Ham, Corn, and Potato Chow-da

Super, super easy dinner.

I love me some clam chowder, but dealing with clams give me the willies, so I will never, ever make it for myself. I have experimented with a few different recipes using variations of milk and cream, but never really liking the outcome.

Too runny, too creamy. And who really has 1/4 of heavy cream in the fridge anyway??

So on a whim, with nothing more than a "hey what can I do with this ham I have" hope, I found this recipe that called for cream of mushroom instead. Now I rarely use cream of anything, but every once in a while (like today) a recipe unsuspectingly asks for it, so I try to keep a couple in the back of the cabinet, since they last quite a bit longer than 1/4 cup heavy cream. Thank God for the virtues of a stocked pantry. Anyway, on with the surprising *just right* chowder.

1 medium onion, finely chopped
5-6 small cooked red potatoes, sliced then quartered
2 cups corn
1 cup ham, diced
1 can cream of mushroom
2 1/2 cups milk

Saute the onions in a little olive oil, add the ham then corn, sauteing a little more. Add the liquids and potatoes. Simmer for 15-20 minutes.

Half Bath is Done!

After some plumbing hook-up delays, we finally have our first room in the house done, completely done..... but I still will be keeping an eye out for wall art.... Here is what it looked like at move-in. A total builder-grade blank slate.

Since I already shared how I did the stripes here, I won't repeat myself, except for how much I *love, love, love* them. So, here's the run down of the hardware:

$20 light fixture (Costco)
$65 swivel mirror (Lowe's)
$90 faucet (Lowe's)
$5 each tp and hand towel holder (Costco, part of a 6-piece bathroom hardware kit)
$230 marble countertop and side splash with built-in under-mount sink (Lowe's, total splurge here, but love it almost as much as my stripes)

$90 dual-flush toilet (Costco; the hippie in me loves this!)

And for the accessories, I went the total "less is more" approach with mother-of-pearl soap pump (TJ Maxx), giant seashell from a years-ago Florida vacation, and sage green hand towels (Target)

With paint and other little things (like light switch plates), the grand total came in around $600. Not too bad.