Tag: photography
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The perfect cup of coffee
About a month after the initial pandemic shutdown started back in March, I slowly came to terms with the fact that I wouldn’t be doing any work in coffee shops in the near future. Along with thousands of other coffee lovers, I began searching the internet for tips on crafting that perfect cup of coffee…
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Clutter-free kitchen counters!
One of our goals with the new kitchen was to keep our countertops free of JUNK and general kitchen clutter. Our kitchen is small and mighty, and our counterspace is extremely limited. We were constantly moving things around to free up a clear space for food prep, and the clutter is just mentally stressful. So…
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New Kitchen: the final touches, a coffee bar, and before / after photos!
There are a few other major changes that we made to the kitchen to tie it all together: new appliances, new lighting, a backsplash, and a coffee bar. We chose stainless steel appliances and we’re THRILLED to finally have a dishwasher that doesn’t sound like a motorcycle gang is idling in our kitchen. We picked…
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Our new butcher block countertops
We decided on butcher block countertops for the new kitchen; they are affordable, fit our style, and are perfect for our level of DIY skills. Going forward we will have to take good care of them; the countertops are properly sealed, but we have to be cautious when it comes to letting spills sit for…
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Painting kitchen cabinets: not for the faint of heart.
The cabinets were our first project on the kitchen reno list. Our cabinets were greasy from years of cooking without a vented stove and had painfully outdated hardware, but structurally they were sturdy and actually very nice. They were custom made from maple and extend all the way to the ceiling, which is something we…
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Farewell to our 90s Kitchen
This year we finally decided to update our kitchen! Our house was built in the 1930s and the kitchen was likely renovated at some point in the 90s (I found a pocket calendar from 1993 stuck behind the countertops – my clue for a timeline guess). We are sure that the kitchen was pretty bitchin’…
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Black Lives Matter
The whole world has changed since the last time we wrote, and before we go on posting about what’s been going on in our household, I wanted to state as plainly and obviously as I can that Black lives matter. Like so many others over the last month, we have been reading, listening, learning, and…
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Floyd’s View Farm
Happy Memorial Day! We are still in social distancing mode while Covid-19 continues to wreak havoc on 2020, but today we actually found a new adventure that was outside, away from people, and something new and different for Penny. Win win win! We took Penny and Goldie out to visit our friend Ken Marks’ new…
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Put the "Social" in Social Distancing
In an effort to encourage some social interaction in this time of social distancing, we created ten prompts you can put on facebook, instagram, or in your instagram stories to get your friends and family interacting and hopefully laughing! Pretty much every comment to these puts a smile on my face, and that’s pretty valuable…
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Staying Sane while Social Distancing: Rainbow Scavenger Hunt
I saw this idea in a mom group I’m in on Facebook (shoutout to my pretty good moms!) and I absolutely love it so I wanted to spread it as far and wide as I can. Post the idea in your neighborhood groups and on NextDoor and start some local scavenger hunts! Here’s the gist…
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Our StoryCorps Experience
Almost 8 years ago, young Leslie and young Javi were walking around the Nashville Farmer’s market when we saw a renovated air stream in the parking lot with a big StoryCorps banner. We have always been big fans of NPR so we stopped by the air stream and learned that StoryCorps was posting up in…
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Toddler Watercolors and a Valentines Day Gift for Dad
Having a newborn in the middle of winter has been a challenge. This year both RSV and the flu have been widespread in Louisville and I didn’t want that anywhere near Goldie, so we decided to keep Penny out of her daycare for Goldie’s first couple of months home. The whole point of keeping Penny…
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Our New Plant-Based Diet
I come from a country where, like America, eating red meat is the way to go. A few years back before Penny arrived we decided to try to go vegetarian. At that time we were worried about Leslie’s cholesterol, which was pretty high. Leslie has a family history of heart disease, and despite the fact…
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Making the Most of Paternity Leave
I am fortunate to work for an employer that offers 4 weeks of paternity leave with full pay. I was incredibly lucky that the policy was unexpectedly implemented the month Penny was born in 2017! This time around we actually had the opportunity to plan on my paternity leave after Goldie’s arrival and still take…
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My Favorite Nursing Accessories for Breastfeeding Moms
I’m back in the throes of breastfeeding and I forgot that it’s basically a full-time job. My recent memories of nursing Penny were when she was older, and breastfeeding was more about bonding rather than a matter of sustaining her life. Nursing a newborn is a round-the-clock endeavor to keep her belly full and her…
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Golden Louise is finally here!
Our sweet Golden Louise arrived a little over a week ago today after 41 weeks of waiting, and we have once again fallen head over heels for a beloved daughter. The beauty of this post is that it doesn’t have to be long and explanatory like our post about Penelope’s arrival (although I can’t resist…
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A Song for Javier
Happy New Year!! Last year one of my resolutions was to write more music, and that didn’t really come to fruition until the latter half of the year when I wrote two little ditties for Penny…and then this anniversary song for Javier. Hopefully now that I have a little momentum I can carry on the…
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Goldie’s DIY Nursery Closet Renovation
Well, we are officially one week from Goldie’s due date! As I type this she’s still nice and comfy on the inside, but she could come at any time! After Javier’s family left back in November we got to work with the final nesting stages – sorting through Penelope’s old newborn-6 month clothing to see…
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A Special 10-year Anniversary Gift
Ok I have to take a moment to share this incredible gift that Javier gave me for our 10-year anniversary. It’s been hanging in our house for a week and I still have to stare at it every time I pass! It’s a handmade wreath with meaningful mementos from our lives as individuals and together…
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Before and After: Three New Doors!
Ok, so we can’t DIY EVERYTHING that our house needs. Just like these projects back in 2017, there are a few things around the house that we needed to contract out to the professionals. This year we had a company come in and insulate / ventilate our house so that we have proper air flow…
Los Rodriguez Life 