Before and After Series: Part V

The kitchen nook. Everyone says the kitchen is the heart of the home and if there is a heart to my kitchen, it is my range. I cook most of my meals on my cooktop. Not that I don't use my oven to finish things off, but there is rarely a night I don't "click click" my burners on.

When we first moved into our home 5 years ago, it was an electric range from 1950 (and I'm not exaggerating). 2 of the 5 burners worked and they only worked on high.

I cooked on that range for 6 months in that state.


I kid you not.


I learned how to turn the burner on and off and remove the pan in order to maintain "medium" heat. I kissed low heat good-bye during that season. Matthew was in the construction field during that time and one of his buddies was doing a renovation on a really nice home. The woman wanted all matching appliances (i.e. the same brand), so she was tearing out a perfectly good, Dacor, 5-burner gas stove and throwing it away. Matthew's buddy called us to see if we wanted it.

Um, yes, please.

We had a gas line installed and momma was happily cooking not only with 5 burners again, but ones that worked with an upgrade to gas! Hallelujah!

Well, 5 years has passed and I have been cooking away on a gas stove with no ventilation. We always practice safety first here at the Severns'! Besides the fact that we could have died from carbon monoxide poisoning, I also had no light over in that corner of my kitchen. I literally could not see at night when cooking. So for Christmas I asked for a lamp that would fit under my cabinets and a new tile back splash.

Well, lets just say my husband is a wonderful gift-giver. Because here is the before of my kitchen:

And here is the after of my kitchen:

BAM!

BAM!


And BAM!

He not only gave me tile and a light, but a hood! I love my new little space and even though I'm 9 months pregnant, I can't wait to cook!

{please take note of the yellow pot on my shelves. Yes, it is what you think: a 9 1/2 quart Le Creuset Dutch Oven. The crowning jewel to my new space. Yes, he also gave that to me. It was a very merry Christmas and now I feel like a real woman with a real dutch oven. Stop laughing.}

Thanks, babe...you're the best.