A Busy Weekend...

Library Nook
Moving in got off to a slow start this week.  Between remodeling the kitchen, the ongoing electrical and plumbing work taking place, more job interviews and family needs, very few boxes got unpacked.  On Friday, I finally had a day to focus on settling in.  What I really needed to do was get the kitchen primed and painted in preparation for the kitchen installation.

But there were things sitting in the kitchen that needed moved first.  And to move them, I had to take care of other things.  It was sort of an endless chain of "to do this, I must first deal with this..."  I started in the basement where most of the ceiling and all of the bathroom needed drywall/plaster repair.  It was a mess!  I started by cleaning.  Plaster dust permeates everything, so the shop vac, broom and bucket and rags all got a hefty work out.  So did my arms, back and knees!

Once cleaned, I had to prime and then paint the plastered and newly textured walls.  Only then could I move the bookshelves into the basement.  And if I was moving them anyway, it seemed a good time to go ahead and get them up and load them with the books that were taking up enormous amounts of space (where other things needed to go!)  Now, at the base of the stairs, there is a cozy little library nook, freshly painted and with nearly all of my books out of boxes for the first time in 8 years!  

Living Room coming together
We were able to get most of the boxes out of the living room as well as all those bookshelves and the two chairs that now reside in the library nook, which gave us room to put together the two new IKEA chairs.  I love their linen slipcovers and look forward to getting a matching one for the sofa!  The dining room is still the staging area for all the other things going on, so the dining chairs are packed into every nook and cranny.  This room is finally feeling more like a living room

Dryer Plug woes
There were some frustrations along the way ~ like discovering that the new dryer outlet didn't fit the plug on my dryer!  Turns out that code now requires a four prong plug.  Thankfully, son Jonathan was able to replace the dryer cord for me!  How nice it is to be able to do laundry again!

Temporary Shower Fix
Another positive was getting a temporary fix on the shower so that it could be used.  Especially since it seems that it's going to take forever to get the tile fixed.  Everything is always more complicated than you think it should be.  But at least I can get clean at the end of the day!

New Sink Vanity
I asked the plumber to look into why my bathroom sink was draining so slow.  Turns out that there was a toothbrush embedded in the depths of the drain, as well as so much gook that it didn't have much opening.  So the drain got replaced... but in the process the sink broke.  Leading to my need to go get a new sink.  I came back with this lovely little bathroom vanity and sink.  But the pipe wouldn't fit the cabinet, so the plumber had to put a "notch" in it.  The little notch turned out to be a hack job on the inside of the cabinet.  At least it looks nice on the outside and the sink works and drains properly.  Sigh.

Last Coat of Paint
Eventually we were able to get to the main job of priming (one coat) and painting (two coats) the kitchen!  Jessie was a huge help and between the two of us, we got the job done at last!  Then we cleaned the floors of all the plaster dust.  It was a hands and knees job and took both of us almost as long as it did to do all those coats of primer and paint!  I had hoped to get the floors refinished before the cabinets were installed, but floor refinishers seem to be either; a) in high demand with overly full schedules and so unavailable, or b) not professional enough to return phone calls.   It will happen eventually!  How great to get all the switch-plate covers on, move the washer and dryer back into their designated spaces and step back and look at the almost finished kitchen!

Sanding the countertops
With the kitchen installation happening tomorrow, I needed to get the countertops ready.  They come with a light coat of finish on them and since I wanted to stain them darker, I needed to sand them.  Thankfully it was a gorgeous mid-November day and I was able to do it in the backyard.  We discovered that empty book boxes make great temporary workbenches!  You can see that I'm using the last of my big baggy clothes as work clothes.  Who cares if they get paint and stain on them!  Makes for unflattering photos of me though!

Staining in progress
Once the countertops were sanded and the kitchen painting/cleaning completed, we spread new clean plastic on the floor and brought the freshly sanded countertops in.  Here, the two counters on the right have their first coat of stain (SafeCoat stain in Cedar) while the one on the left shows it in it's unstained condition.

Stained Countertops
The counters got a total of 3 coats of stain to get the depth of color I wanted.  It's almost a perfect match to the wood floors in the rest of the house!  Hopefully, once the kitchen floor gets refinished, it will also match!  Once the counters are installed, I'll seal the tops with a satin finish.

Tomorrow morning, the crew arrives to assemble and install the kitchen!  The new stove has been waiting in the garage.  The new refrigerator should be delivered within the next week or so.  In the meantime, the garage refrigerator, meant to be used for soda, beer and wine, is doing extra duty for us.  The only thing we saved from the old kitchen is the stainless dishwasher, which will do for now, though eventually I would like to switch it for a white one.  The plumbing will get hooked up on Tuesday (with strict instructions to the plumber on how NOT to make a mess of my new cabinets!) so by Wednesday, the kitchen should be functional enough to spend the day making pies and rolls for Thanksgiving!  




Comments

Kath said…
I love your library nook! I am very envious.

I did smile when I read ""to do this, I must first deal with this"

We always liken it to one of those puzzles, where all the squares have to end up in a certain design. But first you need to move that one, to get this one over there, which means you can slide the next one into the right position.. and so on.
Cathy said…
Woo-hoo! What a lot of work you have put in for the last couple months, and now it is coming together so beautifully! You have so much to be thankful for! I know this could be a bittersweet Thanksgiving for you, but I hope you will dwell mostly on the overwhelmingly positive and wonderful family with you this year. Bless you and yours.

And keep sending those pictures!!

Hugs,
Cathy
terryb said…
I don't know about you but I'm exhausted! Your new home is looking beautiful. Love the book nook.
Val said…
So much work but it's great to see it all coming together. I can hardly wait to see the kitchen installed and finished!
Gerry Krueger said…
I'm so anxious to see the kitchen floor finished... I was so envious of all that wood... Gerry
Adrienne said…
I've loved watching all the bits and pieces of your new home come together. I can't wait to see your new kitchen. I smile every time I read your blog and think of the blessings you are beginning to enjoy. Happy Thanksgiving, my friend.
~Adrienne~
Laurie said…
It's turning out so beautiful Lisa, I love your library nook, and those counter tops are gorgeous! All your hard work is truly paying off. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving Lisa!
Brian said…
Hi,

I have a quick question about your blog, do you think you could e-mail me?

Brian

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