Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Extending your Kitchen Serving Space and Random Thanksgiving Photos


On a day to day basis, my kitchen functions perfectly for my family. But when we have a "large gathering" (Anyone remember Fievel, An American Tail?) there never seems to be enough space to place all the food.
 We hosted Thanksgiving at our house this year and it definitely qualified as a "large gathering". Serving buffet style, we used the larger counter top for all the yummy food. The smaller island became the dessert island.
To extend my serving space I made simple stained boards to cover the sinks. This was before all the desserts arrived.
The boards were left over from when we built our house.  Whenever I saw a nice piece of scrap wood, that was just going to be tossed out, I carried it up to the attic to keep.
I grabbed these pieces from my stash and had my husband cut them to fit over the two kitchen sinks. I sanded and stained them with Minwax Dark Walnut stain that I had on hand. I'll put a sealer on them later. Flat ran out of time before Thanksgiving. (The extra boards shown here are for adding additional shelves in my sewing room and master closet.)
I have to admit, I let taking pictures fall by the wayside on Thanksgiving Day. Thankfully, I had family members who took up the slack!
Here's a few of the pics I found on my camera when the day was done.
 
Nephews

 Who knew I was suppose to make a place card for the dog?

I don't know.

Maverick, my daughter's labradoodle. I promise you, the door was clean at one point!

And then you find pictures like these...
 
...and you're just so Thankful!

So, here's a big THANK YOU to my random Thanksgiving photographers!
 Love you guys!  
SHARING WITH:
 Beyond The Picket Fence No Minimalist Here  

19 comments:

  1. Very clever idea. Before I read the post, I just thought it was a beautiful cutting board. Funny pics. I find those on my camera too.

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  2. LOVE those shoes!!! And the toes! So cute!

    Lou Cinda :)

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  3. I'm a huge fan of your gorgeous home and that kitchen is to die for!
    xoxo,
    Kim

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  4. How fun! You got more photos than I did. I love the shoes! Blessings to you all.

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  5. Fun photos of the day. Don't you just love dog snot art??

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  6. Okay, I now know we are kindred spirits. First, I have been waiting on my daddy to make me a board to cover my sink for the very same reason. Secondly, we have the same glasses. Finally, I, too, take pictures of my family saying grace. Well, I didn't this year because I was sick as a dog with pneumonia on Turkey Day and didn't take ANY pictures.

    Your kitchen is lovely. Glad you had such a nice day. :)

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  7. Oh I love this~so fun to see real life unfolding...kids are so great when they do that kind of stuff....yes greatful and grateful. You look adorable with your family!!

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  8. Oh, how it blesses my heart to see a family bound together on the wings of prayer!
    Thank you for sharing this post!
    Gratefully,
    Carolynn

    I don't know if you have selected your elegant giveaway yet..but, if you haven't..please remember me, too.

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  9. How sweet. I've always wanted to take a picture of our large family in prayer. I think I will now. It's such a touching moment when everyone is together.

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  10. I love the curtains in your kitchen and the idea of the board over your sink is something we have done for years..It really works out nicely..Glad ya had a great Thanksgiving..

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  11. How funny, Sonya! You have to laugh when you see those random shots. Your nephews are typical guys ~ flexing those muscles. Great idea to cover the sinks. Love the feet shots; both the girl's shoes and the guys outside. It's nice to see real life! : )

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  12. The boards to cover the sinks is a great idea. You are so smart!
    I love the random shots of the family. The boys flexing their muscles.. a definite boy thing. ha-ha The feet photos so funny! I laughed at the one of the dog sitting there waiting for a bite of food to drop! So fun to see real life happening in photos. The ones of the family praying together is beautiful.
    Thanks for sharing your family and your wonderful idea of the stained boards.

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  13. I am completely inlove with your kitchen. I adore the curtains. Great Blog I'm hooked.

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  14. Sonya,
    What a great idea!! My husband made a rectangle box to fit over my cook top for when we have large gatherings, since our house is the gathering spot. It works out nicely and frees up our entire counter top area on that side.
    Beautiful family by the way!

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  15. Loved looking at your pics! I'm off to make some burlap stockings, and hopefully a burlap tree skirt today. Just thought I would tell ya that cause you are my inspiration when it comes to sewing :)

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  16. Oh it looks like you had such a wonderful holiday. I love the board on the sink idea, and my mom used to do that before she had her extra sink removed to make more counter space, but yours is much more elegant than hers. I love the dog in the chair at the table, that was too cute.

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  17. Again such a great idea and wonderful pics! Thanx for coming to the party lady! Hope your Friday is going great!

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  18. We had a great day that day! Thank you for hosting. Your house did indeed look beautiful and so homey. So fun having Thanksgiving with our combined families! I took all the pix, except the boys' feet outside. That was Kaleigh! I am so glad the "praying" ones turned out. I felt slightly irreverent not bowing my head, but it was worth it!! If I haven't said it lately, so proud of you and your blogging! It all looks darling. Love you! :)

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