who likes a good before and after?

 Oops, I'm sorry, I am not finished yet!  It's a Before and Middle!  

Before:

The funny thing is this is actually the "After" pic from two years ago when these got a fresh coat of white.  They were bought before I was married, on my babysitting salary, because Paul and I were engaged, and I had priorities.  They were $49 each, from an unfinished furniture store in town, and are actually night stands, but I like them as end tables.  I stained and finished them when we were first married, lovely brown.  But then I tired of them, and painted them....gray.  I went through my Gray Era,  as Camille says.  So then they were white...then...I saw that Rosemary paint, and I knew what I had to do!  

The tops needed to be cleared of paint!  Wood tops and green bottoms with champagne bronze pulls!  (The paint was 40% off, the pulls were extra from the kitchen).   Anyway.  Last evening, I put the citrus furniture paint stripper on the tops, and covered them with plastic wrap. 

It peeled right off!  Just kidding.  It was a LOT of work.  

I finally got them mostly clean, then I sanded them outside on the deck.   I sanded, wiped them down, sanded more, and again, for about an hour.  I removed the drawer hardware, spackled where the one single pull was in each drawer,  let those dry while I primed the rest of them (except for the tops!), then sanded and primed the drawers.  I want so badly to open the Rosemary paint, and get started on the fun stuff, but ugh, it's almost eight o'clock, and I am so beat.  

We had a semi busy day.  I went to the pool this fine morning, then came home and worked on these for a bit.  We sat in the sun on the deck (I scraped and peeled out there), then loaded up the truck with bottles and cans to return them for five cents each.  We got:  $95.05.  You can do the math if you wonder how many cans and bottles we had.  

Then we went to the ice cream shop, first time of the season!  It was almost seventy degrees out and sunny, and we've had a long winter.  Do you want any more excuses, because I've got them!  It was SO good.  Why does it have to be so good?  

Then to the hardware store for steel wool (to help with the scraping), and a little can of oil based polyurethane to finish the tops.  I probably won't stain them, because I like the light wood, it seems the oil based finish doesn't turn things yellow-y like the water based poly, but I don't know.  

Home....ahh, home, and right back to work.  

The girls made barbecue chicken pizza, Paul and I had leftover chicken, which I grilled last night.  I put mine chopped up in the iron frying pan with some olive oil, then added a bit of hot honey barbecue sauce, some hot sauce, a chunk of butter, fresh honey, and a sprinkle of ginger.  (Paul had already heated his up with his own seasonings).  I ate it with a big bowl of Asian salad with some fresh strawberries.  Oh how yummy!  

One of the girls is having a baby any day now, so I am On Call.  I may not be home tomorrow at all, who knows!  It's so exciting.  

Paul with Newton, Evelyn and Nate's doggy.  He's so cute and bossy.  (Newton, not Paul.)

Norwegian chocolate...how do I love thee...

The Kvikk Lunsj put a Kit Kat to shame.  

But the best is this Daim bar, it's like Heath bar, toffee chunks.  Oh dear.  

Ah well.  It's been a good day...:)