Stick a fork in it, its done!

No, not the kitchen. Us...me and Rob. Tired. Fried. Done. We need a break.

There are so many little things left to do with the kitchen that if we think too hard about it, one of us is going to curl up into a fetal position and start crying in the middle of it. A small silver lining is that it is fully up and functional. We even moved the table back in. Tonight we sat together for our first meal (restaurants not included) since boxing day. Oy! The kids and I even baked a cake for a little celebration. I will say it is a joy to cook in.

So, now that the kitchen is basically a kitchen again, this week we reclaim the living room. Just in time too. We canceled the cable because Izzy is quite the little addict, and Rob and I hardly turn the thing on anymore, so as of tomorrow I`ll be needing reinforcements. Board games, books (I won't go into how bad I feel about neglecting read-aloud books to the kids...thankfully Alex can read on his own and we've discovered audio books), crafts and everything else that has pretty much been banned these last four weeks. Poor neglected kids! It will be such a relief to not be so tied up. Alex was thrilled to just sit at the table and do some math work this morning. Which is great because he is pretty obsessed with adding big numbers these days. He is anxious to get moving.

I am ready for a vacation. Not that we're going anywhere. Just a week from running around or constantly working on the kitchen would be nice. We'll have to see how soon Rob can clear some space on his calendar. Soon.

I have a great promotional idea for Ikea!

Three Free Sessions of Marriage Counselling with every Kitchen Purchased!

...and now for the kitchen update.

Actually, it hasn't been that bad. I say this with the same tone as I would with, say, childbirth. You know, it really can't be classified as fun. It hurts. You might say unpleasant things to your spouse. You look forward to the end. The finished product is quite lovely and you are pretty sure you'd do it all over again. Maybe.

I would actually do another Ikea kitchen but there are certain tasks I would hire someone else to do. The counter tops are one of those tasks. I should have known when my very handy neighbour, who can Macgyver just about anything together (and incidentally owns nearly every power tool known to man - many of which we are still hoarding), shook her head and said we were very brave to tackle it. We wanted to save a few bucks by buying one of the premade vinyl slabs. Cutting out the hole for the sink, easy. The rest, so unpleasant. Walls are never even. Ours, I am sure, are worse than average. How a wall can bow only on the lower half boggles my simple mind. The endcaps just glue on with an iron and one then merely shaves it smooth with a file. Ha. Ha. Ha. We needed to raise the counter so the top wouldn't impede the doors from opening. That meant screws needed to go through the cabinet, some extra particle board, and then into the counter...don't ask me why this was so difficult but it was. We have yet to screw down the last two counter tops, a 21" and 24" on either side of the stove. Never again will I touch a counter top.

We are nearly done. Or it looks nearly done. Last weekend we added the sink and hooked up the dishwasher. That part was actually quite easy and was even fun. That might be the ABS pipe liquid cement fumes speaking though. We put in a sink and a half because I really wanted my sink cabinet to be 30" long to match the other base cabinets. We splurged a bit on the faucet and I am quite pleased with the results.




We seem to alternate good days and bad days. The day we did the plumbing, everything went right. It was beautiful. The next day, everything went wrong. That is how it seems to go. I am very impressed with how user friendly the whole Ikea cabinets have been. The doors were actually a breeze to put up. Really only took a few minutes for door, if that. The handles took much longer.

The kitchen looks nearly finished and within a few days will be completely usable again. I have yet to move anything into the cupboards. We still need to secure the counter to the other two base cabinets and put in the drawers. There are what seems like a hundred details left to attend to though, and that will take a while. I have to change all the outlets to white sockets. We are tiling the backsplash with white square tiles. The toekick needs to be cut and put on. The spacers for the upper cabinets need to be cut and installed. There are end caps for the upper and lower cabinets to add. Some trim to go under the cabinets to hide things like the lighting, which also needs to be added. I have tons of little accessories, like the birch rack that needs to be attached to an upper cabinet that holds these 5 glass containers. There are these funky drawer dividers that need to be figured out. We need new baseboards for the whole room, not to mention all the walls need to be repainted and I am terrible at picking out colour schemes. Sigh. Details...and lots of them.

I have to say I am quite proud of what Rob and I have accomplished. We laughed the other day, after Rob had taken out the headlight on the car to change a few bulbs, and joked that we could never have imagined a time when Rob had greasy hands and knew what a nut wrench was and I was in the kitchen sawing strips of wood for the counter top. At this rate you may hear about us planning our upcoming kayaking trip this summer. Or maybe not, lol.

Here are the latest pics of the kitchen:

The progress in the kitchen

I've been dying to post pictures but have had little time these days. I want to show off what we've done so far, mostly because Rob and I are so proud with ourselves. We are not completely incompetent in the home renovation arena, lol.

This is the kitchen right after Christmas. We went away boxing day but the next day we had the tree down and the kitchen demo started. I have to say that pulling up peel and stick tile, over top of linoleum tile, was horrific. Terribly time consuming and the most labour intensive thing we've done so far. The cabinets came down easily, thanks to our friend the sledge hammer. We were careful not to damage walls or ourselves though.






This is our delivery from Ikea. Our kitchen in 115+ flat packed boxes. Assembly required. Lots of assembly required. There are three separate stacks of cabinets and another pile of very long pieces off to the side. We were only short 3 boxes when we went through the inventory. All front panels for drawers. Went to Ikea the next day and picked them up.



Here is the new laminate floor in a medium oak. Tundra is the name, also from Ikea. It was the first time we laid down this kind of floor. Or any type of floor for that matter and I hated it. I loathe laminate flooring. Other than the hall, I think I will be hiring out for this process in the future. I actually preferred ripping out the tiles to this, while Rob - who also discover he hates laying laminate floor - preferred this over the hot-gun and trowel experience. It looks good and our neighbours think we did a good job of it. As long as it doesn't pop up in the next few years, I am happy.



The appliances came last week too. I could have held off longer, due to space issues, but it forced us to finish the floor "on schedule" and I like having the dishwasher and microwave here to build in as we do the cabinets.



Building the cabinets is not hard at all. It is actually kind of fun, seeing the pieces you've planned for and designed your kitchen around come to life. We have started on the fridge and stove side of the kitchen which wasn't quite as quick and easy as we would have liked. We had to close up a vent for the old fan over the stove. We could have vented the microwave that with the old vent but it comes with the ability to recycle the air around it, so we opted for that to get more cabinet space. We moved the wiring up on the wall and added a receptacle. Built in microwaves use plugs so we were forced to learn how to do some basic electrical work.




So that is what we've accomplished so far. We work mainly in the evening after Rob gets home from work. We've been without a sink for about a week now. We *hope* to have the base cabinets in on that side and plumbed by the end of next weekend. It should be done in another week and a bit. At least functional again. I can't even begin to think about painting, trim and baseboards yet. All in due time.

I have to say that I am really impressed with the whole Ikea kitchen experience. It is a lot of work but very straightforward. I'll post again when there is more kitchen to show off!

More...soon...hopefully!

In the middle of total kitchen reno. Rob and I are doing it all by ourselves with the help of books, neighbourly advice and the internet. Tonight the new floor will be done. Appliances were delivered this morning. Ikea boxes containing doors, drawers and cabinets (about 115 of them) have taken over my teeny, tiny house. So, with that, shuffling the kids to their activities and constantly running back and forth from Home Depot, I am swamped. I have much to post. Many pictures to show off but all will have to wait another week or two.

The Kitchen Reno

This is what my life revolves around these days. Pulling up flooring. Laying down flooring. Little time for blogging. I hope to be back soon.

A belated Merry Christmas

The day came and went at a frighteningly fast pace. As usual. On the 23rd we visited with neighbours. It was a good excuse to stop doing stuff around the house for a few hours.


Christmas eve morning was the kids holiday party at Rob's office. It was our first chance to see where daddy actually works. His job requires a lot of security so unless you have one of those chipped ID cards, you can't get past the lobby, which we are quite familiar with. So we saw his cube. Not surprising to us at all, there was nothing hung up in the way of photos or drawings from the kids. We will be fixing that for him shortly. One of these days he'll notice an extra heavy backpack. We took the train in that morning, at Izzy's request, which was nice. No fighting major traffic. Santa dropped by the party with toys for the kids. Alex got a Bionicle and Izzy received a Mermaid barbie. There were lots of games and sugary treats. It was quite a lot of fun.

After the party we went out for an early lunch at East Side Marios. We took our time getting home.

Christmas Day was spent at home.



The kids were thrilled with their presents.




I managed a turkey dinner and since it was my turn to host Christmas on Boxing Day for the in-laws we moved the dinner to Grandpa's house while I provided the lasagnas.




Sadly, it was rushed business. We took down the tree as soon as we got back from Grandpa's. The renovation couldn't wait any longer. Cabinets and appliances were on their way and we had a deadline to meet. Next Christmas will be much more relaxing. I hope.

Christmas next weeK? How did that happen?

I blinked and December is half over. Luckily my obsession with early Christmas shopping paid off very well this year. I am still shopping like crazy, only this is for the kitchen and not old St. Nick.

Still, it feels odd. Like this will be the Christmas that wasn't. The kids will get their gifts and I managed to squeeze the tree into a very packed living room but the things that usually make me feel festive aren't going to happen. I have done no baking at all. Nada. Zippo. Everyone who knows me knows all about the dozens of treats I bake every year. I might try to whip off a few butter tarts or shortbread cookies but that seems less likely with each passing day. There have been no evenings cuddled on the couch watching Christmas movies. No time for that. Not even a walk around the neighbourhood to look at all the lights.

The kids have been slightly more neglected these days. It doesn't help that all of their activities go on hold for a few weeks. It helps when we have to be somewhere, at some specific time. Things will be a little off kilter these next few months so outside sources, like gym classes, are a good way to refocus our attention elsewhere and let the kids blow off steam.

I cannot wait until I get my kitchen back.

Creative Planning

As if I didn't anything to keep me busy, what with Christmas, a complete kitchen renovation and now a foundation leak, I need to get the kids organized for January. Everyone is signing up for their programs and lessons. This month the kids started gymnastics and art resumes in January. They will still have Beavers, Dance and Swim lessons. I found a piano teacher for Alex, so we'll give that a shot in the new year, as well. There are other activities in between, like gym or soccer at the Y. Free range play-dates with other hs kids. So much for life settling down after the holidays.

At least they'll still have some structure but in all likelihood formal lessons will be at the bottom of our list in the months to come. Alright, formal lessons have never been overly important to us, not in the traditional sense anyway. At least not yet. Still, every few days we'd crack open the math books or do something science or geography related. I am trying to get my guilt out of the way now for all the neglect they will be suffering soon...if not already.

The upside has been that Alex has become quite proficient with reading on his own. The kids mostly play well together and are quite imaginative. They are getting better at finding things to do that don't require my help or constant supervision. I'll think of it as more of a lesson on independence. See, you can find a silver lining in every cloud!

People Plan, the Universe Laughs!

I had it all under control. Kids Christmas gifts were purchased before November even hit. (I have predictable, easy-going kids where gift giving is concerned.) Lists were made for errands, meal planning, etc. The goal was to not be running around like a chicken without its head through the month of December. To avoid malls at all costs! This time I was going to enjoy it and stress less. Ha. Ha. Ha. The tree is not up. Rob's not complaining but it now puts more stress on my 'relaxed' schedule. The kids will be out of town this weekend and the next few days are overflowing with things to do (last minute details not originally in the plan like doctor appointment and the whole shopping for everything one would need to outfit a new kitchen from scratch). I am starting to wonder how to fit in Rob's work, home schooling, renovation and Christmas in one month.

On a brighter note this advent thing is working out wonderfully. It actually forces me to do what is written on those little notes. Like today it said make ornaments out of clay. Not a big deal, right? Well, we had a busy morning where the kids had their first gymnastics class. We then went on to check out some prices on plumbing fixtures at Home Depot. Got home, Izzy needed a nap and I wound up having to track down four neighbours and tell them about a canceled board meeting. Finally got dinner on the table, Rob's home and slightly grumpy, the living room is still a disaster and the advent calendar promised fun with clay. Any other time I would have said kids, its late, we're tired...another day. I couldn't do it though. It would have completely taken away all the substance of my little project. So we did it, kids got to stay up a little late and honestly, we were all in better moods for it. I didn't feel guilty and the kids weren't disappointed.

While washing the dishes I wondered if we needed a monthly advent system. Not just to have something to look forward to but to force ourselves to have fun, even when we feel like putting it off.

Kitchen Woes

I just remembered what I've been busy with the past week and a half! Being forced to embark of home renovations just weeks before Christmas.

It isn't a pretty kitchen. It is barely even a functional kitchen. Now it is just a grouping of cheaply made (now ruined and rotten inside) cabinets whose days are quickly numbered. We came back from a weekend away to a leak. Inside down to the basement and outside the house, originating in the kitchen. Very scary. We always knew we were going to gut the kitchen and put a new one in but that was down the line, when we had more money to do it. Well, not only are the cabinets ruined but the flooring is toast too. Water soaked under two layers of crappy peel and stick tiling (oh, how I'll miss that *sniff, sniff*) and down to the plywood.

So now we must start on the most expensive phase of our home improvement schemes. At least this will be money well spent and add to our home's value. I have a plan. With such a simple galley kitchen and a few years of drafting under my belt, I came up with my dream kitchen. Well, my first home, townhouse - realistic about property values - dream kitchen. We're going with Ikea cabinetry that Rob and I will put in ourselves. And by that I mean we will likely have a lot of help from our very handy neighbours. We will do it in phases so we don't break the bank and have decided to redo the entire main floor flooring while we are at it. Sadly that part will include ripping up a large section of ceramic tile. With the realities of Rob working full time, me busy home schooling the kids and our overall lack of enthusiasm when it comes to all things involving manual labour, I give us a year for completion. We'll be thrilled if it is all done by next Christmas.

This was kind of a blessing in disguise for us. We probably would have done this a year before we sold and now, as Rob says, we'll get to enjoy it for a while instead of just fixing the place up for someone else.