July 2018 - It's A Schorr Thing

Dream Kitchen Island DIY On A Lemonade Budget Phase 3 – All about that Base

July 26, 2018 3 m read

Note: This post contains affiliate links that help make this blog possible but the projects and ideas are all mine.

It’s been a little crazy here the last few weeks but we are back and ready to share the next phase in building our Dream Kitchen Island DIY on a Lemonade Budget. This time it’s all about that base!

One of the most important things to remember when building a kitchen island is that you need to have a solid base. When you are adding a ginormous slab of granite, not only does it need to be solid, but it needs to have enough support to hold the weight of the rock. It also needs to be completely level so there isn’t pressure bearing down on one end more than another or you’ll end up with a broken island over time.

With Phase 1 and Phase 2 complete it was time to finish the base of the kitchen island and prep it for granite. In order to do that we needed to finalize the last two sides. On the last side of the cabinet we opened up an old Christmas present…a wine fridge! (Thanks Mom!) It fit perfectly into the space on the lower level of the cabinet like it was meant to be.

All we had to do was cut down a piece of plywood to fit and just like that – the third side was complete!

Power Up

The new addition brought up a new need – power. Not only did we need it for the wine fridge, but we wanted to have an outlet accessible for other household appliances. I call it a premonition for the future Instant Pot we would be purchasing in 5 years. A call to our electrician gave us positive news about the dual outlet but we’d need to reallocate a source. As luck would have it, our strange old house had an outlet already in the ceiling of our basement in the laundry room directly underneath the kitchen. It was connected to an outside standalone light that was no longer working. Plus we already had the outlets and box so we were set!

We set the cabinetry down in the place we wanted and drilled a hole to the basement and marked it off for the flooring guys.

Marking off the hole for the electrician

The Last Leg

The final piece to the kitchen island base was the post to hold up the fourth corner. We wanted to have an area for at least 3 stools so we couldn’t get anything too wide. When we started looking at custom island posts and legs the sticker shock had us looking at other options. We had found a newel post that we liked at Home Depot but wanted to see if we could find anything at ReStore. Sure enough we found one that was almost exactly the same, for $7.50 – score!

We added some primer and paint and it was ready to go.

Assembling the Kitchen Island Base

We had to wait until the flooring was complete before we could assemble the island and prep it for the granite. And in true home improvement fashion, the flooring guys got behind and so we had an evening to set everything up, level it and secure the top so the granite guys could just lay it on top.

We used a few scrap 2×4’s from our hodgepodge lumber yard, I mean our garage, to strengthen the bookshelf side and form an L shape along the exposed edge for additional support. Then we laid our thickest pieces of plywood and added shims around the piece to level it out.

A look at the skeleton base prepped and ready for the granite

This was the most exciting part for me because you could see our island finally come to life!

The wine fridge side of the island…with special guest, my Mom

Look at our little Vanna showing off the new seating in the kitchen

We left the back open so the electrician could finish adding in the dual sided electrical outlets. That will be added on along with the trim and finishing pieces once the granite is on. We are so happy with the island so far. It fills the space so well and triples our counter top space…I can’t wait to see the granite on it!!

We added a little bit to our overall cost:

	Cost Per Piece	Total Cost
Kitchen Cabinet	$40.00
Newel Post	$7.50	$47.50

Want to start out at the beginning? Visit Phase I and Phase II of our Dream Kitchen Island DIY on a Lemonade Budget.

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Kid Friendly

Life is Peachy

July 14, 2018July 15, 2018 2 m read

Note: This post contains affiliate links that help make this blog possible but the recipes and ideas are all mine.

There isn’t a whole lot sweeter than a fresh picked peach in the summertime. Bursting with juicy flavor, we love peaches fresh or warmed with a little vanilla ice cream. When we saw that Gieringer’s Orchard was kicking off their peach picking season, we had to go.

Since Brian was on call this weekend he had Thursday and Friday off so we set out early on Friday morning to beat the heat. The girls love going out to Gieringer’s Orchard since there is so much to do and they love riding behind the tractors.

Peaches turned out to be the perfect fruit for small hands to pick and the trees were bursting with them. There were lots of peaches ripe for the picking close to the ground and Sienna loved being able to pick them on her own.

Bailey was the first to try the juicy fruit and as the juices ran down her fingers, she never looked happier. Clad with a full sleeve of self-applied tattoos, she looked like the happiest little hipster on the peach farm. Then she shared her peach with Sienna and a new obsession began…who could devour more peaches before we packed up to go home. Good thing we didn’t eat breakfast before we left.

We were one of the first people out in the fields so the girls got to run around picking and eating all they wanted. We grabbed an 8 lb bag before we left and filled it to the brim in no time. The girls were happy, fed and ready to start the day so I have to say it was a successful morning!

Fresh Peach tip

The farmers said that this has been an interesting season for the peaches. With the really cold spring temps that jumped straight into the upper 90’s, the peaches are a lot smaller than normal but they are super sweet and packed with sugary goodness. Be prepared to eat these peaches right away or freeze them. By the time we got home, the bag was already dripping with peach juice from the light jostling of the car. The peels practically fell off on their own, which made it easy to get started on a few peach recipes. We’ve already made and are working on:

Fresh Peach-Berry Crumble
Peachy Pie Milkshakes (recipe coming soon)
Balsamic Peach Chicken (recipe coming soon)
Peach Salsa (recipe coming soon)

Bailey’s already talking about going back so we may be making a few more tips before peach season is done. The farmers said the peaches will be around for a few more weeks. Looks like we’ll be taking Grandma and Grandpa out there next.

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Recipes

Fresh Peach-Berry Crumble

July 14, 2018July 15, 2018 1 m read

Note: This post contains affiliate links that help make this blog possible but the recipes and ideas are all mine.

This Fresh Peach-Berry Crumble was the first recipe we used from the peaches we picked. Since they were so ripe they practically peeled themselves, we wanted to make something quick, easy and delicious with the ingredients we had around the house. Plus we needed to use some of the blueberries we picked earlier this summer that we still have tons of.

This is a very hands-on recipe and perfect for toddlers because it doubles as a sensory activity. It’s a little messy, but it keeps them busy while you get the peaches prepared. They’ll think it feels like sand and you don’t have to get your hands messy.

Here’s the recipe, hope you and your family enjoy it as much as we did!

Made with fresh picked peaches and blueberries, this Peach-Berry Crumble is a perfect summertime treat. It's a hands-on dessert that combines a little sensory time for your toddlers with a delicious fresh flavor. Perfect for the whole family.

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Girl Power Kid Friendly Mom Life

Bend it Like Bailey – Summer Soccer 2018

July 9, 2018July 10, 2018 5 m read

Note: This post contains affiliate links that help make this blog possible but the recipes and ideas are all mine.

Ever since Bailey could sit on her own, she was fascinated with balls – soccer balls, baseballs, basketballs, footballs, bouncy, etc. She loves to throw, kick, bounce and toss them all around the house and has gotten really good at throwing and kicking. Brian and I played sports growing up and we knew we wanted to pass down our love of playing sports to our kids at an early age.

I will not shy away from my soccer mom status – though don’t expect me to be sitting on the sidelines scrolling through my phone…I want to get in and play too! We aren’t trying to relive our glory days and we certainly don’t want to be “those parents” – the angry ones you see getting into fights or aggressively yelling all over YouTube. We want our girls to do well, but we want them to enjoy the game as much as we did.

Putting little kids into sports can be a gamble. They can love it or hate it depending on their mood for the day, but as long as you let them lead the way and don’t force it, sports can be a great learning experience and fun for the whole family. I’ve had several people tell me they think 3 year olds are too young for sports, but here are a few reasons why we chose to start early:

Exercise

We want our girls growing up thinking exercise is fun and not just a chore. Getting outside play in everyday is important to us, even in the heat. We like that all the running in soccer burns off excess energy that we have and find that the girls are in much better moods afterwards. Right now Mom and Dad are also running around on the field too, so the whole family is involved – if you’re more of a spectator, you may want to wait until they are out of the Mini-Me stage.

Listening

When you put children in sports at an early age, they learn a lot about themselves, but one of the most important things they learn is how to listen to someone besides their parents. We’ve been struggling with listening to Mom and Dad these past few weeks but when she’s on the field, she pays attention to her coaches. We are fortunate to have a great team of coaches working with the kids and Bailey has been very good at listening to all of them. Now, if only those skills came home with us…

Teamwork

Sports are all about teamwork and playing as part of a group. At this young age, the kids aren’t really working together, more alongside, but they still huddle at the end and cheer together. They learn to wait their turn in line, share the field with others and how to watch and be supportive of others their age. Plus, you may meet someone with the same pair of shoes on and you become BFFs for life (or until the end of practice).

We love soccer!

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Summer Soccer Team Photo 2018 – someone should have videotaped all the mamarazzi’s trying to snap a good photo

Practice

Sports aren’t easy and if they were, everyone would be playing. It’s important for us to teach the value of hard work to our girls. It’s not just about showing up, it’s about trying and working hard to master a skill. When Bailey starts getting frustrated because she can’t get the ball to go a certain way, we remind her that it takes practice, just as it took practice for her to learn how to walk, to jump, to run, etc. That clicks with her and she gets right back in and tries again.

She has come so far these past two seasons. She is really good at doing pull backs, kicking with the inside of her foot and has started honing her defensive skills. It won’t be long before she is dribbling all over the field. We love it when she comes home and continues to practice her footwork, showing us all her “new tricks”.

Pride

There is nothing more exciting than watching your child take pride in their hard work. Watching her face light up as she scores a goal or makes a perfect pass makes all the early mornings worth it. In the last few months she is very aware of positive feedback and earning it. She is constantly asking us if we are proud of her and as we remind her that we are, she now lets us know when she is proud of herself. Soccer has given her another reason to be proud – when the coaches notice her master a skill and tell her “good job”, she grins from ear to ear.

Fun

Soccer is so much fun! Getting outside and kicking the ball around with friends while laughing and cheering each other on, is the ultimate fun activity. Letting them be kids and play with others while learning something new is what childhood is for. We want our girls to enjoy playing sports, not stress over it. They can try any sport they want to, with the only rule being that they play the season out, love it or hate it. We aren’t going to force them into one sport or another, they will be able to decide which one they love best.

It looks like it won’t be long before little sis will be joining big sis on the field. Sienna is obsessed with soccer balls, always kicking one around the house or sitting on them. She tried getting in on the drills during Bailey’s practice several times so we set her up on another field and she kept herself busy trying to do the big kid drills.

We are so thankful that we live in a community with so many wonderful youth programs to choose from. There are so many options and it looks like our girls are wanting to try them all. Bailey has been really into baseball recently and after playing with the boys on the 4th of July it looks like T-Ball will be up next. I am not sure who’s more excited – Bailey or us!

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Recipes

Blueberry Cheesecake Pudding Cookies

July 2, 2018July 26, 2018 1 m read

Note: This post contains affiliate links that help make this blog possible but the recipes and ideas are all mine.

If you are looking for ways to use up your fresh picked blueberries, these Blueberry Cheesecake Pudding Cookies were made with you in mind. We froze half of our haul and still have a ton left over that are going to need to be used in the next few days so we’ll be adding more recipes soon.

We took our go-to cookie recipe, used in the Strawberries and Dream Pudding Cookies, and swapped out the strawberries for blueberries and vanilla pudding with cheesecake pudding. It’s a super simple recipe and we like to use the 2″ cookie scoop so that the cookies are small and perfect for the many tea parties we host.

Bailey has been asking to make food with us more and more these days and she loves using the hand mixer and blending in the ingredients. We may have lost an egg or two today but the smiles an “yummos” completely make up for it. Sienna got into the action today too and got to add in some vanilla, thanks to Gigi’s help.

We hope you and your family enjoy these Blueberry Cheesecake Pudding Cookies as much as we do!

These Blueberry Cheesecake Pudding Cookies are a little tart and a super sweet way to use up all those blueberries picked this summer. The blueberries pop their juices as the cookies cook, making them an instant favorite among the kiddos!

What’s your favorite way to use up those blueberries? We always love trying new recipes, so feel free to share and we may highlight your recipe!

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Monthly Archives July 2018