If you're reading this through a feed reader, then phew! Things are looking pretty cleaned up and fresh around here. I made the move to the most updated Squarespace version, gave the blog a quick facelift and tried to get all my ducks in a row so that this move would be a little more seamless than the last one. I still have a few kinks to work out, a few things that didn't make the move with me that I need to bring back (like an updated "what we're reading" list!) but overall I'm so happy with the newness. With a week of nursing sick kids, it took a little longer, but I'm back...and I owe you chocolate. That's coming.

Woodlawn kitchen: BEFORE. Sometime this summer.

In the meantime, I'm sharing a quick Woodlawn update. It has been so long!

Dan finally knocked one of those nagging little projects off the to-do list this weekend. When we (and by "we" I mean Dan) were frantically getting this kitchen up and running before our move-in, we left the backsplash decision on the back burner. As Dan was cutting down countertops, he had an extra run of butcher block, so that became our temporary backsplash around the sink.

Even though it was attached and sealed with silicone, my apparently wild water antics washing dishes (actually I blame it all on the kids) meant that water was still finding ways to get in any possible crack or crevice.

A few weeks ago, Dan decided to take off the backsplash (on Christmas Eve, I believe. He's always had a knack for timing house projects) before any damage was done to the actual counter tops and we've been drying out and religiously oiling what was left behind.

With a cold, rainy weekend before him, my "I get a little antsy without a project" husband decided to finally tackle the backsplash project. We went with a simple, white subway tile. I really didn't want to do anything too strong behind the kitchen sink. I didn't want to make a statement, but wanted to keep things looking clean and bright. The project was so easy (for me, the photographer) and finished in just the weekend.

Tiles went up on Saturday. And you'll notice that we still keep the coffee pot plugged in a ready. Priorities, people. And on Sunday afternoon, by the time I got home from my monster grocery shopping trip at Wegmans, he'd grouted AND cleaned up.

This was my kind of project. Even though I love progress, it is a well-known fact around this house that the in-progress chaos makes me a little nutty. But this job was painless (for me), budget-friendly (all under $100!), and the results make me so very happy.

Dan tells me the next things on his list are some hooks under those shelves for coffee mugs and another small set of shelves beside the stove for my jars of pantry staples. But first, we should probably fix that little drip coming out of the handle of the faucet.

And by "we", I of course mean Dan.