Chef April

So while I'm not normally a cook, with the new apartment and added expenses, eating at home is much cheaper. Now I'm forced to learn to cook some new dishes or at least improve on the ones that I already know.

Yes, I have been eating a lot of pancakes and eggs recently, but I have also branched out. I've started to include more greens including broccoli and spinach like my wonderful salad here:

I also made yummy sugar cookies for Valentine's Day to send to Grant:

I'm not a huge sugar cookie fan, but I loved these. I can't wait until he receives them (sadly, he has not received them yet).

In addition to the wonderful cooking/baking I've been improving upon, I'm getting better at venturing out of the box and creating some newer spins of the foods I love (like an egg sandwich with a pancake as the bread). Grant will still reign supreme in the kitchen though, especially since I find many other things I enjoy much more.

My Kitchen

So I finally got all of the kitchen boxes moved in, and I have everything at least in a place that's easy and organized for me to get to. Here are some photos:

I have a physics exam on Monday (the one a week away - not tomorrow), so I'm starting to study for that. I will update as the week progresses on how that is going.

On a more sad note, my dryer died. So I'm now in need of a new dryer, and I really don't want to buy a brand new one. So I'm on the hunt for a used one that works fairly well, and it won't cost too much. Wish me luck!

Dishes, Sofas, and packing

While Grant purchased these absolutely gorgeous plates and serving dishes from Japan last year, we are need of actual every day dishes. We had these wonderful glass plates and bowls, but alas, they did not last. They cracked and chipped, and then I threw them away and donated the ones that lasted. I made a drastic different purchase of plates tonight. They're black and more of a rounded square. The bowls are "squarish", and so are the cups. They're quirky, and I like them.

I only purchased a set of four, because I found a different style that are red and black. I think I'm going to get that set, too, and mix them. I love them both. I'll post pictures once I move in and open the box. As of right now though, they're going to stay in the box until I move.

Hopefully all of the paperwork will be complete by Tuesday, and I can move in on Wednesday. That would be wonderful. That also means I need to get a move on with packing everything .

Also, after thinking through everything. I have decided I don't have to have a sectional sofa with a chaise, so I'm going to get a regular sofa in white. Then later purchase a separate chaise to go with it. I think the original sofa we had chosen, well, I was falling out of love with. Something simple, but comfortable where I could maybe update the pillows some would be perfect. I am on the hunt now!

Silverware: International (palisades frost)

I heart my new silverware set. I got the 77 piece set with service for 12 and one set of serving silverware. I absolutely cannot wait to use it. Here's an image from Amazon.com of the set I purchased: