This Dusty House

Five Ways: Books

Authors: Jeanette deBoer

I've been reading a lot lately. I don't know if it's going to last. In 2012, I read a grand total of 20 books and that, barely. This year, I've already read 7, but I feel like I was reading a lot in the first couple months of the year last year too. Either way, I've been having difficulty thinking about much else other than...

Read more at This Dusty House

The Lion Seeker by Kenneth Bonert

Authors: Jeanette deBoer

Remember back in November when I wrote that novel? I know, it was a long time ago and I haven't talk about it really at all since. Have I been working on it? Every so often, I open it up on my computer and stare at it. I've read through the opening two scenes about three times. I've even made a few changes, moved my...

Read more at This Dusty House

A Snowy Night in a Parking Lot in Toronto

Authors: Jeanette deBoer

Last night, I stood on the middle of the stage in my empty church with three others and sang my heart out. Outside, huge flakes of snow swirled and dove and covered the parking lot in a thick coat of white. We were practicing for our Sunday service.

A piano, guitar and two voices.

Just an hour before, I had found myself in...

Read more at This Dusty House

Pretty and Purple

Authors: Jeanette deBoer

In a couple weeks, I'll be participating in the Spike Back Against Poverty volleyball tournament, hosted by Toronto City Mission as a fundraiser for their summer day camps. I don't really play volleyball, but I guess that's not really the point of this particular event. In order to raise our $700 entry, my team put together...

Read more at This Dusty House

Dracula: or How Vampires Are Not Cold Cuddly Creatures That You Should Want To Jump Into Bed With

Authors: Jeanette deBoer

Dracula
by Bram Stoker

I have not read Twilight. In fact, I refuse to read Twilight. This refusal, believe it or not, does somewhat disturb me, because I fully believe that, in order to believe a book to be bad, one must first read it. True, other people, whose opinions I trust, have reassured me that yes, Twilight is a...

Read more at This Dusty House

Pillow Talk: A Mini Tutorial

Authors: Jeanette deBoer

I have fallen in love with pillows.

A few weeks ago, Mocha and Kingsley got together and destroyed our couch for the last time. No, not the new one, thank goodness. The old one. When it happened, I posted this photo on Instagram.

We tried to make the couch work for a little while longer. We just shoved the stuffing back...

Read more at This Dusty House

Thursday Things: Vintage Kitchens, Big Scarves, and the Joy of Books

Authors: Jeanette deBoer

One: Vintage Kitchens

Over the weekend, we spent a lot of time talking about how we could make this house work for us. We were going to move into it just the way it is, slanted floors, cracked ceilings and everything, and live through the reno. As we waited for news the night of offers, I scoured Pinterest for vintage...

Read more at This Dusty House

Bleeding Radiators and Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Scones

Authors: Jeanette deBoer

When we first bought our house, I thought our radiant heat was fabulous. I was always toasty warm in the house and, if I wasn't, it wasn't hard to snuggle up against one of those bad boys and quickly become toasty warm. We've played with the system a bit over the year and a half that we've lived here. We took one out...

Read more at This Dusty House

A Story: Toronto Real Estate and the Anxiety of Bidding Wars

Authors: Jeanette deBoer

Last night, we put down an offer on a house.

The idea of buying a new house is pretty fresh. It was just last week that we finally let go of the idea of a major, second floor renovation and, in the same breath, acknowledged that our cute little bungalow was not going to be sustainable for very much longer. In a way, it...

Read more at This Dusty House

Finding a Sofa = Walking 10km around Downtown Toronto

Authors: Jeanette deBoer

On the weekend, my wonderful parents-in-law came to the Big City to visit, take the Husband out for his birthday, and do some sofa shopping. My mum-in-law is right in the middle of a huge decorating whirl-wind that she's been talking about ever since I've known them. And now, she's excited to finally start. We gladly...

Read more at This Dusty House