A Shepherd Venturing Into The Great Unknown

The kitchen ;-).

Tadaa :-)

20's Uncle John built the box in the center of the island.  It is a perfect place to stuff anything that might be is cluttering up the counter if you have company coming or Lori keeps harping on you to take pictures ;-).

This shepherd had been in our living room for years.  I don't know what made me think to move him into the kitchen, but I love him here.  He came from a folk art gallery that used to be in downtown Cynthiana, The Gourd Patch.  He's signed, but I can't read it :-/.  

Don't worry, Betsy still has her bed and breakfast spot.

A little closer look at the calendar.  Each month is a different breed of sheep and plant, tree or flower to go with.  The artist is Emily Fratson and it's just stunning.  A treasured gift.

This is one of my favorite updates - a garbage bin...for dog and cat food :-).  That's Kate's auxiliary bed tucked in the pantry.  She goes in there whenever I'm cooking.  I try not to be offended, but can't help but remember that she is very smart ;-).

The artist who painted these beautiful bar stools was my grandmother.  The wood floor is actually vinyl.  I loved the old floor, but like most things I love, it's obsolete and we couldn't find it any more. I like the look of this.  It's a little slick, but I'm guessing after we rub enough dirt into it, that won't be a problem anymore ;-).

The granite is Costa Esmerelda, which is a light grayish green.  I had a hard time getting a picture that really shows the true color.  This is pretty close.

But the color is maybe a little closer to this...if it were lighter/brighter.  The picture of Betsy's bed is probably the closest to real life.  I was really nervous about the counter tops.  Will they be green enough?  Too green? What color paint will match?  They turned out perfect and interestingly, the color that best matched it was the exact color the walls had been in the old kitchen.

The amazing Liddy card was painted by a friend.  Another treasure - the card and friend :-).

Still room for the lamb cage :-).

And now we have a couple extra can lights...that have dimmer switches...that will be perfect for a baby night light ;-D.

We toyed with taking this whole wall out and combining the kitchen and dining room, but I'm glad we left it similar to the old design with a "window" looking into the dining room.  I love the flower lamps and the six small shelves were the contractor's idea.  Good call!

A sheep for Auntie Reg ;-).  The bottle she's climbing is yet another treasured gift from an artist friend. Look closely at the bottle.

So that's the ten cent tour of the kitchen.  Want to see the new dining room and bathroom?