Kitchen Sans Cooking
I haven’t been cooking.
My counters have seen more windex than watermelon, more lysol wipes than lemons and probably more photos of my ‘charming remodeled kitchen’ than anything sauteed, braised or grilled. My children miss my cooking, my husband is sick of eating out and it is all I can do to not start squirting splatter on my wall from a rapidly bubbling sauce or deliberately dirty my stove top from fresh vegetables being tossed into a ready skillet. So what if my sink is full of dirty dishes; it was a delightful party and worth every drop of wine on the carpet. The crusty oven is really just a mark of a fine chef: the must-see residue of a cook who spends countless hours in this worthy kitchen. Sure, you can show the house in 15 minutes; don’t mind the dishes, or the laundry or the fridge full of leftovers.
It is evident that while I wait for my house to sell, I need to find a balance of cooking in my kitchen while regularly clearing out of the house for the next round of strangers to waltz through. Perhaps messes make it more homey? I never understood what it was like to keep a home so perfect, day after day, meal after meal. And my friends who know me—and they know I am on the anal side of clean when it comes to my home—would laugh at that remark. I thought I kept my house clean, but keeping a house polished and shiny with no sign of human life (no dishes, no laundry, no unmade bed or out of place book, no tossed aside bike or weed in the garden) is genuinely exhausting.
But where food lacks, tables need not go bare. I have been hosting centerpiece of the month (COTM) for many months now, and this month am belated in my roundup. My computer has been as neglected as my kitchen! Despite my chaotic life, the lives and tables of others persevere. Wonderfully colorful, mid-summer [July] centerpieces came from (thanks everyone!):
Meeta from What’s For Lunch Honey?
Myriam from Once Upon a Tart
AND
Shn from Mishmash
Sandi from the Whistlestop
Comments
I completely understand the continuous cleaning. My house is on the market to and I find I spend more time making it look spotless than cooking lately. Plus, the going out to eat while they are showing the house thing. Good luck to both of us on house sales! Then we can take back the kitchens and cook away….
Janelle there must be some higher power at work here that led me to your blog
I was there going through my feeds and reading various blogs and then I noticed that yours just came up and I am not even subscribed to it! Of course I subscribed immediately after perusing it. Love your work.
Bless your heart!
Having your house on the market is a nightmare… at best. I hope it moves quickly. Do you have a statue of St Joseph buried?~ I’ve heard it helps.
Thanks for the Centerpiece of the Month!
If you have trouble next month… let me know. I could be your guest host’
Ginger: I can’t wait to take back my kitchen: well said.
Cynthia: How awesome! So glad you found my site!
Sandi: I like that idea; lets go off line and chat about it:).
How trying. This is one reason I never want to move. Any chance you can make meals ahead of time? I hope you’re getting lots of showings and your house sells quickly!
Good luck with selling your house! I would want my kitchen back too!