play kitchen extraordinaire...

finally, the secret craftiness is revealed! some of you have waited very patiently (thank you!) for us to get this thing done and also get the camera to work the way it should... sometimes things just don't come together in the timely manner you imagined ;) but here it is, none the less! i had been wanting to get a bigger kitchen for the girls but didn't want to shell out the bucks for something that wasn't that nice and cost too much and that they would outgrow quickly. so in the came the plan to build one ourselves! a friend was giving away a large end table and it was *perfect* for the project. since the idea was to be thrifty and resourceful, we used lots of free, reclaimed, and previously-loved parts and pieces we already had lying around. the oven door (which still needs glass put in the window) was the original table top. the new top, backsplash, and shelf were made with leftover mdf. the faucet was found via the local listserve, the towel bar was from our old kitchen, i already had the fabrics, etc. all told, the whole kitchen cost less than $40! and it's way cuter than any kitchen we could've bought from the store.

we still have a few details to finish-- the oven door, a metal shelf to go inside the oven, etc. but it's almost completely done and most definitely ready for playing. we have some fun pots and pans, and some kid-friendly dishes on the way as well. the girls have already gotten plenty of good "kitchen time" in since we brought it inside a few days ago. mission accomplished!