my less serious home: family room

You may remember that I recently moved into my first home. I also recently gave up my fear of letting hundreds of complete strangers see my private (and un-tidy) personal space by sharing my new kitchen. 

Turns out, you guys loved seeing my space. And, although this makes me mildly uncomfortable, it also makes me happy. So, today I share with you: the family room (disclaimer: it is a work in progress).

I could have arranged the pillows for you and put away the dish from my previous night's 2-minute chocolate peanut butter cake indulgence...but, ya know...

 Figure 1. Remember the kitchen? Well I'm standing in it taking this photo over the bar towards the living room. The door at the back of the room leads to the hallway with the bedrooms. On the left are glass doors leading towards the screened in porch and back yard.

 Figure 2. Ok, ok. The red couch clashes miserably with the red wall. I get it. I'm on the hunt for a modern, neutral sofa (suggestions?). I can't find the perfect one so instead I bought these kick-ass pillows from IKEA and this ABSOLUTELY AMAZING coffee table from West Elm.

 Figure 3. Close up of the coffee table (and dirty dish). Yesssss. So you thought it was awesome, but you didn't know that it actually LIFTS UP SO YOU CAN EAT OFF OF IT AND WATCH TV LIKE A TRUE LAZY AMERICAN. Bazinga.

Figure 4. Here's a picture of it in action on Saturday night with a side of quinoa casserole.

 Figure 5. Ok, clearly I need a new TV. This is fairly embarrassing, I know. My Grandma visited this weekend and told me she even has multiple flat screens. But, when it comes to making granola or going TV shopping, granola wins every time.

 Figure 6. To the left of the TV sites the doors to the screened-in porch and my back yard. A screened in porch was on my wish list - and I got it. I am lucky.

More spaces to come...

my less serious home: kitchen

I wasn't going to show you inside my home. No offense, but it feels a bit creepy and revealing. Hundreds of strange people (I mean, ahem, lovely blog readers) seeing my everyday space? Hmmm. 

But, I can only ignore so many requests, so today begins a new mini-special-edition series, my less serious home. Posts where I cringe slightly and show you inside my home, while attempting to relate it to healthy living.

I thought about cleaning up first, but I didn't want to. You understand.

Today, the kitchen.

Figure 1 Kitchen View #1. Let's get you oriented - I'm taking the shot from the entry to the dining room, to the left is a door to the car port, to the right is the breakfast bar (or beer bar, depending on the hour) and the living room, and the window overlooks the back yard. 

Figure 2 Kitchen View #2. Here I'm standing behind the bar, you can see the car port entryway next to the fridge and the large, luxurious pantry to the left (next to the dog/microwave area and the cookbook rack). That is my cereal bowl and my blog notebook, for you really nosy people.

Now let's get really invasive and show you some close-ups.

Figure 3 Non-Refrigerated Food Area. To the far end of the bar is the 'non-refrigerated food area'. Today this includes some of our healthy staples, a pile of bananas (14 to be exact), sweet potatoes, avocados, and an onion. A foil covered pan of happiness (i.e., whole wheat banana bread snack cake), resting on the side. Keeping these foods easily accessible and visible facilitates their quick consumption (a power cord wrapped around knives is safe, right?).

Figure 4 The Pantry. I know, I know - you want to see closer - but this, my friends, is all you get. You would think a family of 6 lived in this house, but in fact it is just two people who eat a lot and like to be well stocked. 

(From top to bottom): top shelf: baking supplies (flours and mixes) and protein powder, 2nd shelf: more baking supplies and lesser-used condiments; 3rd shelf: bottled sauces, canned beans, and pasta/rice/quinoa/couscous; 4th shelf: cereal-mania (this is two boxes-deep), vinegars, oils, herbs, and spices; 5th shelf: dried fruit, popcorn, peanut butter, PB2, nuts; bottom shelf: dog treats, lunch boxes, extra paper towels, and more cereal, obviously.

Figure 5 Medicine/Coffee/Honey Cabinet. What? You don't have a medicine/coffee/honey cabinet? For some reason this makes perfect sense to me. Located to the left of the sink, I open this cabinet multiple times every day. 

Top shelf: everyday medicines/supplements; middle shelf: coffee filters; bottom shelf: coffee, coffee grinder, honey, and agave nectar.

Figure 6 The Refrigerator. 

Top shelf: pudding, eggs, almond butter; 2nd shelf: Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, leftovers; 3rd shelf: almond milk (that is 6 cartons) and beer; both crispers and deli bin: overflowing produce

Now, I hope you are all satisfied (but, not too satisfied because I have many more rooms to show you...).