Retro Kitchen Inspiration

Hey all!
So! I'm super excited for today's post!! I'm teaming up with Big Chill, an innovator of reproduction vintage kitchen appliances. Our family LOVES the look of the classic vintage stoves and refrigerators, so I was beyond thrilled when I was contacted to feature their products in some dream kitchen ideas!

One of the things I might love best about vintage appliances? Color! Why are appliances only mundane black, white, or grey today. So uninspired! If you're like us, we spend a ton of time in our kitchen- it's the heart of our home, to be sure. So why not make it beautiful and colorful?! Let's see what I mean...

How fun would this shabby chic kitchen be to bake in? You can bring in your own style in in so many ways... 

• a beautiful set of table and chairs in your eat in kitchen 
• a small buffet for a coffee station
• dishes and serveware can be perfect for subtle color, whether you buy it new or check out second-hand options like a thrift store or even Goodwill
• decor like a beautiful clock or herb garden containers
• tea pots and even countertop appliances can be found in beautiful colors! 

Don't forget to bring in color through beautiful fabrics for upholstery, dish towels, even curtains. And, of course, the crowning glory in this kitchen is the pop of pink in the stove and matching range hood! Want some more inspiration? Ask and ye shall receive ;) Here's a vintage farmhouse inspired kitchen with tons of charm and COLOR!

Quick & Healthy Kid-Friendly Snacks

(links found in this article are Affiliate Links, which means a small percentage of your purchase helps support our family!)

Hi lovelies!
I'm stopping in here today to share some of our family's favorite kid-friendly snacks that are QUICK to prepare! With two kids under three, a home-based business, and a husband in the military, I know a few things about being strapped for time! Hehe. Really, any mama out there can relate!

Anyhoo, with time being a factor, I know how easy it is to reach for a bag of chips instead of something more nutritious for the wee ones. We've all been there, to be sure! So here are a few tips, tricks, and ideas that might help you get some extra healthy options on the table for our little ones! When you're done here, take a look over at Nuts.com for a great collection of healthy snacking ideas, and a great place to buy your snacks too!

31 Days :: day 28- fridge/freezer inventory

Day 28:: Fridge/Freezer Inventory

Wow! So we're almost near the end of the 31 Day challenge! I may not have been the most faithful in posting, but I've indeed given you 31 lists and the like!! Well... I will once the series is done ;) Anyhoo... onward to todays list!

Today's list is a Fridge/Freezer Inventory, similar to yesterday's pantry list. I often forget what leftovers we have floating around, especially those that hide in the back! So this is a great way to keep track of what you have and when you need to use it by ;) I'm not always sure how long things can last in the fridge/freezer (leftovers, homemade items, opened jars, etc), so my go-to is usually my mom or trusty Google, hehe.

This list has one of two residences- either in my Recipe Binder {which is my go-to for meal planning} or on my fridge. I might end up printing out two- one for the Recipe Binder that will have more homemade items that I've made and frozen for later or made in bulk, and the list on the fridge more for leftovers. It's still a work-in-progress list! :)

{printable fridge inventory}

{printable freezer inventory}**

** freezer inventory is same as fridge, just the different title!**

31 Days :: day 27- pantry inventory

Day 27:: Pantry Inventory

Today's list is a pantry inventory! Now this is what has worked for me in two of our last three homes- bins & baskets! We've either had large wire racks in the utility room or a really deep cabinet for our pantries and so we've needed some extra organization help in the form of bins/boxes/baskets. So when it comes to keeping track of what food we have on hand, my list includes a spot for what bin number the food is in! If you have bins that are labeled in your pantry, you could also just put down the name of the bin- ie. perishables, soups, etc. Whatever works for you! :)

I'll be doing a "before and after" post of our current pantry! It's a really tall and realllly deep cabinet {it's a built-in unit in our current Army housing}. So when we moved in, I knew we'd need some sort of organization system so we'd be able to reach items in the back of the pantry. So keep an eye out for that post in the future ;)

So how this list works...

• box- what box/bin/basket number {or name} the designated item is in
• item- the item at hand :) ie. spelt flour, elbow pasta, black beans, etc
• #- how many of that item there is, useful if you have duplicates, like we always have a few cans of beans on hand and a few boxes of pasta, this is great for noting when you're running low and need to stock up on staples or seeing if you need to buy an extra box of something for a recipe you plan on making!
• expire- expiration date

{printable here}

31 Days :: day 10- Kitchen Tools Tracker

Day 10:: Kitchen Tools Tracker

So today's list is about kitchen tools... you know, anything you use to cook & serve with! Well DH and I are pretty adamant about our cooking & baking products being made in the USA- anything that will be used for freezing or heating we try to be pretty strict about. Sometimes we bend, but definitely no "made in China" products for those purposes- don't want to chance lead or other icky materials being allowed in our cooking!!

Anyhoo, I keep this tracker in my Household Binder at the moment, though it will potentially get switched to my Kitchen Binder {looking at branching out my main binder... I'll share my binder towards the end of the month!} So here are the things I keep track of with this list...

• Name- pretty self explanatory
• Brand- again, self explanatory
• DW- is it dishwasher safe?
• Mic- is it microwave safe?
• Frz- is it freezer safe?
• Ovn- is it oven safe? (seeing a trend here? hehe)
• Material- numbers are if it's a recyclable plastic, otherwise just whatever it's made from
• Date- date purchased
• Warranty- how long warranty is good for, if applicable
• Made- the all important "where it was made"

{ printable blank version here }