Checker Border Chalkboard Pantry Door

I am in LOVE with the new look of my pantry door.  Oh, don't you worry.... this is the INSIDE.  It's a little hidden gem that I will love and appreciate very much.  

I completely forgot to take a before pic, but here's the inside of the linen closet that's right next to the pantry.  It's exactly the same except for the door handle.  These doors were painted in Ralph Lauren's Architectural Cream.  When I look really close, I can see brush strokes from the last paint job and notice that they were once painted gray.  Who knows how many layers of paint are on these old 1926 doors?  

My original thought was to just paint a chalkboard on the inside of the door.  It's meant to be used for grocery lists, meal planning, doodling, etc.  I may even leave my husband little love notes.   ; )

It seemed a little plain, so I decided I needed to add a checker border to be the "frame" of the chalkboard.  I'm super happy with the results.  However, I may still add a thin black line on the inside of the checker pattern to help define the frame.

All but the bottom portion of the door was 5 inches.  The actual width of the door was 28 inches.  I kept a 1-inch white boarder around the chalkboard, making all but the bottom portion 4 inches.  This allowed me to do 2x2 squares.  I used my clear 6" Fiskars fabric ruler to measure off the door and pencil in my checker pattern.  I then painted each square black with a sponge brush.  No tape was used for this project.  It's not perfect, but that's what I love about it.  It's so VINTAGE!!!

Double Digit (MILES) Fall Training

We survived our first double digit training run for the 2012 fall marathon training season.  

10 miles CONQUERED on July 21 at Lake Hefner!!!  

Rowing & Running

I rowed in an 8-person boat on Tuesday, July 17.  It was a blast and I look forward to doing it again soon.  I don't have any photos of me rowing because our phones stay safe in our cars.  We don't plan on tipping the boat, but that would just be my luck.  : )  I bought a fun orange t-shirt so a pic of the design on is was the best I could do.  In the photo, they're sculling.  I took the sculling course (2 oars), but did sweeping (1 oar) with my friends.    

Enjoyed a HOT 5-mile run/walk that same evening.  

Running: Pros & Cons in Photos

PRO:  My running buddies are AWESOME!

Me, Lisa, Sheila, Gena, and Karl

CON:  My blistered feet are not-so-awesome.

Yep, this one is on the ball of my foot and it's double layered.  GROSS!

Color Me Rad

Me and my running buddy, Lisa.

Ready to be COLORED!!!

 Me, Lisa, Channing, and Rendon

 We finished another COLORful event together!

My colorful gear!

 We cleaned up real nice for a post-run no-so-healthy lunch at S&B's off 9th St.

 See what I mean? This BBQ Bloody Mary was delish!   

The Elvis slider.  I didn't eat most of the bun or the onions. 

 After lunch, we treated ourselves to a pedicure.  Sheila came too!

Aww.... Feeling refreshed!

Runner Girls Night In

DrH had his first 30 hour shift on Friday, July 13.  Did I spend that Friday night at home by myself?  NO WAY!!!!  I hosted a wonderfully fun Girls Night In!!!  Attendance was great and we had a blast hanging out without all the running shoes and sweat.  

We run so we can eat!  Check out our feast!

 What a spread!!! 

 Mozzarelle Caprese Pinwheels

 Gourmet cheeses

 Gotta love brie!

 Sara Sara Cupcakes... MY FAV!

 Vino!

 Homemade dairy-free vegan pizza

 Homemade Margherita Pizza made with fresh tomatoes and basil from my own backyard garden. I picked them just minutes before baking this pizza. 

 Homemade Pepperoni Pizza

 Vegan apple strudel muffins

 Yes, I'm the photographer.  lol!  

 Runner Gals!

Random Summer Stuff

More running at the river with friends

Our cantaloupe vine is doing rather well.  

Here's another preview of one of my summer projects.  

I still need to finish my window.

Today

Today was especially fun!  I woke up, got ready, and met my friend, Amy, at Big Truck Tacos for breakfast.  I enjoyed the Sam I Am taco and we chatted about our lives as Resident Wives, our careers, running,  and RPSA stuff.  It's always great to catch up with Amy.


After breakfast I went home and worked on my window project.  I finally had just enough inspiration to get the design set and glued on.  It's nothing fancy because it's my very first one.  Hopefully there will be more to come.  I am hoping to finish up the project this weekend.  = )  

My friend, Christi, came and picked me up in her new car around noon.  I got to spend the entire afternoon with her and her 2 fun kiddos.  We went to Kaiser's for ice cream and then downtown to the splash park.  It was seriously fun!  Our friend, Kattie, and her daughter also joined us.  
You see, these ladies are super special to me because they are Resident Wives.... Neurology to be exact.  Yep, our husbands are in the same program, just different years.  It's nice to have women to talk to about all of this.  

I told you they rocked my socks off!!!!!

It was a super fun day of much needed girl time and kid time.  They all rocked my socks off today and I have photos to prove it!  




After returning home from my day of fun, I had to run to the store real quick and pick up one last ingredient for my banana bread.  When I arrived home I baked some chicken, baked banana bread, made coconut chicken curry, ran the dishwasher, hand washed some dishes, did some laundry, trimmed some bushes, and mowed the yard.  I'm exhausted!!!!  

Bedtime

Bedtime at our place these days happens as early as 8 pm.  Yep, that's right!

I was just sitting here on our leather sofa tonight cruising through Facebook when I suddenly heard the ice cream truck.  I'm sure you've heard one in your neighborhood at least once in your lifetime.
Well, it went by at 8:48 pm and I was hoping it wouldn't wake up my husband.  Then I wondered how many neighborhood kids were probably already in bed.  After that, I couldn't help but think what it would be like if we had kids right now.  Would the kids or the DrH go to bed first?  Who would have the earlier bedtime?  Oh, the logistics!

Yea, my thought process is pretty crazy.  It's just that my husband keeps going to bed earlier and earlier because he works an insane amount of hours and is faced with life altering decisions and has the lives of many under his care.  His rest is important.

Summer Sweets

I've been busy in my kitchen again.......

These are the cupcakes I made and sent with the Doc to share with his colleagues for his 30th birthday.

I made an additional batch and took them to the family gathering after he arrived home from work.  

The family LOVED them!!!

This is the scrumptious Carrot Cake that DrH requested for his birthday dessert.  I told him I would bake him anything he wanted and the Carrot Cake was his #1 choice.  

 A closer look!

All boxed up and ready to transport to the In-Laws where we celebrated his birthday a day late... July 4!

Look at those layers!  Mmm....

 I also made a Cheesecake with Brownie Crust.  It was served with a drizzle of raspberry glaze.  Oh my word.... it was incredible! 

 I had another cupcake order for a fun girl.  She isn't a fan of pink and prefers skateboards and electric guitars.  Being a musician, I had to go with the guitars.  = )

 The neon green and neon purple were a hit with my lil' friend, Clare.  She's a rock star!!!

 This is a photo her Mom took.  

These are the cupcakes I made for the Landrunner party.  They are chocolate buttermilk cupcakes with PB frosting.  I also took classic white cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting and my famous banana pudding.  It was all a hit!  Of course, I think it's safe to say that the Banana Pudding was a notch above the rest.