I can't get no....

I wonder if you ever reach a point in your life where you are simply contented being right where you are. 

Where you don't yearn for a different house, a different job, a fancy car, unlimited airline miles and vacation time, to have a bigger family, be closer with your friends, to make a difference in the world, to invent something and make it rich, to go off the grid or move into the city, to model or act or get elected president, blah blah blah.  All of those shallow things that make up that constant barrage of 'more, more, more!'

To be able to simply enjoy all that you have achieved without thinking of the next mountain to climb??

I wonder if wanting more makes you shallow or gives you purpose?  Is wanting more for your life selfish if it changes the lives of those around you?  What if it doesn't?  

Who knows?  Maybe that's just life.

Bathroom Renovation: edited and updated!

Once upon a time the hubs and I bought a house.  The guest bathroom / main floor bathroom was this charming coral and gold colored 80's dream.  Complete with seashell sink, leaking faucet and a cream colored toilet.  It was immediately put on the renovate list.  Feel my pain:

So we scoured the sale ads and slowly collected bits and bobs to fix the chaos.  The only thing we splurged on was the backsplash tile and we made that easier to tolerate by buying the tiles a couple at a time for a few months. 

Once we got our supplies in order we started the work.  We wanted to do most of the work ourselves so we started by removing the vanity.  As you'll probably remember, this didn't go well...

We did as much work ourselves as possible.  We did our own demo which included removing floor tile, the vanity and sink, the toilet and the trim.  I patched and painted but we did hire out the tile installation to a friend.  With such a small space we were looking at spending about the same amount of money renting a tile saw as we would spend having him install it.  I decided on laziness. 

We also had to have an electrician come in and do our light fixture.  The old fixture box was in the middle of the wall and hidden behind the old owners mirror, in order to have a traditional above the mirror fixture we had to raise the box up about 2 feet.  Neither of us are confident about wiring so we went the safe route.  But after all was said and done with the electric and tile we installed the new vanity and toilet and painted and reinstalled the old trim.  Eventually I'd like to replace the trim but it was Christmas time and I just wanted SOME trim up.

 

But we persevered and now are approximately 90% done.  It makes me so happy!  

The vanity and mirror we picked up from Home Depot during one of their Better Bath sales.  I'd been shopping for months, but it gave us everything we wanted.  Half open shelf storage and half concealed.  Deep sink.  Solid surface top.  Modern but with traditional feel.  Sorry about the iPhone photo... I know it's hard to see the actual vanity with the lighting.  Here's a shot of it before we did our install.  You can also see we changed our minds a few times about our tile choices.

 We found our tile and faucet at Home Depot as well.  We went with brushed nickle fixtures in here.  I've been digging the oil rubbed bronze look but didn't want anything to dark in here since there is no natural light and it's already a fairly dark space.  We also wanted something that would show against the darker wood vanity and floor tile.

We chose a vanity with a solid surface top to keep cleaning simple.  No nooks and crannies for icky things to grow in.  So far it's been good. 

Our light fixture came from Shades of Light.  Excuse the photos but it's brushed nickel as well.  What I liked best was that it gave me a hint of that industrial vibe that is all the rage right now while still maintaining a traditional shape.  We want things to be our flavor but still work for possible future resale.

I don't know why the paint color is showing up green tinted here.  It's definitely NOT greenish.  It's a warm creamy color called Hazelnut Cream.  It's almost greige but on the beige side.  The only art so far is this watercolor birch tree piece I found at Home Goods.  I instantly fell in love and Jim liked to too. 

 

This is probably TMI but we did get a slightly above basic toilet.  We wanted to remain environmentally conscious so we got one that helps to conserve water.  It comes with two flush features.  You can see the hint of green lever on the left side of the toilet.  There is a traditional handle for the 'normal' flush and then there is the green lever for 'light' use.  We'll see if it makes a difference in our water bills in the future.  

I'm still on the hunt for a floor register cover that is the right size.  You can see our current one on the bottom left.  It's a glaring eyesore but does serve it's purpose in keeping me from walking into the hole in the floor. 

 

We've been debating pulling it up and just spray painting it dark brown or an oil rubbed bronze.  Something that will help it blend into the floor a bit better.

Now as far as the floor goes, I love it!   The wood look tiles have been great.  They give that nice look of hardwoods but I can get in there and mop or bleach with no fears of damaging the floor.  If I had limitless funds I'd install these floors with subfloor heating all over our house.  The tiles can get chilly sometimes so in floor heating would be nice.

All that's left is finishing the trim and figuring out wall art for the long wall you face when you walk into the bathroom.  I'd originally intended on leaving it bare and letting the tile be the focus but the wall just seems too naked.  We'll see.  What do you think?

Finally a super easy broccoli cheddar soup I like!

1 bag frozen broccoli florets
2 large carrots- shredded
1 small onion- diced
Butter
Flour
Chicken broth
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can broccoli cheddar soup
1/2 block velveeta sliced
Sharp cheddar cheese

Saute onions in some butter until soft and translucent.  Put in crockpot with shredded carrot.  Create roue with butter and flour.  Add to crock pot and whisk in chicken broth and canned soups.  Dump in broccoli and put crock pot on low for 5ish hours until broccoli is tender.  Use immersion blender to create texture you like.  Add cheese and cook until melted, mix before serving to disperse cheese.  Serve!