AC what what

We had the HVAC contractor over this morning to reconnect ductwork. That is the last of the "in the wall" items. That means drywall starts on Monday!!! Wahoooooo.

Almost time to close 'er up

Demo is done (almost, arches being removed & floors have to go), electrical is finito, plumb soooo close. Had a little gas leak scare last night but it is under control now.

Details worked out for cabinet layout. On the right track for the countertops. I'm giddy about the backsplash plan. Flooring needs to be finalized and paint picked out but guess what happens next week??!! The walls start being closed up. We are building now not taking things apart, wahooooo!!!

Hopefully our appliances go on super labor day sale and we get that lined up too. So thankful for nice outdoor cooking weather and patient family without the normal setup to feed everyone. 

I can't wait for the dishwasher and kitchen sink, not to mention the stove top and oven being full size and not the toaster oven or bbq burner. To top it off, the book will be finished up with garbage storage and drawers for art supplies! 

The vision is about to be put into action, I can't wait to see the dream I had two years ago for this house to come to life. Mama is a happy camper.

Ps - I love having a contractor who communicates well and deals with images like this from me....

Couldn't be happier with our selectio, this far. If anyone local needs a recommendation, let me know.

The walls are down!!!

I can't wait to get home and see it in person, wahooooooo.

Repositioned and Ready

Posts and beams are being installed soon...I wanna watch :-) killian's room camera has been repositioned for the show, hehe

Demo!!!!

Progress is apparent here at the kitchen project. Met with the contractor this evening and for the most part all is good, no huge unexpected surprises, thank goodness!!! No work tomorrow while the 3 new footings cure and then back at it Friday, wahooo!!! Kids and I are hanging in the basement and Sequoia is grateful we are home (she was in great hands but nice to have her family home). More pictures to follow as milestones are reached. 

So relieve we had a good report from the contractor. Now my excitement has returned, never know what demo will uncover...been around enough construction in my day.

Demo DAY!!!!

Today is the day!  We walked out of the house this morning to go to work and school, then to Lake Tahoe for vacation for a week knowing the kitchen "should" be gone by the time we come home.  Sequoia has free range of Ooma's room (our guest room) and the majority of the backyard; a dog sitter will come check on her twice a day for food/water/loving and walks. I have one of the nanny cams turned on and pointed toward the kitchen so we can check in now and then on the progress (so far nothing has happened, whomp whomp).

Kyle and I took down the glass front uppers this weekend and reinstalled them in his man cave outside....boy was that a beast and I am SSSSOOOOO glad we did that before I started my 8 week fitness challenge because I don't think I could lift a pillow now.  They will be a great addition to the bar area and allow him to keep pint glasses and such out there ready and not less dusty.

This morning before leaving we all took some swings at the old kitchen.  I had my way with the tile and wood bullnose and Killian went to town on a couple walls.  Boy was he in little boy heaven, HA!  As I mentioned before I sure wish Kyle and I had the time and energy to do the work ourselves, think of the money we could save?!?!  But seriously, it would be so rewarding being able to say we remodeled out kitchen by ourselves!  Oh well, this way it will get done faster and probably turn out a lot better in the end.  

I can't wait to see what we come home to!!!  

Here Goes Nothing and By Nothing I mean Kitchen Remodel!

So life has become too stagnant...we've got this 2 kiddo thing down pat, can do it in our sleep, why not undertake a kitchen remodel, right?!?!  What the heck am I saying....life will never be stagnant with our two boys BUT we are about to start a kitchen remodel.  Boy oh boy am I excited!!!  I can't wait.  We are knocking down walls, moving appliances, redoing flooring, installing an island, building a pantry and getting new appliances.  Contractor comes to meet with us about final move out and start date this Thursday.  We head to Tahoe next Wednesday night and come back to a demolished kitchen, WAHOO!!!!

Here is my inspiration board on pinterest ( https://www.pinterest.com/sirgens/kitchen-refresh/ ).  I'm drawn to the greys and whites so I can change things up with accessories vs. replacing major items again in the future. So many things on our wish list and so little space in the kitchen but being able to customize it to what we want is thrilling!

I'm going to try to post updates on here so we can look back at the progress. Supposed to take about 3 months start to finish, we shall see!  Needless to say, I am stoked that we are actually taking the plunge and doing this while the boys are still young and opening up the first floor.  So much more functional and mama friendly :-)

Lots of crockpot and BBQ meals in our future this summer.  Hopefully we can bum a few dinners off friends and explore new restaurants to pass the kitchenless stage. 

Now for the before pictures:

And a couple very preliminary mock-ups of the new kitchen, still in the refinement stage :-)