My own nook...

I have been neglectful of this space...
And it is partially my sister's fault...
My dear Country sister used to have a couch in her very large kitchen.  It was so cozy and since all the generations of our family have always wound up gravitating to the kitchen, it was extra comfy.  

Times changed and her family's needs changed.  The couch is gone and they now have a "proper" grown up living room and a proper dining room as well.

Recently, my husband's aunt got rid of her old living room set and now we have a "new" living room set (THANKS! it's perfect) What to do with the old furniture?  Our old couch was in very sad repair...very sad repair once we saw what it looked like under the slip cover we put on 2 years ago.  Torn, stained, and smelling like spit up...it's been sent away to where the good couches go.  

The loveseat that came in the set with it (second hand from the husband's grandmother...the only new furniture we've ever bought was a small kitchen table.)  was in pretty good condition (as long as it had a slip cover on it.)

  So, we were going to put it down in the basement "kids' clubhouse"
...but it went in the kitchen on it's way down...
and hasn't left.

It makes my cozy little kitchen nook.  I spend lots of my time in there, cooking, cleaning, feeding, and teaching...
why not also make it a place to hang out, read a newspaper, drink coffee, or fold laundry?   

Then to sweeten the deal, we also were given a bookshelf from the aforementioned aunt.  It was perfect for C's room, so C's bookcase came downstairs to become my cookbook shelf (I have a few...and my parents just dropped off a bunch of others from my grandmother including one where Mrs. Calvin Coolidge is "first lady of the land.") as well as an area for the kids to put the novels that we are reading right now together.  They can get their favorites and snuggle on the couch.
Saturday mornings, coffee on the little couch while breakfast is made.
Late evening conversations after the kids are asleep.
Anyone who knows me knows I am far from being an interior decorator, but this space...

it's perfectly designed for us.
(By the way...ever try taking pictures when the dog insists on being in each one...
He truly is the world's weirdest dog.)