Probably the cleanest my kitchen has ever been.

Painting a kitchen in a two-room apartment may not seem like much to get excited over. But over the last fifteen hours of arranging and moving furniture, painting over grimed-up walls with bright colors, and bleaching floors with Alyssa, I think that I can safely say I have derived a significant amount of spiritual pleasure from the experience. I felt like we were not only "preparing our nest" as a married couple, but that we were also doing something nice for the BSC--we even replaced the blinds in the room, which were old and metal and rusted. Our hope is that the work we put into the apartment today will last long after we've moved to Kansas City.

Brother Lawrence took pride in his performance of the mundane. "We ought not to grow tired of doing little things for the love of God, who regards not the greatness of the work, but the love with which it is performed," he said. There is something profoundly spiritual involved in a solid day of work, no matter how trivial the work itself may seem. Perhaps this is something I should meditate upon more often when I go in to work each day at the Olive Garden.

Anyway. I leave you with pictures of the just-finished kitchen. Comments are welcome!

This looks more exciting than it really is--it's only a tupperware cabinet.

Pampered Chef pizza stone!

This is probably the most organized this kitchen will ever get.

Alyssa loves her turquoise wall...

What in the world is that on the door?

Could it be the "I'm Sorry She Said No" Kitty Calendar from Jess Tankersley?! I think so...