Have I mentioned lately that I love coffee?

You might have noticed that I sort of like coffee.

Yes, my name is Sweet Bee and I am a latte lover.

It all started way back in 1996 when I first started teaching.  I had a 45 minute commute -one way- to the middle school I was teaching at.  This was not freeway driving, it was all country driving.  So I found a great little coffee place in the town I lived in and I would call the owner, order my drink, and then he would bring it out to me.  This was costing about $80 a month.  Ridiculous, right?  But I just couldn't give them up.  So I bought my first espresso maker.  It was a Krups that cost about $50.  The problem with that one was that it scared me a little bit so Worker Bee always had to make my drinks because I feared it would explode on me.  Why I wasn't worried about it exploding on him I don't know.  Well it died, so I progressed to a $100 Krups machine.  I wasn't afraid of this one but it only lasted a couple years.

So I finally broke down and bought a Starbucks Barista machine.  Yes it was expensive, but it came in blue!  (Still my favorite color.)  I bought it in 2002 and it is still running great.  I make one every day, sometimes two a day.  Think of all the money I've saved by making my own?  Right?  Right?  Are you with me people? 

So where does the magic happen?

Our kitchen is "L" shaped and we have this island along the wall because there isn't room for it to really be an island.  The cabinet fits the microwave just perfectly.  It took a very long time to find the perfect island but did I hit the jackpot when I did.  Don't you just love when that happens?  It was at one of those cheap oak furniture stores and there were only two of them.  I was ecstatic when I found it and it came home with me immediately.  All these used to be in an armoire that held the microwave, tv, mixers, etc.  The armoire now lives in the guest room/studio.

I have some plans for a cabinet above this island, but I need to do some rebuilding on it before it can be hung.  It's all part of the plan for updating the kitchen on a budget.

So, what kind of latte would you like?  Hazelnut?  Mocha?  White chocolate?  Peanut butter?  Yes I have peanut butter syrup.  No, I'm not sure why.

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope your holiday was great!  Ours was filled with family, love, and chocolate (with coffee ice cream, of course).

edited to add:  This post was inspired by Brenda's post about her coffee bar over at Cozy Little House. Thank you Brenda!