Kitchen Tip Tuesday - and a "Peek"

It's Kitchen Tip Tuesday (hosted over at Tammy's Recipes) *and* it's the second day of my "Peek Week". Let's start with a tip:

This is the kind of pb I like to buy - yes, it's more expensive than the good ol' standby ~Jiff~ so I don't use it for things like pb cookies. But I do use it for pb & j sandwiches and celery dipping. Yum......

Anyway, my tip really is tied in here somewhere. The thing is, when I was trying to decide what kind of natural pb to buy, the CONTAINER the pb came in was an important aspect. I want to be able to *use* the empty container, if possible.

These little jars are perfect. Right now I have three in the fridge: ground flax seed, vital wheat gluten and the actual PB. The yellow lid has the perfect texture/finish on it for me to label the container with a Sharpie. Easy to see, easy to identify, easy to open. I hate opening a box, pulling out the inner bag, untwisting the twistie-tie I used to close it, trying to get it out of the squished bag without spilling the contents.....blah, blah, blah. Nope, grab, twist off the cap, measure and re-twist the top back on. Simple.

So, it doesn't have to be *THIS* container (if fact, some people like to only use glass containers), but think about the containers before you buy a product. You can get double-duty out of many items. Cool!!

****again, all pics are clickable to see details****

And now on to the "Peek" ~ today we will take a look at my front room. It's technically supposed to be a living room space (I'm guessing the kitchen is supposed to be an eat-in kitchen, but that doesn't work for us), so it's carpeted. Yuck - not so great for a dining room with little children. Oh well, so be it.

(oooo....you can just barely see our new wooden high chair....I've always wanted one of those)

(our friends sent us the "Blessed" wall-hanging.)

Our front room is the dining room, plus the piano room (yet it is still lacking the actual piano - we are waiting for some of the snow to melt before we try to move it back into the house), plus the sewing room. It also houses the "Educational Closet" which is a *wonderful* thing to have.

(hey, see those red containers? those used to hold Folger's coffee......see? I told you - I really do use that Kitchen Tip up there.......and I guess I drink too much coffee.....*grins*)

(there. see the piano bench with the blankets on top? That's where the upright piano will go. Yup. someday. And there's my sewing machine - all the fabric is in the cedar chest under the double windows [1st pic])

This is easily my most favorite room in the home thus far. I love the new curtains, I love the new dining room table, I love the new benches, I love the (idea of the) piano being accesible to my little ones, I love my hutch (belonged to my mother) and the lights in my hutch.....and on and on and on.....it's just one of those spaces I want to invite others into. Once we get these sick bugs out of our home, we will do just that.

(the black and bold pattern may seem a bit too much for a "dining room" but it really does work)

(and it matches my dishes perfectly - just look at that big blue flower!)

(and those blue runners? just left over valances that I'm not using in this home - yup, gotta think outside the box! oh, and you can just barely see the entrance into the kitchen - just to give you an idea of how this room relates spatially to the pictures from yesterday.)

Anyways, there ya go - another "peek" into our home, our rooms, our lives. This is us, the real deal. This is where we all gather to eat our meals, do our devotions, color, paint, do school work, and giggle over snacks with little ones. I do try to keep these first two spaces (kitchen & front room) nice and clean and neat. They are the main spaces upstairs and they are what everyone sees when they step into our home. I try to make sure they are clean and inviting and yet livable. A far cry from the downstairs.....but we'll get there later this week.

Have a great day, my friends!!