all that's past is prologue...

Reminds me to take the whole home decor thing a little less seriously. Catalog LIving

I had a board meeting tonight, and Patrick and Beatrix headed out to Microcenter. On the way back, Beatrix, being a true Minnesotan, persuaded Patrick to stop at DQ. She wanted ice cream for herself, and for daddy, and insistently for "mommy at home," pointing to the sign with three blizzards on it and saying "Daddy, Mommy, Beatrix!" So I got to come home to a Reeses blizzard. Excellent!

So, the one part of our house that began this organizational streak was our pantry. It drove me nuts, not only because it was messy and overwhelming, but because we were constantly losing food, which is a huge waste of time, money, and emotional energy. Even before I started the Cure, it was top on my list of things that simply had to be put in order. It's also the room that took the longest. I started this over two months ago — Patrick and I devoted a full night to it, and didn't get through it, and then finally finished the rest in a grueling effort last night. So this shot is especially gratifying because it shows a pantry in use, not just-finished and all clean and shiny. The paint could use some touch-up, and there are some holes in the wallboard (and I have to either fish or cut bait on the corkboard), but in general I am thrilled. I also got the spice drawers cleaned out while I was at it, thanks to Lauren's prodding:

Neither of these rooms were on my original Cure plans, but after seeing what people were doing, I got inspired. I've always wanted some fun Etsy prints for Beatrix's room, but I get overwhelmed, and truth be told we know so many artists that I could not justify buying anything over the internet. But then someone told me about Feed Your Soul , which publishes free downloadable art every week. I got some cheap frames from Ikea, and hung these above Beatrix's crib, with the idea that I could swap them out on a regular basis. She loves them! That also inspired Patrick to hang her lamp, which we had tried to hang before but needed a stronger ceiling hook. In the living room, I was inspired by finding this great platform rocker up for grabs outside the Northern Warehouse. We spent a long time gluing the joints and cleaning it up. Truth be told, it's still not as comfortable as I would like, but it's better than the ratty chair that was there, and I love the color. We...

It's almost time for Open Eye Figure Theatre's Driveway Tour again! We'll be hosting the FIRST performance this year of The Adventures of Katie Tomatie, a great puppet show for families. The show is completely free of charge (though we'll be passing the hat afterwards.) It lasts about 30 minutes, and we'll provide refreshments afterwards. Won't you join us? Tuesday, June 1 6:30pm in our back yard (627 Ashland)

In the middle of this domestic binge is a lot of good food! I'm testing recipes for a friends cookbook, and this chapter is "Big Batches." So yesterday I made a sweet potato-hominy chili, and vegetarian tamale pie, both in big freezable batches. While not exactly gourmet, they are both good dishes that I am pretty happy with. Then tonight I made a batch of lilac cocktail syrup, basically simple syrup infused with fresh lilac blooms. It's part of my quest for the perfect summer cocktail, and I hope it tastes as good as it looks! If not though, I've found the perfect summer cocktail: lemonade, vodka, and elderflower liquer. It's a drink invented at my friend Rebecca's on Saturday night, at a cheese tasting, tres leches cake eating, fire gazing cocktail party that was a truly wonderful evening. The best? A coffee-lavender hard cheese. Mmmmmm. Last night, we had dinner at Heidi/Chank/Max's place. The reason Heidi is the most boss caterer ever is b...

We gardened the h*ll out of the weekend. Friday was a beautiful day, and my mind was full of numbers by mid afternoon, so I just started in on a little weeding in the pretty overgrown front yard. Well, it became one of those things that you just can't stop, and by the end of the weekend we had weeded through the entire front yard, including two badly overgrown beds that I had not really touched since Beatrix was born. It was a lot of work, but totally worth it. Beatrix loved being outside with us and carrying the weeds back and forth from pile to pile. She also loves to water the plants; I'll have to look into getting her her own watering can, because our usual one is as big as she is! As might be expected, I have lost some plants I know were there at one point, including (sadly enough) some beautiful mums planted years ago by my friend Scott. The great thing, though, is that with all the beds cleared out, I can add new plants! I would really like to get some divisions fro...