DECORATING & DOWNSIZING THE KITCHEN PART II DETAILS

I'm so glad you stopped by today even though it's chilly & dreary. Would you care for a
Blueberry Danish?
This is a modification of Hungry Girl's Danish recipe.
Instead of cherries, I used blueberries.
Instead of Splenda I use stevia.
And instead of soy/skim milk, I use whatever I have on hand!

I have a chef friend who says if you make three changes to a recipe it becomes a completely different recipe, so you can just call this, Vera's Blueberry Danish! LOL I'll put on the tea pot & continue telling you about the area right above the stove.

This area hold more than mere kitchen *stuff* . . .
It also holds lots of memories!

First, as you can see there is no vent. If the kitchen gets smoky, we just open the kitchen windows & backdoor & let the fresh air clear the air!
Very Top: The clock is a long ago acquisition & I can't remember for certain where it came from, but I like it anyway.Top - from left: Slap Ya Mama Creole Seasoning. It's right out here in the open because I use is a lot & I love the colors! We first learned about it on our first cruise (definitely a great memory) from an Oklahoma couple who brought it along with them! Now we're hooked!The 3 red/white bowls ($7.99 for all 3) & black pitcher ($7.99) are from Marshall's HomeGoods store & Debby was with me when I bought them - definitely a good memory! The striped bowl holds colorful seasoning tins & the Old Bay reminds me of our dear friends, Mike & Linda. She always used it in her seafood dishes & now I do, too! The black pitcher has some long-handled utensils & I'm guessing it will collect more as we continue cooking & baking here.The two thrifted chickens remind me of my hubby's chicken days. He really loves raising chickens & as soon as we can put up a properly safeguarded coop, I'm sure he'll be back in the egg business. The one nesting on the red & white polka dotted bowl store tea bags.
The cookie tin is from long ago & is currently empty, but I'm sure will soon storage something! And the yellow cat is from a vacation trip to Baltimore when I was 13.
Hanging items: I don't remember where the silver pitcher came from - I'm guessing a thrift store and it almost didn't move to the cabin with us because I NEVER use silver. But then I had a thought: why should I continue using an old, cracked plastic pitcher to refill the dog's water bowl? So the plastic went out & the silver stayed! And I'm glad! BTW - the dog's water bowl is a 4 pound cut glass bowl that we never used at the table because it's too heavy before we even put food in it! Yeah - the dog has it good!
The white wall pocket was my grandmother's, but since she died when I was a toddler, I associate it with my grandpa. He had it hanging near the kitchen sink, probably leaving it where my grandma hung it. He had it empty, like this. I think it needs some flowers in it - don't you?
The teapot is merely a teapot that get's used many times a day. It is beginning to wear out & will need to be replaced soon. I'm hoping to find one the same size as I don't need nor want a big, ginormous one! I wouldn't be able to lift it when full & where would I hang it?
The mug hanging with it is from my dearest of friend, Debby.
And my pots: I cannot say enough nice things about my pots and pans which are 7 ply, 304 surgical grade stainless steel cookware. I love them. I will write some day about those pots. . . they were a long time coming!
I don't think I ever mentioned that when we painted the shelf, we also replaced the sturdy, but ugly cup hooks with new & attractive double hooks. Because these are double, there's more than a single layer of pots. Behind the Dutch Oven on the left is a stainless steel colander. And so on down the line, one pot hanging over another. It really works well & I'm so glad it all hangs on a sturdy, solid wood wall!




"Made In Occupied Japan" is what the cute little Scottie dogs say on the bottom. I came across them the other day & knew they had to perch right here. . . they too are from my childhood.


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See? It says so right here

And I took my own advice & put some flowers in the wall pocket. The white azaleas are newly acquired & the pink roses more than survived the move from the old house. Thank you Kevin for moving them for me!!!

Life is Good Today

Surround yourself with beautiful, practical things you love. Do not rush out to the nearest Dollar Store to buy something you think you need. Just wait. You may discover you already have something that works wonderfully well and you already love it. Or the thing you want/need will just come to you. It will. I know.