Friday, October 10, 2008

Two of the Many Gifts My Husband Has Given Me

Today I'd like to showcase a couple of my favorite parts of our new home. These were John's ideas, and they are practical and beautiful, just like he is!

First we have a water fountain. John bought this on Ebay at a discount, had it shipped to his sister up north, then upon returning to Mexico, she brought it down with her. Here's why this is an ingenious idea: When the kids are thirsty, they won't have to get out a glass or use paper cups. Not that we ever did use paper cups, but even when you train kids to leave their cups on the counter for later use, it still looks cluttered, and during fly season, you can count on the fact that little grimy legs have climbed all over the rim of your cup! EEUUWW! I can see much less dishwashing in my future and that's a good thing!


...and if one water fountain is good, two is better!


The one on the left is for adults and the one on the right is just the right height for kids and our buddies who use wheelchairs. I swear my husband is a genius!

Next we have the new brick facing on our woodburning stove.


You are actually viewing this stove through an open arch I designed to be cut out of the wall between the living room and the kitchen. The arch alone looked great, but when John had the brick facing added while I was out of town, I was ecstatic to return and find it exactly as I had envisioned! And he hadn't even asked me what I wanted there. He can read my mind, did you know that? With this stove between the two rooms, not only can the stove be enjoyed by those who are in the living room, it can cozy-fy the people in the kitchen, too! This stove is about 5 feet away from the dining table, so I am seeing lots of cozy soup and homemade bread dinners by the fire this winter!

Isn't my husband the best!

I am pleased to list this post at:

Kelli's Show and Tell Friday
The Barefoot Mama's Feminine Friday
and
Katylin's My Husband Rocks

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30 comments:

Rhonda said...

Totally cool Jen! I love it when our men can read our minds! Mine does that a lot too...'cept when he's cleaning. My mind is a lot pickier than his during chores! ;)

Mom2my10 @ 11th Heaven said...

TOTALLY know what you mean about the chores!

katylinvw said...

Amazing! what great ideas! :) thanks for sharing!

Kelli said...

That is very cool and I love your wood burning stove. I am so happy for you! I think it's really great you try not to think bad thoughts since John can read your mind. The Marine can read mine too, I just get in trouble a lot and have to apologize... again.

Grammy said...

The water fountain is a great ideal. And what a handy hubby. The wood burner looks wonderful.

KayKay said...

Oh, my, what a cool idea! I love the idea of having a water fountain in the house, especially when you have a brood like yours. I've never even thought about having a water fountain in a house. While it would be impractical for my little home, I can think of some others who would greatly benefit, and I'm going to suggest it to them.

(Found you on MHR)

Jennifer said...

Wow, you know how much I would save on washing cups if I had a fountain like that?? Where do I go about buying one of those???

AmyK said...

Wow, that's pretty neat! Water fountains in the home... who'd have thunk?

Rae said...

Your husband is DEFINITELY the best!! How ingenious!!

Anonymous said...

He is the best! The water fountain idea is just ingenius!

Manuela

Shauna said...

What a great idea! How awesome :)

Rachelle Vernon Jones said...

very cool. i love your stove!
i've got to see this new house! it looks awesome!

CJ, The Purple Diva said...

this is so wonderful! what a GREAT idea! He is too smart!

Missy Wertz said...

Very very cool!

Dawn @ simply transparent said...

so very cool to have a fountain...I would love to not have to be the "cup police"...very sweet when our dh's make it as we desire! You are blessed!

Kate said...

Drinking fountains in the house? Awesome idea! I bet that saves a lot of "mom, can you fill my sippy cup" requests, doesn't it?

High Heels and a Sippy Cup said...

Oh my goodness! This would be perfect for my eternally thirsty boys. I also love the stove. I have seen this idea before but never with one of the views being into the kitchen. Love that! Makes me all nostalgic for the pioneer days.

Christine said...

I love the drinking fountains. I have wanted one since I saw them in a house when we lived in Rupert 10 years ago. They are great. I hate washing a million cups every day! Good job Cousin John!

Mom2my10 @ 11th Heaven said...

Jennifer, John found ours on Ebay. I really am not sure where else you would look.

heidi said...

How cool is that?! I would have never thought to do that but it just makes PERFECT sense to have the water fountains!!

Thanks for stopping by my blog this week :-)

C said...

The bricks look wonderful!! I can't wait to come home and see everything in real life being used :-)

Oh, and Jen, about the flies...
you're starting to sound like me. I'm just sayin'.

Love, C

laurice. said...

I am so happy for you! Looks great!

Stefany said...

Just found your blog and I LOVE IT !

Carla said...

Your husband rocks! I know you are excited about finishing and moving in!!!

Kelli said...

I love the water fountains....how fun! I've always wanted a wood burning stove. They are so cozy.
~Kelli

Amanda B. said...

WOW!!! What an awesome idea!!!! That would really solve a lot of things around my house if we had one of those! What a smart idea!

How interesting that the twins don't roll yet, but do everything else. I can definitely see the positives to that....

Can you believe I ran into Kristin this weekend?!?! Here within a few days, I will be posting pictures from it, so keep an eye out!

Anonymous said...

What a great idea! Now I want one!

The Farmer's Wife said...

Those are both such great ideas! He really is a great guy! I loved seeing you Friday! Thanks for supporting Roosters pumpkin project! You are a sweetheart!

Kelly @ The Barefoot Mama said...

How cool!! I've never even seen or thought of that idea before - it's terrific! I love the adults fountain and the kids fountain. :o) Your wood-burning stove looks so cozy and rustic nestled in it's little cove. Enjoy that this winter!

Shannon said...

A drinking fountain! Brilliant! I must have one!