My Kitchen Spruced Up

I have mentioned before that we are living in a temporary situation.  At some time in the future we will have to move away from this house, but until then, it is home to us.

Sometimes it seems like I spend the whole day in the kitchen.  To me, it is a very important room. The kitchen in this house is TINY.  It's pretty much a one-person kitchen.  Kind of bothersome when you have a big family and many times need a hand in the kitchen.  Even though it is tiny, we decided to fix it up a little and make it feel more like home.

So, here is my kitchen before and after.

**please don't judge my decorating skills on what you are about to see.  There are several things I would change if I could, but given the situation, I can't, so I just  ignore them and go on.

**also, I tried to take these pictures when the kitchen was perfectly organized and clean.  Since that never seems to happen, I just decided to go ahead with it.  You may see some mess.

Window before...

Window after...

Sink side of kitchen before.....

Sink side after....

Fridge side of kitchen before....

Fridge side after....

Here are some of the little things we did (I say "we" because my girls helped a lot.)

We made new curtains and Carys painted this picture for me for Mother's Day.

She painted it using Q-tips.  Isn't it cute?

Bronwyn made this "mini art gallery" area below the window.

Carys made this collage that hangs above the door going into the dining room.  I love it.

I made a cover for the water cooler, and made labels for these baskets which I have had for years.  Leftovers from my school teaching days at Oak Elementary.

This tea wreath may not last very long because of the steam from cooking, but we're giving it a try.  We got the idea here.

This kitchen has a bunch of weird sized cubbies that I wasn't sure what to do with.  These yellow containers and plastic baskets hold seasoning packets (a staple for American missionary families), and other cooking and baking supplies.

I wanted something to look at while washing dishes, so we made this board with clothespins to put memory verses on.  We thought of calling it "Soul Food" because after all, God's word is food for our soul, right?

And a kitchen wouldn't be complete without a toddler mess-maker.
Here he is before....

and after....

He's the cutest part of the kitchen, don't you think?