Why the blog title?

My kitchen is fairly spacious.  It's about 10x20 with reasonable storage, although we're thinking of adding a moveable island.  However, it's the activity that we pack into it that makes it the Crowded Kitchen of Love and Noise!  My computer cabinet is in one corner, and obviously I check what's going on online a fair amount!  The kids watch Netflix shows on the computer, or they play some educational games, and all our art supplies are there.   They rob the printer of paper regularly.  We have a plastic table for projects near the back door, and the kids eat breakfast and snacks there.  Access to the back yard, the bathroom, my bedroom, the basement, and the rest of the house is through this room. Because of my long-term love affair with useful electronic gadgets (nothing real fancy) and with kitchen appliances, the counter and the computer cabinet are littered with wires and chargers and additional parts.  I do get it all organized when it bothers me, but it gets loose again. 

With 3 busy kids, a dog and two adults, the kitchen traffic is pretty constant!  When I'm working in the kitchen, the dog is pretty consistently stepped on (YIP!) because she makes it her business to live underfoot.   The dog has a spot by the back door, where she sleeps when she's tired of me stepping on her.  The Jedis and M-girl like to dance and spin and have epic lightsaber battles in the kitchen as well.  Currently, it's also the location of the potty chair because we need quick access for M-girl without worrying about whether anyone else is in the bathroom.  The floor usually has a mixture of stray LEGOs, snips of paper, a few assorted toys, and whatever M-girl has carried out of the bathroom.  Currently, that's eye makeup remover. 

When the noise and activity reaches a fever pitch, I eventually shoo them toward the living room if I'm working with hot or sharp implements.  But if I'm not, I enjoy the love and the noise in my kitchen!