home improvement: crown molding

It was a big home improvement weekend in our house, guys. Crown molding went up downstairs!

The project is 90 percent finished -- all we need to do is paint it. But I couldn't wait to write about this project.

I knew that the house would look better with crown molding, but I didn't realize how much better until it was on the walls. The room looks tied together and finished, and I love it so, so much.

My dad has put up crown molding in pretty much every room in his house, so he's an expert, and he said he'd come down to help with the project. The thing about putting up crown molding is that the molding and supplies aren't that expensive -- we paid less than $100 for all of the materials -- but the labor can be the expensive part. So we're lucky to have an expert in the family who was willing to help us out.

When Tony and I were in Ohio for Christmas, I went to the local hardware store with my dad, and I picked out the molding I wanted. Our ceilings are 9 feet downstairs, so I wanted large molding. I went with the 5 1/4-inch size. I decided against solid wood and went with MDF particleboard. MDF is straighter than solid wood and easier to work with. You need solid wood for baseboards and other trim that could get banged up, but nothing is going to damage molding on the ceiling.

Here's a shot from Saturday morning, as the pieces started to go up!

Tony and my dad used a nail gun with an air compressor to attach the molding. A row of nails in the drywall and a row of nails in the ceiling.

(Victor, by the way, was not impressed with the presence of the air compressor. It would rev up randomly and loudly, which means Victor spent much of Saturday under our bed. Here he is on Sunday afternoon, still looking unimpressed with the whole project, haha.)

(And here he is sitting on the spiral staircase, keeping an eye on Tony as he does some finishing touches - wiping down the spackling. The cat loves this staircase, by the way. He gets a birdseye view of the entire house. Also, when he's laying on the steps, he refuses to move out of the way for a person walking up the steps. It's kind of funny.)

Anyway, enough about the cat. Here's a picture of Tony being manly with the compound miter saw.

Here's an in-progress shot. You can see the slight variances in the ceiling height. Ceilings in houses (especially old houses) aren't exactly even. See the shadow between the molding and the ceiling where the molding doesn't quite reach the ceiling?

At this point, my mom and I left to go shopping. Because putting up crown molding is really a two-man job, and there were two extra people in the small space.

So I'm not sure what Tony and my dad did over the next few hours, but this is what our patio table looked like when my mom and I came back Saturday afternoon:

And this is how the inside of the house was looking:

Here's a before photo:

The gap between the ceiling and the molding disappeared. My dad used a tube of caulking to fill in those gaps.

And Tony filled all of the nail holes with lightweight spackling.

Here's a before shot of part of the room:

And some after pictures:

Before:

After:

And as a bonus, there was just enough molding left over to put it up in the half bath downstairs. So now the entire first floor is done. Which leaves us with just two bedrooms, the full bath and the upstairs hallway that are un-crown molded. Maybe down the line.

Oh and here's what one of the walls in the bathroom looks like right now. Someone is planning a makeover! I'm leaning toward the grays ... but that's a project for another day.

recipe: quinoa and vegetable stew

Tony tends to compliment my cooking in superlatives. The deep dish pizza I made the other week was his "favorite pizza ever." I made rosemary bread last weekend that was "the best bread you've ever made." (Recipe coming up.) And this quinoa and vegetable stew is his "new favorite food." Haha.

But it really is good. I usually do not eat leftovers, but I ate these leftovers for lunch the next two days.

Quinoa and Vegetable Stew

Adapted from America's Test Kitchen via USA Today

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3/4 onion, chopped fine
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 hot banana peppers, minced
• 5 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 2 teaspoons coriander
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
• 6 cups vegetable stock
• 1 pound red potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces (about 1/2-inch pieces)
• 1 cup quinoa
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 28-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, minced

Heat olive oil in a dutch oven. Add onion and salt and cook over medium-low heat until onion is browned, about 10 minutes.

Add banana peppers and cook a few minutes until beginning to brown.

Add garlic and cook a few minutes.

Add paprika, coriander and cumin and cook about 1 minute.

Add vegetable stock and potatoes and bring to boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook 10 minutes.

Add quinoa and simmer 8 minutes.

Add corn and simmer 7 minutes.

Add tomatoes and peas and cook 5 minutes.

Off heat, stir in cilantro.

Makes 6 servings.

<3

Cute cat bonus picture!

In making this recipe, Tony and I learned that Victor likes cilantro. Here he is, eating one of the stems after I pulled the leaves off.

the garden: surprise radishes

Tony was working in the backyard recently, and when he came inside, he brought a radish with him. The radishes were ready to be picked, he said.

RADISHES. I totally forgot about them. Actually, I thought they never came up after I planted them in the fall. And then leaves fell and made a mess of my garden, and I totally forgot about the radishes.

Soooo, we had some radishes on our salad. With romaine, spinach and tomatoes, all from the garden. I told you I love this climate. We get all four seasons with an emphasis on the spring and fall.

<3

So, this was a blog post about my radishes, which I acknowledge is not the most interesting thing in the world. So, to reward you for making it this far into the post, I present you with a super cute picture of my cat.

recipe: chocolate olive oil cake

Tony and I had a very festive weekend. Sunday we had Christmas brunch with Mike, Jen and Jamie -- and Saturday we celebrated with Camille and Matt. Even Victor got in on the gifts. And as you can see, he has been a very good kitty this year. Camille and Matt brought him a fish made of sparkles and feathers that he's been carrying around the house ever since.

For dessert on Saturday night, I made a chocolate olive oil cake with vanilla frosting. 

This is my go-to chocolate cake. Also, I think some kind of magic happens in this recipe with baking soda and vinegar to make the cake rise. You don't need eggs or dairy for this cake, so you can make it completely with ingredients in your pantry.

Chocolate Olive Oil Cake

• 3 cups flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 6 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups water
• 3/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Mix dry ingredients in a stand mixer bowl.

In a separate bowl, combine the wet ingredients.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, and mix until no lumps remain.

Grease and flour two 8-inch round pans or a 9-by-13-inch pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40-43 minutes in the round pans for 40 minutes in the large pan. Cake is done when a toothpick comes out clean.

Once cake pans are cool to the touch, turn out the cakes and let cool completely on a wire rack.

If making a two-layer cake, use a bread knife to cut the top of off one of the layers. 

Frost with the vanilla frosting recipe below. Stick sheets of parchment paper under the cake while you're frosting it, so the plate is tidy after you remove your parchment paper.

Vanilla Frosting (for a two-layer cake)

• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• up to 3 tablespoons milk

Combine powdered sugar, butter and vanilla in a stand mixer bowl. Add milk, 1/2 tablespoon at a time, until frosting is a spreadable consistency.

decor: painting trim

When Tony and I were house hunting, we looked at so many flips. And they were all gorgeous, of course -- granite countertops, freshly painted walls, all-new grass and landscaping, beautifully tiled bathrooms, nicely staged. Our house was different. There was no furniture in it at the open house. It was poorly lit. The walls in our living room and dining room were a horrible green. All of the vents and outlets had been painted over. The bushes in the front yard were dying. Basically, there was a lot of low-hanging fruit in terms of cosmetic home upgrades.

And it's worked out well for us. We've spent evenings and weekends here and there working on the house, and we have a home that looks leaps and bounds better than it did on Moving Day.

Among the most tedious projects we've undertaken is painting the trim, doors and windows in pretty much the whole place. The trim in our living room and dining room was a horrible creamy-green, chosen, I'm sure, to match the horrible green walls. The trim in the bathrooms, kitchen, and hallway was beige. I am here to tell you that no matter how clean beige trim is, it always looks dirty. I want to ask the previous owner, "Why, for the love of all that is good, would you paint the trim such horrible colors?"

So, room by room, Tony and I have been painting the trim. We are painting it white. Before I owned a house, I never would have imagined myself saying this, but in the past year and a half, I have developed very, very strong feelings that the trim in your home should be white. It is clean. It makes your wall color pop. Clearly, though, there are exceptions. Like if you are lucky enough to have beautiful natural wood trim. Or if you are a bold decorator and want to paint your trim dark brown or black. But, please, stay away from the beiges and creamy-greens.

I think you can see what I'm talking about from this picture, which I took last weekend after starting to slather on white paint on the door of the laundry area. (This is among the last trim areas I've had to tackle, and I've been putting it off because those slats were a major pain.) See how the beige looks dirty? It even blends in with the neutral wall color.

Two coats later, and here we are, all finished! With a Victor shot for good measure.

the cat: lazy sunday cat friends

Sunday afternoon snapshot of Victor, chilling out with the neighborhood cat, Francois. When the weather is nice and Tony and I leave the doors open, these two will sit like this and just look at each other. They don't act excited. They don't hiss, either. They just sit there. And stare. And they crack me up.

decor: area rug

I love back-to-school time. I have no use for reams of notebook paper, highlighters, or dorm shower caddies. But I do have a use for inexpensive area rugs, which are plentiful this time of year. 

And why are inexpensive rugs so valued in my home? One word: Victor. 

He's so cute, isn't he? He doesn't look like a tiny furball of destruction. Two issues. First, as I've mentioned, Tony had a choice between adopting a long-haired cat and a short-haired cat. And guess which he chose. Second, we did not remove Victor's claws. And he's not very good at retracting them, so any woven surface he walks across inevitably gets snagged. 

See where I'm going with this? I love inexpensive area rugs. 

Exhibit A, which I picked up at Bed Bath & Beyond last weekend for $30. (Make that $24. Because what kind of thrifty homeowner would I be if I did not always have one of those blue 20-percent-off Bed Bath & Beyond coupons in my purse?) 

It's a 5-by-7 rug, which fits perfectly under my dining room table. I had an IKEA color-blocked rug under the table before, which was nice in theory, but we had to vacuum it every day because it showed cat hair so horribly. The new rug has texture and different shades of cream, and it does a much better job at hiding it. And when Victor inevitably snags this rug with his claws and I have to throw it away, I will not be upset. Because it cost me $24.

the cat: cat grass

Tony came home with a cat in the fall of 2004. I was still in college and Tony, who was still my boyfriend then, was working at his first job. A coworker of his was giving away free kittens, and Tony decided he just needed to have a cat, sight unseen. Long hair or short hair, the coworker asked. Tony went with long. To this day, my vacuum and I curse that decision. 

The kitten rode on Tony's lap on the way home that night. I saw him and, without really giving it much thought, said we should name him Victor. He looks like a Victor. Tony hated it. But Mike and Pete, our roommates, seconded the name, and Tony got out-voted on his own cat's name. 

That night, Tony put Victor in the upstairs hallway, shut the bedroom doors, and blocked off the steps, so the kitten couldn't get into any trouble while we were sleeping. But the poor thing was scared and kept crying when it was time to go to bed, so Tony slept the whole night on the floor in the hall with Victor. The two of them have been best buds ever since. 

Now, it's been eight years, and Victor and I get along, but we've never developed a bond anywhere close to what he and Tony have. Seriously, how can I possibly compete with the guy who slept on the floor in the hallway? But I do try to win Victor over in little ways. Like planting cat grass. 

Cats like to have green in their diet, but it's hard for an indoor cat like Victor to get it. So I plant cat grass, which is actually oat seed, for him in a little pot. 

I leave the little pot  on the back patio. When I water my garden, I let Victor come out with me, and he makes a beeline to the cat grass. I keep it outside because he somehow makes a gigantic mess with it. And he also manages to make that pretty little pot look like a complete wreck:

I have two pots growing at a time. I put the first one on the ground, fully grown, for him to eat. That's when I plant seeds in the second pot on the picnic table, where Victor can't get it. By the time the second pot sprouts, the first post is totally destroyed. And it goes on and on. 

<3

From the archives: 

the garden: bird feeder

the garden: bird feeder

I put up a cute bird feeder in my backyard last weekend, and at first I was kind of sad because I wasn't getting any customers. But then a sparrow started coming around. Here she is, viewed from inside the house: 

And pretty soon she told all of her sparrow friends because by Saturday afternoon it was like I was running a sparrow nightclub. In related news, this is how Victor is now spending 100 percent of his free time: 

I mentioned previously about Tony's first-place award for chicken showmanship. He busted out some more of his avian knowledge as we were watching the birds, identifying the male and female sparrows, grackles, mourning doves and cardinals. The things you learn about your spouse.

So the birds have pretty much decimated the supply of sunflower seeds that I put in the bird feeder. And I'm not sure whether I'm going to refill it because those little bastards ate all of my strawberries while they were here. And squirrels were all over my backyard. Whom I blame for this crime, which I came home to last night:

Bah humbug.

life: postcard in the mail

I got a postcard in the mail yesterday from Lily. And it made my day. Postcards are the best, man. 

Getting a postcard is such a huge compliment. If you think about it, your friend's on vacation, somewhere new and fun and exciting, and they find a postcard rack, and they think of you. And they take the time to let you know they're thinking of you, even when they're in the midst of this new and fun and exciting adventure. 

Lily and I met when we both lived in Arizona. And now we live on the exact opposite sides of the country: D.C. and San Diego. But we have one of those friendships where you know you're going to be friends until you're old ladies, even if you only see each other once a year. 

Now let's talk about how awesome this postcard is. Lily picked it up in Denver. This is Yves Saint Laurent's dog.  

She says she thinks the pup would get along with Victor, our cat. And I agree, mostly because Victor also is white with black spots, and I am a fan of when your dog and cat match. When Tony and I were in discussions about possibly maybe getting a dog, I asked him how important it was to him, on a scale of 1 to 10, that the dog and cat match. He said zero. We'll have to agree to disagree on that.