still want to do...as my Aunt Toni told Shayne there's this thing, with the women of this family, we are already wayyyy ahead of the game and have a vision of a room the moment we step into it, and there's just no holding us back!  Sure we'll compromise if you hate something, but otherwise, don't think that this is gonna be it....there's still lighting, backsplash to redo, sink to replace, dishwasher and range to replace, FLOORING (ugh I hate those tiles and the nasty grout so much!), curtains for the windows to replace, a hutch to find and refinish for that empty wall, an old turkish/persian rug for the mass of space between the cabinets, and the list goes on!

SWAT demo for the luckiest kids in the berg

Since my life schedule generally revolves around the police department's schedule (which is about as unpredictable as ummmm.....just trust me, unpredictable), it's only appropriate that some stories make it up here occasionally....although I may get in trouble about sharing this stuff.  Meh, until then:

Last week the SWAT team put on a demonstration for a high school leadership group.  I don't know much about the group other than the fact that they went to places such as city hall and the police department to learn more about how the city runs.  Still haven't gotten the details since sooommmeeeeebbbooddyyy STILL doesn't understand that I want literally every single detail about something when I ask "how was it?" I mean every. single. detail.  Like feelings, temperature, what he said, what she said, the kids' faces, EVERYTHING!

Anyways...

Mid-discussion with the Chief of Police, the SWAT team bombarded this room full of teenagers with flash bangs, yelling, full on gear and everything!  I wish I could have experienced something like that because I have to get my thrills from the movie screen!

I mean could you imagine this group of men raiding you mid-speech?!  

I'm fairly confident I'd have a stroke....don't let those smirky smiles fool you!

(3rd from the left is taken ladies!)

Or how about this showing up in your front lawn.  Nooooo thank you.

Again, with the having of the stroke.

I do think it's pretty cool that they have programs like this for kids, I'm secretly very jealous.  I don't know if you know, but I'm a big fan of the flashy loud obnoxious action movies (only fitting that I'll be marrying a cop and swat guy!) so I'm sure I would have soaked up the demo!

And because I'm just so proud of what Shayne does and how passionate he is about his job, I'm including these for my own personal enjoyment (and of course, I am NOT trying to stake my claim here to all the little high school girls):

love that shiny head ;D that's my handiwork btw, very proud of my skills




House updates to come soon!  Must first remove the paintbrushes and paint cans that have become a permanent fixture on every counter and bathroom floor :/

The Ronald McDonald Room

So I couldn't resist...of course I'm gonna jinx myself by posting twice in one day, and I'll end up not posting again for a month, but I just need to express my love for first homes.

First homes that are 50% furnished by hand-me-downs and 40% by Craigslist...and the rest maybe from an actual store...that may be named Ikea and therefore doesn't reeeeaaallly count either.

"I think the word you're looking for is...anyways...."
(5 points if you can name that sitcom)

We have a Ronald McDonald room.  Earlier today we inherited a bed from my aunt, which I gladly accepted because we currently have two spare bedrooms that are serving as box and basket storage closets, and I do not foresee buying anything for them any time soon.  So yeah, picked it up today, and she passed on some sheets that she wouldn't be needing anymore either.  And this is what the room looks like now:

It's Ronald McDonald's bedrooms!!!

Maybe it's not as dramatic on a picture as it is when you walk in, but literally when you open the door all you can think of is hamburgers.  The gray at the foot of the bed is my attempt to make it look slightly less like mustard and ketchup, and more appealing...should someone need to stay over and not want to dream of Ronald...I folded it down for your viewing pleasure (you're welcome!

Welcome Home!

So of course, I start a blog and then don't post anything for a week.  Typical Tracy.  Always distracted.    Been chugging away with the kitchen updates, and once I'm knee deep in a project, literally everrrryyyttthhhiiinnng get's made a second priority...even eating...and that's a BIG deal!

Anyways, here is a tour of the house as it was when we moved in.  The photos are from the listing and show the previous homeowner's furniture...obviously...since I don't remember birthing twins recently.  

Here are our two front porches!!! I can't wait to put some furniture out there so we can enjoy the neighborhood :)

Walk in the front door to the "formal" living and dining room...though we're about the least formal people ever, and I don't like the idea of having two rooms that we never use sooooooooo plans for a big farmhouse style table and a few comfy chairs for reading, relaxing, enjoying the light from the huge windows and other corny things....that I actually do, thus making me corny

To the left of the entry is a study, which also looks out onto one of the front porches, which has the potential of being a 4th bedroom if ever needed.

Continue down the hall to the very open kitchen!  I loooovvveeee this kitchen, love that it has so much space, love that it is so open to the family room.  I love cooking and always hate feeling like I'm having to bend backwards and yell to people in the other room...and you always miss out on all the good convos!

Next is the family room, with huuuuge windows to the backyard!!  I really don't like feeling like I live in a cavern, and this room is about as perfect as it gets.  The house is in the back of the neighborhood, so the backyard faces the bayou, which means no obstructed view, don't have to feel like other people are up in your personal space, and the sun comes up over the backyard which makes the family room so bright in the mornings :D

Next is the master, which is big enough for a king bed (someday!), a dresser, an armoire and even a chair or small loveseat!  Talk about nice place to relax!  And a master bath with garden tub eek!

Oh, and double sinks, because apparently the man in this relationship is the one who wants his personal quiet space in the bathroom....so thank goodness for double sinks! HAHA

One of two extra bedrooms....so plenty of room for everyone to come VISIT!!!!

And finally, the final selling feature, the ginormous backyard.  And can't see it in these photos but the landscaping is beautiful right by the patio, so it almost seems like you're in a little garden.  But then when you go around the corner to the side yard it just explodes into a huge green space...

SUCH A NICE CHANGE FROM 2 LABS IN A 1 BEDROOM APARTMENT

LOL

 

So there is the tour!

Of course I can't leave anything alone, even though the house looked beautiful already, there's always something I want to change or make feel more personal.  

And being on a super strict budget right now I've had to be more than creative with filling all of this space...let's just say Craigslist is my best friend, so is a can of glossy white spray paint.  Although I do think Shayne officially thinks I'm insane.  The last lamp project I brought home was termed the "pile of 80's pink vomit on the table".

Someone else's trash is my treasure :D

Enjoy the novel yall!

2012 and new beginnings...

I have officially started my first blog.  Anyone who knows me knows I read a stupid number of blogs every day and was addicted from the first time I opened one.  Other than the fact that blogs satisfying my apparent need for all information, all the details, immediately, when I need (cough, want) it, I love the fact that it is like an online journal that you can go back to years in the future...and remember that one total fail project, or how you went through a phase where you made your dogs wear tuxedo collars, or whatever.  

So with the new house, new job, getting married...I figure now's a better time than ever to start jotting it all down.  Besides, I'm 12.5% through painting our kitchen cabinets and I think I'll need to remind myself next time I think that's a good idea, that maybe...not so much.

Photos of the house to come!