Did you guys catch this comment from Danielle yesterday?
“In our last apartment our sneaky cat opened the bathroom cupboards under the sink, finding a small hole that led from our apartment to the neighbors. Imagine our neighbors surprise when he got out of the shower that morning only to find a strange cat on his counter! Long story short, he ended up setting our cat free outside but we tracked him down eventually thank goodness!”
I just love that story. Cats are crazy!!
Today, I have more progress pictures for you and a delicious 60-second recipe to finish it off! I’m getting creative this week with quick and easy recipes since I’m not in the kitchen much.
Here are more “progress” pictures (and I use that term loosely) of the living/dining room:
I think the saying, it has to get worse before it gets better, applies here.
Can you handle that progress?
Our living/dining area is on pause right now as we wait for furniture to arrive. Friday can’t come soon enough, I tell ya! We ordered a small dining table & chairs, a TV cabinet, a side table, and a wine cabinet from our favourite furniture place in Burlington. I can’t wait to get it all set up so I can unpack the boxes and we can put up the art work & décor. We’re going to see some major progress this weekend, mark my words!
I spent all day yesterday at the old house. One thing I’ve learned from this move is to never underestimate how long it takes to remove every single item from a house. I cleaned out every single drawer, cupboard, nook, and cranny and I still have to wash the floors and vacuum tonight. It’s hard to unpack in a new place when you’re still taking care of the old one.
Here’s one pile of the Goodwill donation:
Eric and I also worked on wood boards that we’re antiquing for my food photography.
I hope to do a how-to post on it at some point…it’s a really easy DIY project! So far, we’ve made three different boards. The first one was a huge fail until we figured out the proper technique to use. Once we figured it out, it’s simple to do.
Once we were back in the new place, I got to work yet again. I think skipping my workouts this past week has given me more energy for moving tasks…I was on fire yesterday and worked straight until 10pm.
One thing I love about this new place is that it has central vac. I’m finding it so handy. We had a central vac in the old house, but I found that I never used it because it was stored in the basement.
I pulled out the fridge and stove and vacuumed/cleaned behind them…it wasn’t pretty!
As you may have noticed, the kitchen has a mirror backsplash. I can see how this will be a challenge to keep clean once I’m making recipes again! I tend to splish and splash everywhere…
I also washed the kitchen floor with my homemade water & vinegar mix. The other floors will have to wait until the furniture is set up.
I put up a towel hanger on the back of the bathroom door that I picked up from Canadian Tire:
I also put up a hook on the inside cabinet for my oven mitts:
I added a utensil holder (to save drawer space) and kettle on the countertop:
As for the kitchen storage, it’s an absolute wreck right now. I’ve taken a bunch of pictures and hope to get your input at some point. I really don’t know how to maximize the space! There are a few super deep cupboards that make it hard to reach things stored in the back.
Here’s a teaser pic:
I ended the day with another homemade sorbet creation. This one was super thick and had a consistency of sorbet. Hit. the. spot.
60 Second Homemade Berry Sorbet
Yield
1/2 to 3/4 cup
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Total time
Thick, delicious, and healthy homemade sorbet in just 1 minute flat
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup frozen mixed berries (I used dark sweet cherries, blackberries, and blueberries)
- Just enough almond milk to make it come together (I used 6 tbsp)
- 1/2 scoop Vega chocolate performance protein powder (optional)
- a few frozen banana chunks, for sweetness
Directions
- In a blender (or a food processor may work too), process all ingredients until thick and creamy. Add the almond milk a little bit at a time, as needed. Serve immediately.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)Nutritional info:
(entire serving, with protein powder): 130 kcals, 1 gram fat, 13 grams carbs, 5 grams fibre, 8 grams sugar, 14 grams protein.
(entire serving, without protein powder): 70 kcals, 1 gram fat, 9 grams carbs, 8 grams sugar, 1 gram protein.
Now that’s a great way to end a day!
okay, you may already know about this place, but before i moved a couple of years ago, i didn’t know it existed. SOLUTIONS (there’s one at dundas & winston churchill) has all kinds of neat little adjustable shelves and rack type things that may work for your kitchen storage.
Sorbet looks great! I love central vac in your new place!
Yum!! I love dark sweet cherries, this looks so good!
Angela,
Check out this post from Cupcakes and Cashmere on kitchen organizing. She has some amazing tips! http://cupcakesandcashmere.com/kitchen-confidential/
Good luck!
thanks!
Ok, so after I saw this post in the morning I decided that tonight after dinner I would indulge with this sorbet. I only had frozen raspberries on hand and some fresh mint but it turned out nicely. The only downside were all the raspberry seeds but it was well worth it even with the added “crunch”. Thanks for the inspiration and best of luck with getting all settled in your new home. :)
You’re place is looking like mine! I’m also moving this week (my boyfriend’s upstairs putting something together right now while I sneak on my computer to browse the internet). The sorbet looks awesome and I need to stock my freezer asap.
Hi. I was wondering what you do about vitamin B-12. I’m a vegetarian and mostly vegan, but for the past couple of months I have been feeling very low energy, dizzy, anxious and just not myself. Because of this, I am thinking about not being vegetarian anymore. What are your thoughts?
I find the best way to keep a backsplashe clean is just with water and paper towel or a microfibre cloth. No streaks!
Yummy!! I have a cooking challenge for you…. I’ve come across these recipes called “mug cakes” and I’d love to see you create an easy fun dessert like this in a healthy/vegan way! If anyone can do it, you can :)
-http://blogs.babble.com/family-kitchen/2011/11/10/10-tasty-mug-cakes-that-you-can-make-in-just-minutes/
Hey Lisa,
hehe I have tried making them before for the cookbook..nothing really wowed me yet. Im now without a microwave so we’ll have to see if we end up getting one or not.
Hi Angela! One tip I found from America’s Test Kitchen recently was to store other pans/things on a baking sheet in the cupboard, and that allows you to slide out the baking sheet to reach the stuff! I will definitely be in a similar situation soon when I move into a studion apartment from a 2bedroom apartment. Hello teeny kitchen!
I have to laugh, we posted a very similar recipe today, I guess great minds think alike. It looks like your unpacking is coming together nicely. Have a great day!!
When we lived in California we had a cat that would climb through cracked windows of neighbors cars and sleep. One of them drove to work before noticing! Luckily he was nice enough to drive her back and drop her off!
The sorbet looks great!
It’s coming along! It looks like a beautiful space!!
My goodness, Angela! I am just catching up on reading. Congratulations on your new home – I am guessing you have some mixed feelings, but it sounds like the right thing. Best wishes with the rest of your unpacking, and I am looking forward to trying your sorbet recipe!
~Emily~
I’m trying to figure out what you were watching on the tele. Humm…
Might bump into you at Organic Garage and Whole Foods…. =) Happy moving in!
I was just about to put up a similar soft-serve that I made for dessert the other day. Trying to move all of us (including twin 5 year olds) off of dairy and while Mom and Dad don’t find it hard, the kids would like some cheese and ice cream. This worked well to scratch that ice cream itch and I felt so good about serving it to them. Delicious for all of us! I used more banana, less almond milk and a rice based protein powder, but it was essentially the same deal. Happy fruit dream!
Yum! I made a smoothie just like that the other day and it was DELICIOUS!
Did you say you guys bought this new house, or you are going to rent until you find a place you want? I can’t imagine having to move again. My house is filled and it would take me months to pack stuff up. Might be fun to start over, but the packing would not be.
Love the kitty picture. Cats can manage to get in quite the predicaments. The berry smoothie sounds yummy. Was wanting to buy the vega mixes, but they are quire expensive. Is there a substitute you can use that has protein?
I love fruit sorbets (even more than ice cream sometimes!). It’s like a smoothie in disguise ;)
We have two deep corner cupboards in our kitchen that look similar to yours. I barely use them because it is so annoying trying to get things out from the back! Its such a waste of space sometimes but is good for storing big items like a crock pot that you only use half the year.
Good luck with the rest of your move, I love the big floor to ceiling doors/windows in the living room and the openness of the main floor!
Berries and sorbets, a heavenly combination! The instructions are easy enough to follow and there’s only quite a few ingredients, I’m definitely going to try this one soon. Good luck, hopefully you’ll be sorted out with your new house very soon ;)
Angela, I’m really jealous of the in-the-wall vacuum cleaner. Someday…
Don’t you love berry smoothies? I think the banana really makes it even more delish. Adds a creaminess. And I’m pretty sure you’re getting plenty of exercise with all that moving 8)
Ok…what the heck is central vac???????? I don’t get it!
Wonderful looking sorbet! And even funnier cat musings :)
We’ve got our fair share of ridiculous cat stories up our sleeves too – (and we don’t even have one!) – turns out cats are funny and are somehow even funnier when they don’t belong to you (but like to act as if they do!) Lots of personality that’s for sure!
I love your cat… I too have two Bengels…they are so particular about their change of space being disrupted, your house is beautiful and great decorating!! Looks like Sketchy will fit in nicely!! love this website and recipes.
S.
Oh man . . . just made a strawberry version of this with vanilla protein powder. Definitely a keeper recipe and one I foresee making often as the weather warms up! Thanks for sharing this!