Handy as a Pocket on a Shirt

Our husbands had been out of town three days when Lauren text me, "How much have you baked this weekend?"

She knows me too well. When Ty goes hunting, I bake and then deliver the goodies to all my friends. It's my latest diet plan. If you fatten up everyone around you, you'll inevitably look skinner. And it's much easier than really dieting. 

I was proud to tell Lauren that I hadn't resulted to baking just yet, but I had done several other domestic projects over the course of the weekend:

Friday night: Homemade Broccoli and Cheese Soup

A few years ago, my sister-in-law had her bridesmaid's luncheon at the same bed and breakfast where mine was held. At her luncheon, they served this amazing broccoli and cheese soup, and ever since I've had those cheesy broccoli florets dancing in my head. At my luncheon, I was given the bed and breakfast's cookbook with the broccoli cheese soup recipe in it. 

So, Friday night I ran to the grocery store to get my ingredients, along with a bottle of Pinot Grigio, and I got to cooking. The soup is delicious, but you can't eat very much because it's so rich and creamy, probably due to the six cups of half and half the recipe calls for. I ate half a bowl and put the rest in the freezer for the winter. 

Saturday Morning: Furniture Refinishing Class 

Saturday morning, I went to my good friend Jenny's house for a furniture refinishing class. Stacey Hess, a longtime friend of Jenny and my sister-in-law, taught herself how to make frames and refinish furniture and now she's passing on her gift to others. I found the ugliest piece of Ty's old furniture, which had been exiled to the garage since our move and took it to the class to see what could be made of it. 

I think it turned out to be pretty cute, and I'm now using it as my nightstand.

 One piece of ugly furniture down, tons more to go.

Sunday Afternoon: Living Room Decorating

Now that I'm done with wedding planning, I can shift my focus to our home, and I'm starting with the living room. In a few days, I'll upload an overview shot of our living room. It's the best room in the house because of the tall pitched roof and exposed wood beams. But this weekend, I focused on shelving. There's still miles to go, but I thought this was a good start.

I like to keep things pretty neutral with small pops of color. The initial plate was given to us as a wedding gifts and is one of my favorite pieces. It's from Kelly Wilson Antiques in Dallas. Kelly takes antique pieces of china and adds your initial through decoupage. It's so unique. I think her plates would make amazing Christmas gifts.

More house updates to come since apparently that's all I do these days!