Congratulations! I don't have the first hand experience yet as our demo will start 7/18 or 7/21. But I know when I hear which it is, I'll STILL be unprepared in many ways.

Best I can say is many before you have survived it and I'll be right behind you. :)

As one who is at the end of the kitchen renovation (mostly DIY), let me assure you of 2 things...

1. It will get worse...much worse!
2. It will be so worth it in the end!

We are down to just piddly stuff like touch up painting and a little bit of trim work. It got bad, really bad, for a few weeks and then it started to get better...slowly...but it got better...and then all of a sudden it got WAY better and even better than that!!

It'll bio loads of fun, especially if you have an older place and your interested by all the little hints from the past that will pop up. Colors, wallpaper, doorways that were covered up, flooring... I thought it was fun anyway.

Then one you start putting things back together you'll celebrate having things you took for granted. Like a sink, the ability to cook, ... Things like that.

Congrats! But you need some help!!! I hope it will all be done on time and you can get back into your new beautiful space very soon! It's going to be fabulous. It's stressful but also lots of fun. Please take time to get some rest : )

Been there, done that - It is worth it in the end!
Hang in there!

I had 2 unoriginal thoughts, already noted above.

1. It will get worse before it gets better. Then it will get much better.
2. Just wait and see what you find and find out about your house with the demo! I really liked this part.

Here's a 3d idea: start thinking about your kitchen-finished celebration meal! Talking about that meal got us through a lot of head ache.

Sounds like a rough start! Not much warning for packing. Wine. No one has mentioned wine. Stock up. Or beer, or if in Co or Wa, there are new (old) options, lol! There will be problems. Hopefully fixable or at least liveable ones. Try to keep a sense of humor, and know it will eventually come to an end. Good luck!!

But not too much wine or more head ache! ;)

Vodka makes everything better...or at least it let's you forget all the things that aren't!
Hang in there. It WILL be worth it in the end, just know that it will also, almost assuredly take longer than you thought it would.

Week 7 of no kitchen here and I completely agree with the others senitments. It will get worse before it's gets better! That being said there IS a light at the end of the tunnel... We are just waiting on countertops, then sink and cooktop installs and then the backsplash. There IS an end in sight and there will be for you too!

If it makes you feel any better we took on a kitchen gut and remodel, painting almost every room in the house, installing hardwood floors and new baseboards on the entire first floor. All at once. So if your house is messy, imagine what mine is like! I have no idea where anything is! See? I am sure you feel better already. :)

Along with the liquid spirits, get some much needed sleep. I thought the packing up was the worst. It's all in the basement now, so you've got time to organize.
I really enjoyed the demo-especially getting down to the studs. You've got some stressful days ahead, but alot of fun ones too. You can always come here & vent or celebrate.

Be positive, you will survive this.

I'm on day 1,110 of a DIY whole house remodel on a 100-year-old house. The first two years I remodeled the outside of the house, and one inside room, an upstairs bedroom, has now been finished. Right now, half the upstairs and half the stairwell is unfinished drywall; every window in the house except the finished bedroom has no drywall or trim around it; there are holes everywhere in the walls and ceilings (lath and plaster); there is temporary wiring and plumbing running here and there; and one wall of the upstairs bathroom is unfinished drywall.

It's funny, but I don't even notice it anymore and by the time I finish I will have forgotten how bad everything was before I started, but I know it will be worth it.

Thank you so much for all your tips and support! I truly appreciate it. I know that others have gone through this and survived and seen their vision come alive-so I am hoping we will get there at the end.

I walked in after work yesterday and oh my! was it different. All the walls and ceilings down to studs, wires hanging everywhere, and was it HOT! Didn't realize how much heat the attic reflects off. I stood for a long time at the front door trying to see in my head how it will look all together and wasn't succeeding at all. Things look so much better after a full night's sleep. I can see where we are going and not feel like all the $$$ we are throwing in as a waste.

Some of you asked about interesting findings from the demo. Nothing cool here-other than a old Beatles trading card. Showed it to my 8 yr old and he just shrugged!! kids these days :-).They also found my missing cutting boards(i use the thin plastic ones for some things), some old knives and placemats. It is amazing how much space was there between the framed cabinets and the pantry for thin things to slip through. Good thing we are doing frameless now!

Yes, I found my stash of wine in the midst of all the chaos in the basement. Spent all evening cleaning up the basement and now at least there is a path from one end to the other. Today morning was much smoother for everyone. Hope we will get into a groove by the weekend.

Once again, thanks for all the support.