November 27, 2011

Last Perfect Breakfast



I just found this snap of my ideal breakfast in my phone. Plain omelet, toast with cream cheese and smoked salmon, heirloom tomatoes, some Earl Grey tea... and a long lovely conversation with my mom. Have a great trip, mommy, and come back soon!

November 25, 2011

Homeownerhood



I think after the last couple of weeks, I am safe in rephrasing the old saw: into every home, a little rain must fall. Yes, that's right - we have now joined the proud ranks of those whose basements have flooded in the midst of seasonable weather. And while this was happening? Our fridge died a noble, but not nearly drawn-out enough death (I, for one, would have really appreciated months of very slow decline rather than a sudden episode of kaput.)

The new fridge is now finally in, the food that went bad is gone, and the basement... well, no one has yet actually figured out what exactly is wrong, but all signs point to the need to dig up our whole street to investigate the drain pipes, which still might be the susceptible, terracotta kind from the days of yore. Still, we are now newly aware of the dangers of falling leaves, and the kids enjoyed sweeping and bagging as a novel backyard game.

November 21, 2011

Cool, Dark, and Serene

The guest bathroom recently underwent a complete overhaul, complete with floor demolition and plumbing updates. The old drain pipes were still made out of lead and the old cabinet was some seriously deteriorating MDF-vinyl affair!

From our other small bathroom, I had already learned the completely counter-intuitive trick that tiny, well-lit spaces do really well with dark wall colors. The dark walls recede and actually make the space feel bigger - a very strange optical illusion that I think is heightened in this case by the sharp contrast with all the white tile and fixtures. We went from this:



to this:



Here is a shot of the other side, with the fun tree curtain I found for the bathtub. Before:



after: