Monday, May 7, 2012

Life 2 B.B. (2 years Before Blogging)

You know how ancient history is marked by B.C. and A.D.?  Well, sometimes I feel like my life is marked by B.B. - Before Blogging.

  The other day a picture popped up on my computer screen saver of our kitchen in the house we lived in before this one (2 B.B.) and I knew I just had to show you, because if you've ever thought you have a small kitchen I'm betting you'll feel a tad bit grateful for the one you have after you see this one.

So, I put together a whole little post about our previous house just to show you life did exist previous to my introduction to the blogging world.  Funny story - my husband walked in the room and saw me editing these pictures and asked, "Why are you working on pictures of that house?" I replied, "I thought it might be fun to do a little series about life before blogging."  With mock incredulity he said, "You HAD a life before blogging?!?"  : )


Anyways, on to the pics.  This little house was on a huge ranch in a very small town called Devils Garden, FL.  My hubby was a cowboy and one of the benefits was a ranch house to live in free of charge.  Before moving day came I toured the house and took pictures so I'd know what I was getting myself into, so to speak.  I won't show you the whole thing, just a bit of it.

This was the view as you walked in the front door.  The arrow is pointing at the kitchen. It's so small I feared you might miss it.


Another side note.  This was originally a hunting cabin, built in 1936 by a group of 4 doctors who had more medical knowledge than they had building sense.  I'm fairly certain the kitchen was just an after thought.

To the right of the front door was the laundry area.

Let's get a little closer look at the kitchen - or lack thereof.


Yep, this was it.  Feeling blessed? 

No drawers w.h.a.t.s.o.e.v.e.r. and about a foot of counter space.

The arrow is pointing at a large cabinet that didn't even have any storage capabilities.  It housed the hot water heater!

To the side of the "kitchen" was a large wall of cabinet space, and with some creative ingenuity I was able to fit quite a bit of stuff in there.



Looking from the kitchen doorway into the living room area.


And back towards the kitchen.



SO......what's a good country girl supposed to do except make the best of what you've got?  


I had to go searching for pictures that would show the difference, so some are from Christmas and some are from Fall, but here's what I did with the place.


The curtains are actually a vintage tablecloth that I cut in half and made into valances.


The refrigerator had been blocking all the light from the window, and plus I didn't like the idea of the stove being right by the main doorway into the rest of the house so we switched them around.




Fortunately, I was able to find the perfect kitchen cart to put in this space beside the wall of cabinets.  It gave me the much needed drawers, and lots more storage area.  (Notice this was also life before Keurig)  : )


Amazingly enough, after a few weeks of living there I learned to accept it and how to navigate it, and with only a minimal amount of temper tantrums I was able to successfully cook many a good meal in there.


Here's the living room area.




This picture was just after we moved there and we didn't have the new red couches yet, but it was the only one I could find that showed that we turned the other end of this room into the computer desk area.

 Figured I'd throw this one in here of how our bedroom looked since I've been sharing what I'm doing in the new house.  Notice that lovely original beadboard on the walls?  It was throughout the house and I loved it!


So there ya go.  That was our house previous to hubby deciding to go back to college to become a diesel mechanic and thus a move from the rural country of sunny South Florida, to the dreary cold of northern Ohio.  And man do I miss it like crazy!  


Let me just show you a bit of what I'm homesick for.


We were surrounded by horse pastures, and had our own barn filled with horses.  Some were ours and some were other people's that we cared for.



I miss driving through the pastures during calving season and seeing all the adorable new babies.



I miss seeing the Bald Eagles, a fairly common occurrence around there.




I miss all the deer sightings.  
Headless bloody carcasses on the side of I-75 just isn't quite the same somehow.




And most of all,  I miss watching my man on horseback.  
There's nothing that compares to that.




Needless to say, we cannot wait to get back to the country (and warmer weather) when he graduates!

                                                    


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18 comments:

  1. Hi Stephanie! Thanks for the tour of your ranch house. You made a sterile-looking place very cute and cozy. I love the red checked sofa...perfect touch. I enjoyed seeing the photos of the wildlife and not-so-wildlife. Y'all come back now...ya hear?!

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  2. I adore your cozy old farmhouse. You have decorated it perfectly. Many yeahs to you!
    'hugs from afar'

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  3. O' what a warm and inviting cozy little house!
    You have such a talent for decorating.

    I LOVE & miss the country too.

    Thanks for sharing your life BB :)

    ~Diane

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  4. SO darling, kindred spirit! I have that cupcake sign, the co-op chick sign, and that table cloth. Your kitchen is a TRUE vintage gem!

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  5. You made it all look so cozy. It's proof that a house can become a home.

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  6. Wow, you did great! Amazing how you still managed to make it a cozy kitchen corner!
    Greetings from Australia♥
    ~Pernilla

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  7. Seeing what you did with the place was just eye-opening. It looked great - you have a great sense of what works both in size and style. I love the FL pasture land, unfortunately, i'm stuck in the city :(

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  8. I'm your newest friend on Google Connect and Linky Followers - hope you'll follow back :)
    Greetings from Australia♥
    ~Pernilla

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  9. I am new to your blog. You certainly know how to make a place cozy!

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  10. What a great job you did in your small space! I love the way you decorated it, especially the kitchen! I'm your newest follower.

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  11. Hi! Love how just turned the house into a little doll house, you did a wonderful job on it, thanks so much for taking me on a tour of it! I'v been reading thur your posts and have so enjoyed them! I'm your newest follower on GFC and Linky! Stop by when you have some time!


    Rondell

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  12. Your post made me think of our first kitchen. One day I was wearing a pair of Levis and I moved quickly at the sink and the belt loops on my pants pulled a burner knob off the stove. It was tiny, but we have good memories of that first house.

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  13. Wow, you took what was a tiny almost unusable space, and made it work beautifully. I don't blame you for missing the country....
    come for a visit...
    Nancy
    http://wildoakdesigns.blogspot.com

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  14. Such a beautiful post. I bet that little cabin will always hold a big part of your heart, no matter where life leads you!

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  15. Its beautiful and I am a total sucker for gingham !

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  16. You really made a home out of that house!! Absolutely beautiful and in a beautiful area. I went to school in Deland, so I know about the loveliness of the Florida countryside.
    Fortunately I have only migrated as far as central Texas, so I am still in the countryside....it's just a mite warmer some summers :^)

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  17. You made the most out of such a small space. I love it! Your kitchen accents were darling. I love the red.

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