A Big Birthday in the Burbs

This weekend I helped the hubs ring in the big 3-0. In honor of such a big birthday, not only did I bake him a delicious cake (seen above!), but I surprised him with the grill he's had his eye on for a while. He. Was. Speechless. 

Let me back up for a moment. When we moved to the 'burbs, my parents so graciously gave us their old grill since they recently bought a new one. We were thrilled seeing that we previously used to grill "ghetto style" outside the front door of our condo using a tailgating grill before we moved to this house. The 'burbs is no place for such "ghetto style" grilling and we can now actually use our tailgating grill for actual tailgating. Woo-hoo! We are moving in the right direction!

We cooked many a great meal on this trusty Char-Broil Grill from my parents and we are sad to see it go....

But move over Char-Broil and say hello to the Weber Spirit E-320. 

It practically sounds like a car model, doesn't it? In fact, ME purchasing such an item was a slightly overwhelming and stressful experience - much like car shopping. But the salesman at the hardware store couldn't have been nicer....and I managed to keep my nervous perspiring to a minimum so I didn't look like a complete idiot. And the process was well worth it...as seen in the hubs face when we did the inaugural first grilling this weekend.

Thanks mom and dad for generously giving us your hand-me-down grill and sparing our neighbors the sight of us grilling "ghetto style" on a tailgating grill in the 'burbs! Next up - the hubs would like to install a small slate patio for the grill to stand on....stay tuned!

I'm Living in the Postwar Era....Seriously

If any of you would like to step back in time and experience life in America during the 'postwar era', just come on over and step into our kitchen. When the hubs and I bought our house in the 'burbs, one of the appealing aspects was that the house was in great shape considering not much of it has been updated through the years. Most specifically I am talking about our kitchen. Our house was built in 1959 and as of today still has most (if not all) of the original "Youngstown Kitchens" brand cabinetry . And since we all know that Google knows everything, I did some research on Youngstown Kitchens and found some pretty funny stuff, including the advertisement above. I had no idea we are living in such a lap of luxury!

I know what you are all thinking and the answer is - NO. No I do not wear a dress, heals and apron to prepare our previously frozen, throw-on-a-cookie-sheet, delicious dinners every night. Come on, this is 2010 and I am a working woman. 

The hubs and I dream of updating our kitchen one day, but let's be honest, it's just not in the cards right now. So I am embracing our "retro" style kitchen these days. It's cool. Even Rachel Ray has a retro style kitchen! Here is ours....

(Please ignore the gross curtain which is a leftover from the previous owner and has yet to be taken down...oops!)

(The photo above is actually from our kitchen cabinet - as proof!)

As seen in this post, the hubs and I have already tackled a floor mini-makeover which we are SO happy we did. Since a full kitchen reno isn't in the cards, and the retro cabinets are in excellent shape for being over-the-hill, I think I can live with them for a few more years. So the next mini-makeover I would like to tackle is some new counter tops. Our current white Formica counter tops drive me crazy because they show every crumb, drip and scratch. There are a ton of different styles of Formica counter tops available that look more like faux stone and granite, which I think would be a step towards in the right direction for our drab kitchen. I picked up a few samples at Home Depot several months ago.....

I think for several hundred $$'s we can give our dull counter tops a little face-life. The above picture isn't the best, but I am leaning towards the sample on the far right. What do you think?

Monday's Were Made For Blonds

It's Monday. I'm at work.  Why not start off the week with a blond moment? Drum roll please.....

I just realized I am wearing my underwear inside-out.

It's going to be one of those days, I can tell.

Well Hello NJ....I've Missed You !

 

This weekend the hubs and I took a road trip. Well hello New Jersey...I've missed you! That's right, I grew up in Real Housewives country. 

We went to visit my bestie from childhood and had a blast. Not only did this trip make me miss my bestie even more but it also made me realize how much I miss Jersey. Yes, people from New Jersey leave the "New" off when talking about their home state. 

I miss the diners, the Turnpike & the Parkway, bagels, full service gas stations (probably what I miss most!), subs (what the heck is a hogie or a hero anyway?), jug handles, guidos, delis, cawfee, and of course the mall.

It's true. You can take a girl out of Jersey but you can't take the Jersey out of a girl.

 

Dull & Boring is Not an Option

Don't let the lack of posts fool you...you thought there was nothing going on in the 'burbs? In fact, life continues to move at warp speed and I am losing my mind! There is not enough time in the day. Between vacation time, puppy kindergarten class, bbq's, catching up with old friends near and far, birthday celebrations and WORK, there has been no time to tackle the projects on our "to-do" list. Who am I kidding...that "to-do" list gets longer every day. I like to think of it more as taking a vacation from home improvement projects for the summer rather than procrastination (or lack of funds!). I have a few small projects to tackle before the summer is over, so stay tuned.