We vacationed once in a beach house in santa barbara that had a huge table in the kitchen.. We loved it. We went with 3 other families who are all foodies and it was great to sit around, prep together, eat together, drink together and play together. I remember a marathon monopoly session with adults and kids playing a cutthroat game for hours. We just put the Cuisinart right on the table to make salsa and aioli. The table was great for setting up assembly lines for raviolis and bruschetta. It was old and wood and nobody cared about staining it etc. The owner told us that she kept meaning to get rid of the table but all of her renters and family love it. The other stuff in the kitchen was a old range which needed detailed instructions to make it work (my advice is to keep the range simple if you wish to rent at all.. You may be willing to deal with the fussiness for the charm but any potential renters may not. But there was no counter per se.. There was another table next to the range that had stainless steel top and open shelves underneath with fiesta ware type of plates and bowls. . The sink was on the same wall as the range and was one of those old shallow double sinks with double drain boards and a wall mounted faucet. The sink had a curtain below and there was a dishwasher under one of the drain boards. The fridge was free standing. There was another wall with a long hutch with dishes and some cabinetry underneath. The floor was easy to mop tiles. Step on trash can was tucked under one of the sink drainboards. And the kitchen was yellow with dark green tile on the wall with the stove and sink. The other walls were white washed boards (kind where you can see the wood grain and distressed patches where there was real distress :) No island please :)

Gorgeous! I would keep the frame and art as it is, but would check with a reputable frame shop/gallery (NOT Michael's or hobby lobby) about changing out the red matting. If you want to see what a different matting might look like, it would be really easy to cut construction paper and kind of wedge pieces over the red mat. Won't look good up close but if you step back you could see if something changes it favorably for you. There are some wonderful colors in the painting to try. Here are a couple of more contemporary rooms that have incorporated more traditional art, just to give you an idea: Maybe as part of a gallery wall, as someone else suggested? eta: If you can't make it work in your dining room without drastic changes, what about hanging it someplace else - like your entry way or a hallway where it can be admired but not interfere with your other decor?

palms lose a set of fronds every year ... if that is the right word .. frond ... it cyclical.. annual.. and normal ... once you see a new shoot developing.. it might be time to cut off the worst of this lot ... but not all at once ... did you move it to a new house?? ... if so.. its stressed due to all the cultural variables being changed.. light.. heat/temp.. you watering different than grandma .... etc .... i also wonder about when was the last time it was repotted into fresh soil .... see whats going on IN THE POT ... too often we over react to what we see.. and the problem is the part we cant see ... [i have experience with the bugt issue embo mentions] potting media is a water management system .... and it wears out ... leading to watering problems ... which leads to stress .. which leads to what we are looking at ... we had a houseplant palm for 20 years ..... no clue if it was this one ... but we kept it rather dry .. so if you are watering it.. and keeping it wet ... there might be a base issue ... there is a houseplant forum.. and you might get a lot of guidance there.. on how to care for it ... [and looking above.. i see you covered that] .... and probably also a palm forum ... but i dont have time to check that ... good luck. and try not to love it to death ... ken

Alicia - WOW! Those are some truly amazing plants! Extremely healthy and happy. I can only imagine the blooms filling the vines. Now that you've started this thread - you have to post more pictures every time you visit your grand mothers. It's a rule in the fine print! Stay safe and stay well and enjoy the holidays.