Un-Extreme Home Makeover: Phase II Part 1

The Kitchen

Well, the week is almost over and our little kitchen project is on time and under budget! YEAH RIGHT! That's a lovely thought, but we've hit a few snags, folks! Really........ did you expect anything else?

We started with a flourish. We bought a new table and chairs. Was that necessary? Well only if you take into account that fact that all our chairs were precariously close to collapsing any time someone over 100 lbs took a seat! Seriously. Not to mention the fact that they were all held together with extra screws, a gallon of wood glue and lots of imagination!

Alas, I can't show you pictures of the new furniture, because it is still in boxes. Did I say boxes? Well, you didn't think we shopped at Ethan Allen did you?! No furniture truck delivery. Not us. Paul picked it up, in the boxes, with a borrowed trailer! And, that is pretty much where the fun ended.

Today is Thursday and we should be installing the cabinets today. We aren't. We should have done all the painting yesterday. We didn't. Why you ask? Ummm....'cause we still haven't finished putting in the window, that's why.

What have we been doing all week? Oh, nothing much. Just removing all the old cabinets, pulling up a 9x15 ft piece of 25 year old carpet and FOUR LAYERS OF LINOLEUM, repairing the walls, and installing a window, and installing a window, and......installing that darn window. All I wanted was a little sun light, people. Is that too much to ask??? And, Let us not forget....going a few rounds with the city building inspector! Y.E.S. I said the city building inspector. See, we were under the mistaken impression, based on what we were told by some contractors, that we did not need a permit to put in a window. This is not true. But, that was not the problem. After a nosey concerned neighbor reported us to the city because they thought we were putting in an addition without a permit, and the building inspector came out and told Paul to go get a permit, the party really began!

First, we had to stop working on the window to go get the permit, so we lost half a day right there. Second, when Paul went to the permit office he came face to face with THE guy that everyone complains about. You know the one. He's the guy that actually WEARS A BADGE proclaiming that he is a building inspector. All the other inspectors just wear laminated name tags around their necks. This guy. He wears an honest to goodness BADGE, because he has power issues is very important, don't you know. And, he was a pain. Plus, he used phrases like "I'd love to help you out, but....", which just make things oh, so much better. He was also WRONG. But, it took us half a day to figure that out. He told Paul that he would not give him a permit and he could not put in the window we had. It wasn't up to code! Let me just say that my father-in-law worked for the company that installs these very same windows in all the new construction houses in this area, and he just about blew a gasket when he heard this. Because he knew it was wrong, that's why! But, what are you going to do? Argue with "Little Mister Napoleon Complex", who has the power and motivation to make your life miserable? I think not. You go around him!

As Providence would have it, Thank you, Lord!, when Paul was walking out of the inspector's office, he ran into our roofer, Billy. Billy told Paul to call the supervisor immediately. He did. While he waited to hear from the supervisor, he called all the building supply places about the window. Every one of them told him, the window we have is the right window. Finally, the supervisor called back, told Paul the window is up to code, and GAVE Paul all the code numbers he needed to get the permit. But by this time we would have to wait until the morning! $35 dollars later and a day late, we are still working on that darned window! BUT I WIN! I HAVE MY WINDOW!!

What I don't have yet are painted walls and hung cabinets! It's 2:00pm on Thursday afternoon and and it's not looking like a kitchen yet, y'all! As usual, our little project is going to take twice as long to complete! Thank goodness my in-laws have been helping.

Removing the old cabinets. Do you love my bird's eye view? Yeah, that's because the contractor that built this house was apparently on drugs. Who wants to look into their kitchen from the upstairs hall? Who??? The kids are constantly dropping things over the ledge onto the tops of the cabinets and there it stays until someone climbs up to get it. AND DUST. Do you dust the tops of your cabinets? I should. 'Cause you can see them!

Top cabinets are gone.

Here are my little helpers. Isabel and Claire like to spackle!

She LOVES to help!

The dining area before the carpet was removed.

And, after.

This is the pile of dirt I swept up after the carpet was taken up!!!! OMGoodness! All that dirt was under the carpet!!! Ewwwwww! And, we vacuumed EVERYDAY, y'all!

My Mother-in-law couldn't wait to get the linoleum up!

Here we see three of the four lovely patterns of flooring!

This is the street by the end of Tuesday. Unfortunately, the trash truck came that morning! Isn't that always the way? I'm sure my neighbors will love looking at this all week. I hope it really bothers the one that called the city. :) Not really. Okay, maybe.

While we wait for our kitchen to be serviceable, we moved the table and microwave into the boy's room. Hey, it works! They have breakfast and lunch in there every day.

Getting ready to cut the hole for the window.

We have a hole! Claire's not sure she understands why yet.

Okay, this just looks like a mess.....but they know what they are doing....I hope.

The window going in!

Complete with hurricane ties, plywood, insulation board and just for good measure, felt paper! Paul was not going to give the inspector ANY room for a debate on this job!

ALL DONE! Well, on the outside anyway! Paul is out there cleaning the window as I type. Don't you just love a man that does windows!?!