The Big Vegetable Garden - July 2009 Update

Non-typical rain in May led to some worrisome days in late June/early July. But, it seems we're doing OK now. It doesn't look like we'll beat last year's crop but it also doesn't look like it'll be a wash out either. Whew.

The list for this year:

• tomatoes
• potatoes
• purple beans
• green beans
• eggplant
• tomatillos
• hot peppers
• sweet peppers
• chard
• sorrel
• fennel
  
• squash
• mystery vegetable (see picture below)
  
• basil
• parsley
• rosemary
• thyme
• sage

Anyone know what is pictured below???

The Great, Long Kitchen Remodel

Finally the stars have aligned and we have a fully functioning kitchen again!

We choose Wood-Mode cabinets that were produced with some amount of thought given to the environment - not quite as 'green' as recycled or made with really sustainable wood (i.e. bamboo) but it was better than some of the other choices out there. The cabinets are cherry and are really quite beautiful. The functionality that they bring to the space is a dream come true for our small kitchen. :)




For countertops, we wanted Icestone but it was going to be significantly more expensive for us due in part to our layout and the amount of cuts that would be required. And, we would have had at least two seams in the countertops. Now, don't get us wrong, we still LOVE the idea of Icestone but it just didn't work for our space. So, we went with 'galaxy black' granite ... it's sparkly and beautiful and from Canada (and if I was greenwashing this blog I'd say that Canada is kinda local compared to the other locations that granite comes from). In the end, no matter how we look at the granite it's not really environmentally friendly. boo.


The picture above shows a white wall ... there will be a tile backsplash installed one of these days (when I get around to it!!). The tiles ARE environmentally friendly: recycled glass tiles that were leftover from our friends' remodeling project.

Flooring was an interesting adventure. We ordered beautiful bamboo flooring from a very environmentally sustainable company (Green Elements Design placed the order for us with Eco-Timber). So, what's the problem?

Well, if you know your flooring that is not bamboo installed in our kitchen. That is hickory. Why? Well, the bamboo just didn't look right up against the cherry cabinets. Tears were shed and hickory was purchased. Drama! The bamboo is waiting patiently under the spare room bed to be installed in another part of the house (probably the hallway and master bedroom, when we get around to it).


What's next, you ask?

• install the recycled glass backsplash
• finish the trim moulding
• finish painting
• install cherry (hand-crafted by John's friend) breakfast bar counter top
• install some window moulding
• COOK, COOK, COOK!