Life Lately

Phew.  Am I glad it's Friday.  And I only worked 3 days this week.  It's almost a full moon though which always makes my days in the pharmacy seem twice as long. 

Today I'd like to share with you some of my favorite moments from the past week.  I'll be back next week with an update to our kitchen plus info on hosting a Pinteresting party!  Get. Excited.

Nate, Ike and I went to visit my parents last week.  Ike made himself right at home in my parents recently updated guest bedroom.  I should have snapped some pictures before we destroyed it. 

It was the big Iowa Hawkeyes versus Iowa State Cyclones football game last Saturday.  It's the one football game I actually enjoy watching.  Watch the video to see who Ike was voting for.  

The dog kills me.  He does everything in life with such passion. 

My dad and I agree on many things in life.  I was skeptical about his lastest food creation though.  Fruit salad with Butterfinger Bits.  He insists me the Butterfinger Bits are the croutons of the salad.  I was really having a hard time believing it was good until I ate it. 

I will never doubt my dad again.  

Wait. I still doubt him when it comes to home decor.  He misread the latest trends memo.  Faux taxidermy is trendy, not the real stuff.  I kept feeling like someone was watching me when I would sit on the their couch.  Always trust your instinct. 

Next random subject: I highly recommend you make this one pot pasta from Martha Stewart.  Nate and I aren't big tomato fans but we both loved this.  (Except we'd cut back on the red pepper because we're weenies.) 

Okay, time to head to work.  Speaking of work, I was recognized at our staff appreciation day for 5 years of service.  This is what happens to pharmacists after 5 years of working. 

True story.  Happy weekend!

Keeping My Home Clean With BISSELL

This post brought to you by BISSELL Homecare, Inc.. All opinions are 100% mine.

I think it's a well known fact here on this blog that I'm kind of a neat freak.  I don't like clutter.  I don't like junk laying around.  I like the place neat and tidy.  You can imagine how giddy I got when I was offered the opportunity to try out the new BISSELL PowerGlide Vacuum with Lift-Off Technology (PGLO).  

It's a neat freak's dream come true. 

Now here's where I come clean.  For someone that is a self-proclaimed neat person,  I'm not really into deep cleaning.  I'm all about surface cleaning.  Wipe some counters.  Dust some shelves. Run a vacuum over some carpet.  Done!  

Deep cleaning is time consuming.  Who really looks at baseboards?  Or nook and crannies?  Or the cobwebs hanging from my bathroom chandelier?   Not this girl.  Maybe it's because I'm more a big picture person but those little details slip by me.  

In the past I have moved every few years and the need to deep clean disappeared. We plan to stay in this house for a very long time which means I need to get my act together.

Before winter comes (which could be in a few weeks here in Iowa), I would like to make a fall cleaning checklist (which I will share with you all soon)!  That list is going to include things like cleaning out cabinets and drawers.  Our carpets need cleaned.  Along with our couches.  

Oh, the things that are probably living in our upholstery.  (Thanks, Ike!)

I also need to give the carpet on our stairs a good cleaning.  Our previous vacuums have either been so heavy that I pull something in my old lady back trying to lug them up and down or they are light but have no suction. I live with a man and a dog.   My vacuum needs to be lightweight and able to handle messes!

My new buddy, Mr. BISSELL PowerGlide, will come in handy.  It has a long-stretch hose along with a lift-off pod and crevice tool that makes cleaning in touch places easy.  It's lightweight making it easy to carry up and down stairs and from room to room.  My heart is happy just typing this.  I can't wait to get start writing the fall cleaning checklist!

I've recently been browsing BISSELL's site to gather some great cleaning tips.  On that site, I saw that BISSELL is currently running a "Celebrate Everyday Messes" contest.  Something I'm sure all of us can relate to!   Be sure to visit their facebook page to enter to win! 

Use coupon code POWERGLIDE to get $20 Off Plus Free Shipping for the following products: PowerGlide Pet Vacuum with Lift-Off Technology, PowerGlide Pet Bagged Rewind Vacuum or PowerGlide Pet Vacuum!

Do you prefer to surface or deep clean?  What's your least favorite cleaning chore?  

How to Change Cabinet Hardware

Happy Monday!   (I'm off work today. Can you tell?)

Part of our bathroom makeover included changing our cabinet hardware.  You may (or may not) remember that our bathroom looked like this. 

I didn't hate the cabinet hardware.  Nate, on the other hand, did.  So weird.  Usually I'm the one that's all about change. I guess he has never liked it.  The things you learn.

We decided that we would tile the wall and get the mirror and lights hung before we would make a decision on the cabinet hardware.  I was still remaining optimistic that we wouldn't have to change the hardware. That is a lot of knobs. 

We tackled the previously mentioned tasks accomplished and we were left with this amazing cell phone photo. 

I was "eh" about the situation.  Nate still hated it. I decided to trust him.

We headed off to our local big box stores in search of some polished nickel hardware.  If you haven't gathered, choosing polished nickel was not one of our smartest moves.  A pretty move, yes.  Smart move, no.  Home Depot was the only store that carried a polished nickel finish.  Luckily we found one that we both loved.  It's the Finial Pull from Martha Stewart Living.   Simple yet elegant.  Thanks, Martha.

I then got a little sad.  We have knobs.  These are handles.  Nate said it was no big deal. We could change them.  I was skeptical.  Like always.  Wouldn't it look funny?  Wouldn't it be a lot of work to change them? 

Turns out it was no big deal.  You can see a tiny hole between the handles if you look super close. 

Step 1

Remove previous hardware. 

Step 2  

Fill in the holes from the previous hardware.   We used Red Devil Onetime Spackling.  We use this as wood filler for a lot of projects that we do.  It's lightweight.  Easy to use.  The only con is that it does shrink a little.  We usually apply two rounds.

Step 3

Use paint (or stain if you have stained cabinets) to touch up the filled in holes. 

Step 4

Build a template to help you install your new hardware.   Nate used scrap wood to make this beauty.

Nate made the template as wide as the drawer/door and then over half of the height of the drawer/door. Drill holes that will match up with hardware.  For example, our handles were 3" apart.  Nate found the center of the template and measured 1.5" from each side of center.  He then measured the height of the drawer/door and found half of that.  He then measured top down on the template to find the vertical placement. Last, he created a hanger out of the pieces. 

Step 5

Place the template on top of the drawer/door.  Match the two sides.  Drill into pre-drilled holes.

Step 6

Install new hardware.   Drool over your pretty new bathroom update!

Changing the hardware on both sets of cabinets took us about 45 minutes.  Nate did the drilling and I installed the new hardware.  A pretty quick update! 

I hate to say this but Nate was not wrong.  (My keys to a successful marriage: a King sized bed and never outright admitting your spouse was right.  The latter goes to their head and that's hard to deal with.) 

Have you changed out your cabinet hardware?  Or are you scared like I was?  Ever made a decision that was super pretty but a giant pain in your rear end?