Well, I know it's a little outdated but I am going to start with my kitchen because it was one of those big, exciting moments in my life! Matt and I got married in May 2006 but we didn't have a full functioning kitchen until June 2008! A lot of people we talk to have no idea how we survived. Looking back on it… I still don't know how I survived! No running water, no sink, no kitchen cabinets, no stove, no dishwasher… And those are just the big things! BUT, we did have a toaster oven, coffee pot, refrigerator and a microwave (until our microwave kicked the bucket about 2 months before the kitchen was done). Try living without a microwave for a month or two… I think I lost about 10 lbs! No leftovers, no microwavable frozen foods… I couldn't microwave my tator tots or chicken nuggets… I had to use the toaster oven which took like 25 minutes! A hungry girl just can't wait that long! My one and only counter top consisted of two of Matt's sawhorses - that were once used for work - with a piece of plywood laid across them. I tried to make it look pretty with festive plastic table cloths from Wal-Mart. (Although, Matt wasn't very impressed by my decorating skills.) I'd rather stare at a cheap plastic table cloth than a plain old piece of wood! Anyway, so for two years it was like camping in my own house when it came to meal time. 
And at that time in my life I had never cooked a meal for myself before. (I know what you're thinking.) I do have a reason… Because I commuted to college for four years and lived at home up until the day I got married I still relied on mom's home cooked meals everyday. I know, I know… I'm a late bloomer. But luckily for me I married a man who knows how to cook and does it well! We were so limited in what we had and yet I still came home to a home cooked meal everyday. Just another reason why I married him… (not just because of the food but because I have to say he does take pretty good care of me). I couldn't exactly return the favor at that time either… I barely knew how to do laundry, clean a house, or any of those other "housewifey" things. But I have to admit I've gotten a lot better over the last 2 years and 4 months! I can now knock out 3 loads of laundry in one night, keep the house fairly neat and clean, and cook a couple of easy meals (burgers, hot dogs, spaghetti, macaroni & cheese - just to name a few!). I was really into crock pot meals for like a week. I made 4 of them (Mon. - Thurs.) and then Thursday night I was getting ready to prepare another one for Friday until Matt stopped me and said that he would take care of Friday's dinner. He wouldn't admit it but I really think he just didn't want another crock pot meal. I don't blame him. Some of them weren't as delicious as I thought they would be. 
To bring you to the present I now have a full functioning kitchen. I even have a dishwasher! As some of you already know I used to have to take all of the dirty dishes down to the cold, damp basement (I call it "the cave") and wash them in the laundry tub - which almost ALWAYS had either a spider or a pincher bug in it… not fun. And everytime we needed water for cooking we had to get it from the bathroom. The funny part about that is that our lock is broke so no matter what I was doing in there... if Matt needed water - he let himself in! I know you didn't need to know that but I have a kitchen sink now so there's no need to worry anymore. One can have their privacy. I've started trying to bake some desserts and things but haven't had the best of luck with that yet. My first batch of cookies I accidentally combined all of the ingredients into one bowl instead of separating the liquids from the dry stuff. My dough was really chunky and hard to stir so I added milk to it. Thought maybe that would work until I ended up having to throw every single cookie in the garbage! You see.. I have this issue when it comes to reading directions… no matter what it is I just can't bring myself to do it. You would think I was a man! Never following directions!
So as I make my way around the kitchen and keep experimenting, I think (well, I hope) I am getting a little better. Matt is my designated taste tester so actually, if you want the truth, you'll need to ask him!
lam
