Thanks! I ordered two more upper cabinets to go over the desk and two rev-a-shelves and will have to install those plus put the crown molding on top of the cabinets. Then the hardwood floors have to be refinished. Today have to plant some flowers that HD said they would replace since they died on the first day. It's just a couple so that's good, the rest of them are flourishing. Good luck on your projects!

CEF, what a sad story about that woman and her boy. I'm glad you were able to help them out. How's the search for the tenant going?

Gr8day, you did a gr8 job there! LOL. I am still amazed at your laundry room.

Terri! We NEED the recipe for those cupcakes! They look awesome!

Annkh, what a fun vacation!

Schicksal, OMG!! I LOVE the green ones! LOVE THEM! Green is my fave of course, but I think they would look terrific in your kitchen. Your counters look perfect!

Yesterday, I went to Costco and they price adjusted my swing and returned me $100, thank goodness for my friend who texted me it was on sale while I was away. :) Then I mowed front and back lawn, went to the salvage yard to look for a hubcap that fell off this winter, fixed my rear wiper, got a haircut, made some home made weed killer and sprayed some weeds and then I just vegged and read on my swing. I had farmstand corn and salad for dinner.

I started this post last night, DH called me to move the last few boxes out of the kitchen. I just got back and finished it (so the days probably don't make sense). But I'm now enjoying the last cup of coffee made in the old kitchen. All I have left to do is the last few dishes in the old kitchen and move a couple things like the brita pitcher, etc.

gr8day - said it before, I'll say it again, I love your laundry room!

annkh - that looks heavenly. I'm a water baby. DH isn't. Many, many of my best memories are at lakes.

terri - must. have. recipes! Those sound amazing. We frequent the Brown Butter Cookie Company when anywhere near Cayucos.

beauty - glad the CC issue wasn't worse.

schicksal - both nice, I really like #1, but I'm partial to non-rectangular stuff (Geometry teacher).

Tomorrow is demo day. Kitchen is almost empty. DH helped through the parts that I was struggling to attack.

The over-fridge cabinet was supposed to be delivered today by 5. I had classes starting at 3:30. I had two people on backup to take my classes if it hadn't arrived. I got a call about 11:30 that it'd be here tomorrow 12-2.

While teaching, dogs start going crazy and I hear a knock at the door. Fearing that it's the tomorrow cabinet that I have to sign for, I excuse myself (NEVER happens) and it was UPS. They left stuff on the porch. After class I discovered it was bringing "3 missing floating shelves". However, I'd explained to the KD, though they thought my shelves were missing, but they weren't. But I didn't REALLY get 3 floating shelves. I got one long one, one short one, and one box labeled that it was another, natural cherry 33" floating shelf, and it's really about a 3'x3' quarter sawn oak end panel. Huh? Whatever, good I didn't need the shelves (though I might use them since they're here...I doubt they'll ask for them back.)

GC said to have the gas co turn off gas and the water co turn off water for demo day. I called the gas co and they said they could be out on the 29th. GC seemed to expect they'd hop over here in the morning to turn it off and back over at night to turn it on. I didn't even try with the water company. There are two layers of shut off we can do. Probably covering his a..

I'm leaning towards the non-rectangular tiles too. To me they add a vintage touch to an otherwise modern kitchen but don't look out of place. The kitchen is the only room in the original footprint of the house that I'm not going MCM with.

If you shut off the gas will the water heater and furnace work (I know... wrong season), or are those electric?

No, they won't work. But he said to have them shut off for the day. Not happening. He said it's a precaution for demo. When I emailed him back he said 'Husband can turn them off.' I didn't explain that husband won't be here. I just said okay. I figure demo guy will either A) turn it off or B) tell me how, or more likely C) laugh at the thought.

CEFreeman - I forgot to mention the fabric story. Yes, very relatable. Mom had a TON of fabric that I inherited. And I'd amassed a half ton myself. I got rid of most between my move here 14 years ago and a big decluttering since. I can still picture which drawer in which dresser some pieces of fabrics were in practically my whole life. Strong, strong memories. I wish I'd taken pictures of some at least.

cal_quail. How nice. :) I understand.

Today isn't a good day. My Morgan's back legs are really failing. She can get up with a struggle. Once up, she gimps along, but there is no getting up a step or standing for a long time. I am afraid I have to take her in very soon. I just can't do it today.

I painted hopefully the last coat of paint on my MBR. I started a thread entitled "When you write on the walls..." I primed all the things I've written on the drywall with an oil-based, stain blocking primer. All around the entire house. I'll paint that tomorrow.

I go to work at 3:00.

Pleasant thoughts for Morgan. Always super hard to deal.

Demo guy looked at me confusedly when I said GC said gas and water would have to be shut off at meters. Shouldn't have lost sleep. Luckily, I was too tired to lose much.

3/4 through demo. Second guessing things, of course. The fridge is staying in the same location. Once the end panel came down, I wish we'd at least checked out a plan with the range and fridge switched. It was a GW suggestion, but between getting gas across the kitchen and the fact that I didn't think I'd like the functionality as well, we didn't pursue it. However, I didn't factor in how much it opens the view from the LR/DR. But, the new fridge will be so much less deep, I'll survive. And since I didn't want two sinks, I'd rather have the fridge by the sink than the range by the sink.

Cool flooring! The brick walls make me think moving utilities would be extra fun.

...which is why nothing on the brick walls is moving. :)

The flooring is sheet vinyl in rusty tones because the old counter was rust laminate. We only put it in a couple years ago and I love the function so much, it's hard for me to okay DH's desire for tile in the kitchen.

That cabinet between the windows, THAT's the one I wanted down long, long ago, but didn't want to risk hurting the brick any more than a professional would. That's where we'll have floating shelves. There and where that utility cab is in the corner.

I assumed demo included taking up the floor. Evidently not, since we're not getting the floor at HD. I can take up floor. I've done that plenty.

And I've decided that I'll paint in the interim. I loaded up with classes for the weekend since my weekdays are up in the air, but I think I can get it done by Monday. We're undecided on wall color, but better to definitely get the ceiling done and put SOMETHING on the walls. We're not doing anything dark, so I can always paint over it rather than just touch up, if we don't like the color. MIL has offered to help, and I said it could be odd hours and I'll be fine on my own, but if we end up with 'normal hours', I'll take the help.

CEF, ugh my heart breaks for..we have an old lady named Jillian. She will be 13 at the end of the month..I don't think there are to many years left..maybe 2, likely not..

gr8, you have the spiffiest laundry room ever! It'd make a great sewing room too.

Shicksal, I just love the shape of those tiles..and the color has just enough punch with being "hello!" Lol

CalQ, I absolutely love the sheet vinyl I left behind at my moms. It makes a difference to get the higher end stuff and have cush! This cheap stuff here...blech..

I will replace this with better quality sheet...some days I spend hours at a time on my feet in the kitchen..I am not looking forward to that day in this kitchen. (Friday) lol, I'm sure I'll be whining!

Okay so black cherry debut. Here's a peek at the color. I put the table all back together, but have to wait for different lighting to give you a full shot of my beauty.

This post was edited by terri_pacnw on Wed, Jul 16, 14 at 15:06

Lovely job, Teri! Doesn't that stuff have you looking around to see what else you can strip? It changed my whole outlook on just painting furniture. Which I do love, but if the finish can be restored, I'll try that step first.

I just called in to work. I can barely see to type, let alone talk.

For the first time since July 31, 2013 I have a kitchen sink.

On to the dishwasher panel...

Geez, you guys are all rockin' it out!!!

schicksal, I cannot imagine the pleasure you must feel with the sink accomplishment! Looks great, too!

terri, loving that black cherry stain. Hubba hubba!

I started feeling guilty around noon, but could not bring myself to crack open a paint can, and I had no energy, so I decided tot ackle the most tedious, mind-numbing job at hand: the "flower bed."

So all the rocks and weeds that are on the sidewalk were in the flower bed. now they are not. Only took me about four hours, I guesstimate another eight will get the job done. :o/

Wooohoooo! Working kitchen...working kitchen.......!!!

CEF,
I'm sorry your day is not going well.
I have to say this is the first piece I have ever stripped and went through the process start to finish. Years ago I tried stripping my old childhood bunk beds...couldn't get the "natural" stripper off..so I trashed the project.

And Yes, my writing desk is next, but not quite yet. And I am going to see what will happen if I put the Citristrip on the cabinet door.

Here's the guideline for the cupcakes. I did not care for the cupcake recipe, it was a new one. I will link to a yummy yellow cupcake recipe that I use a lot, sub brown sugar for the white and add a cup of chocolate chips. I prefer to use mini in cupcakes. I also wing my frostings..never really measure.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Cupcakes:

Cupcake, see note above
Brown Sugar Buttercream
1 c softened butter, 1/4 c brown sugar, whipped well together
Add 2 t vanilla, beat
Add 3-4 c powdered sugar beat add
2-3 T milk, 1/2n1/2, or cream to adjust consistency
Whip till fluffy, go ahead taste it..and again...

Brown Butter Brown Sugar Chocolate Chip Cookies
3/4 c butter, browned
1 1/2 c brown sugar
2 t vanilla
1/2 t salt
Mix well.
Add in one egg plus one yolk, beat in well.
Blend 2 c flour with 1/2t baking soda, add into batter and mix.
Fold in 2 cups or 4 over flowing handfulls of chocolate chips.
Bake cookie scoops at 350 for 8min for chewy and 9-10 for crisp.
To get the mini cookies, I used mini chips, scooped my dough out, then split each ball in half.
(I use a standard size cookie scoop.)

Here is a link that might be useful: Yellow Cupcake

Thanks! With the last kitchen I did it may have been 4-6 weeks without one. 111/2 months seems like forever ago. The dishwasher and its panel is now in too, so that's another thing off the to do list. Tomorrow I clean and go back to the family room. Going with panel ready appliances was a great choice, and the finger pull works just fine.

It's 8:45 and I haven't had dinner yet so that's next on the agenda...

Hey, I work like that too!

We just finished a meal of Spa-Get-E's and meatballs at my 17 yr olds request. Lol when he was little that's how he said it.
#3, Mr. 14 has requested waffles for Thursday Breakfast Dinner. Sounds good to me.

Isn't she a beauty? In her current location, both sides are down.

That's a cool table. Is that what you've been striping / refinishing?

Yes it is..
When I bought it a few weeks ago at a yard sale. I paid $30. It was spray painted black, with red edges and the top was chalk board.
This guy had a thing for black and red..he had lots of furniture pieces painted similar. I needed a low table that could fit under my picture window.
This had the matching leg shape to my writing desk in the same room and had the drop down sides so it was narrow enough to fit the space I wanted it for too.

Greenhaven, I missed your post the first time..

That was a lot of work! .I do that kind of weeding. Usually throw it in the lawn and the boys get mad because they mow over it.

Wow, cool! Spray paint can be nasty stuff to get rid of. What kind of finish did you apply? I'll have to give citristrip a try next month when I start working on the craftsman. After I finish with the kitchen and the place goes on the rental market I figure it'll be ok to bring home a door at a time to refinish. Using the heat gun and a scraper (controlled temperature / no lead exposure) takes a long time.

No progress here besides ordering wallpaper. Doubt it'll be here by the time the in laws show up, but who knows.

Holy Schmoley! I'm amazed at how much you guys get done in a week. Pats on the back all around.

CEF, Last week I met a woman from Jordan (the country). She and her husband are rehabbing a cute little house in his hometown. She was telling me about their reno adventures and I thought of you. Their property was overrun with poison ivy when they moved in. She solved the problem by borrowing a goat for a few weeks! Apparently they love the stuff and are good for clearing other noxious weeds too!

Around here, I've just got a few things left before I can call Phase One of our Ugly Duckling Lake House renovation complete: 1. Waiting on the electrician to come back to put in a couple of outlets that I forgot to specify when we put in the beverage center. 2. Touch up paint on a couple of shelves. 3. Find the box with all my cookbooks in it and put them in the new cabinet that I had made for them. 4. Find and install a replacement toekick plate for the dishwasher. The old one has disappeared.

Why can't I get these things done?

Terri, that turned out beautifully. Isn't it amazing? :)
I'm going to start on the antique bed I bought, to see what's under the alligatored finish, and on another kitchen cabinet. At least that is my plan. I don't feel like doing much.

edeevee, there's a whole bunch of land clearing being done in Rock Creek Park (Washington DC's version of Central Park) and parks along the Potomac with goats. A recent article was talking about how they're renting a herd from a farmer because they eat everything. Trash, vines, leaves, everything. Kind of like Round-Up, it's indiscriminate. But they can get in where humans would have to use heavy equipment or get covered with PI, PO, or PS. It's pretty amazing. Rock Creek is having a horrible time with English ivy pulling down trees. Do Not Plant it!!! That, Chinese hybrid honeysuckles and Wisteria.

Anyway, if you could tell them what not to eat, I'd rent a goat. In the meanwhile, all my Japanese maples, heuchera, hosta, and many other ornamentals will remain safe! :) Love those little goats, though.

I take Morgan in at 11:20. Oh, boy.

Ahh, didn't think about all the other stuff the goats might eat. My guess is that it worked for my new friend because she used the goats at the start -- before they had anything they wanted to save.

My heart goes out to you and Morgan.

CEF, I am very sorry for your trials with Morgan. I have an old cat here at home who is fine now but showing definite signs of aging rapidly. I hate that I have to start thinking about that stuff already. :o(

CEF said: "Rock Creek is having a horrible time with English ivy pulling down trees. Do Not Plant it!!! That, Chinese hybrid honeysuckles and Wisteria."

Add to that creeping euonymous. It was not a problem in IL but here in MI it is aaall over the woodlands in some areas. Scary! Rumor has it kudzu is spreading this way, too.

terri, I usually throw the small stuff in the lawn, I don't care if it gets mulched in by the mower. ;o) And I was just saying last night that I was jealous of everyone who finds these awesome trash or cheap pieces that just need love! You now how hard it is to even find discarded pallets anymore? People with more time and hauling space than I gather such things in large quantities and then SELL them to people like me who just want a few for projects. Lame.

The table and black cherry are fabulous Terri!

Greenhaven, that's a lot in one day! The pros and cons of rocks, they stay put.

I've considered goats on my hillside, below the fence where I have stuff I want to keep. It's really brushy, but since they're not picky, it'd give me a clean slate. But it's below the fence, and right now I just deal by cutting down the taller offenders as needed.

Today is electrician day. Kitchen is empty. I pulled the vinyl floor yesterday too. Mostly. There are some patches where the back stuck to adhesive and 90% of it just comes up when pulled slowly. The rest I can get with a putty knife. I was worried I'd have to go to the local flooring place and ask to borrow one of they're big scrapers. They've been great at letting me do that as I've done other rooms. This stuff was newish and laid on a clean surface, so it's not bad.

The only other thing the guy didn't take was the downdraft vent. You can see it and where the peninsula with the range was in the pic up above. I didn't complain, because I don't think he was supposed to haul away my old range, and I'm super glad he did. After the electrician does something about the wires, I'll see what I can do with it.

DH thinks we should have someone come in and paint. The problem is that I STILL don't know when cabinet install will start. Ridiculous! (I think, maybe I'm wrong.) The word HAS been that they'll tell me as soon as I get the last cabinet. It came, unscathed, yesterday. But their email said they wanted the electrician to have a look before they set the date. *)#@! I'm hoping that still means Monday or Tuesday. If later, then I guess there's time to have someone in to paint. But if it's Mon or Tues, there's no time to have someone else do it, it'll be nights and weekend work. I figure I'll start washing it down and filling stuff tonight. We'll see.

Thinking of you today CEF.

ETA: Oh, and I think it would be GREAT to have had the kitchen demo'd and THEN plan the kitchen. I have such a different perspective on the room! I know that's not practical, but seeing this big, white, bright, empty room and standing places I couldn't stand before, has me second guessing 80% of what's planned. I'm not questioning the sink placement, but that's about it. ;)

This post was edited by cal_quail on Thu, Jul 17, 14 at 8:58

Thank you, everybody, for your kind words. Of course, today she's having a great day and even barked at me when she realized I was up. Her eyes are clearer, and her ears are perky. I didn't give her the medicines yesterday. I've got a call into the Vet to see if anything she'd been taking would make her so sluggish and thick. Don't know what I'm doing.

I realized today that my youngest kitty is now probably 10. That makes my oldest between 12 and 14. They're not displaying old age yet, but oh, boy. I should say my tiniest kitty is now 10 or so. Buster, my now fattest boy is probably 4? I adopted him last Labor Day, so he's the most rambunctious youngest. And then there's my chronological age....

Teri, I also throw my weeds into the lawn. Why not? They've already germinated, so they're not seeds for future plants. I'd be throwing them in a compost pile if I had one, so why not mulch 'em back into the lawn. I'm even that way with small branches and things. I take things out to the garden and bury them. Coffee grounds and filters. Egg shells. Veggie scraps when I make soup. Anything not protein. Why not? They're gonna just end up there, anyway! So if someone's fussing, tell them they're welcome to 1) weed and/or 2) pick them up and get rid of them before they mow. I'm certain they're physically capable of doing that, not just sitting on a mower and whining. How's that for tellin' 'em?!

greenhaven, I think I've decided to make my kitchen floor out of pallets I get from a medical equipment importer. They're huge machines, so the wood is 3/4" oak. Absolutely beautiful grain! I made a bunch of doors and drawer fronts for the MBR cabinets out of them. My thought is to check the phone book and see if you have any in the area. They're giving the pallets away, so it's not like someone can claim them all. Unless they've wised up and are now selling pallets to nut cases like me.

Why not paint before cabinets? That's the way I've normally done it. It's much easier, then you just go back and touch up the couple of spots where something rubbed the wall or ceiling.

CEF - what a tough decision. My heart is with you today.

I painted my kitchen before cabinet install - ceilings and walls. It was the easiest paint job ever! I didn't even have to drop cloth the floors.

CEF, I've been there with old pets. We euthanized our 13-yr-old black lab on Christmas Eve day - our sons (age 8 at the time) said Jack's Christmas present was a ticket to Heaven.

For years he had been an old, arthritic dog, and that's how we thought of him. But when he was gone, we remembered him as the active, energetic dog that he had been for many years, and those memories were a joy (and still are, 12 years later).

Hugs to you and Morgan. She's a lucky dog, with a life filled with love and comfort.

CEF: Sending support! They don't dread the rainbow bridge the way we humans do, and it's better to set them loose there before they suffer too much. To them, you are with them, and they go to sleep, calm and peaceful. To us, we stress about playing God, etc. It's one of the hardest things we fur parents have to do. It really hurts.

Awe, Annk, that is so smart of those boys.

Yeah Jilly has good days and slower days.
Sometimes meds are prescribed wrong, you might be on to something.

The finish on my table is just semi gloss poly. I put it on with a 2" foam sponge brush. 2 coats, steel wool between coats..because that's what the boy said to do. (He did not like wood shop, but his report card comment said, real natural talent, should contiue further classes.) We were shocked he even took it.
He's a total STEM Geek/Gamer. He's a super smart human. A very wise old soul. But is a teenager that has a sucky 'tude lately..Yesterday he was "my" boy again. It was a good day to share.

Well today is some prep work in the kitchen for the party.

Christine, I'm so sorry. I haven't been keeping up with your Week threads and decided to stop in today and see what was going on.

I've been through this too many times, and saying goodbye never gets any easier. But it's the promise I make to all my animals. I will give them the best life possible, and when it's time, I won't make them linger or suffer because it's too hard for me.

I do firmly believe that there's more than this earthly existence and that animals have souls and we'll all be together in that sweet by and by.

Right, want to paint before cabinets. Initially we were told we could paint after, preferably, because then things wouldn't need touching up. Or we could paint before. But it sounded like demo would happen one day and install would start the same or the next day, so it didn't seem feasible before. With this demo Wed, electrician Thurs, Plumber Fri and then who knows when cabinets, we have the time. BUT since it's a weekend, we couldn't have someone IN to do it, it'd definitely be DIY. And I've loaded up with classes. So I'm still thinking that I'll do it between Fri night, Sat early, Sat night, Sun early, and Sun night.

The biggest issue about doing the paint is the prep because of weirdness of the different textures of the different surfaces and different layers of finish on those different surfaces. There are a couple holes in the drywall that are sizable enough that they need to be patched. I'm not equipped for that. There's a chunk of adhesive of some sort on the brick from where the laminate was attached. I got one off that was left, but this other one is stubborn. I did try hitting it with a hammer, it didn't budge. I will try cutting it off. There are some little chunks missing in the brick where a cabinet was attached. I don't know what to use to patch that.

I used to think I was a fairly handy person and DIYer, but I've got to say I'm feeling less and less equipped as time goes on. So many of you do so much, I'm not worthy.

The non-kitchen contractor is coming by tomorrow morning to talk to me about either doing the patching and/or painting, but he said his guys couldn't start until Tuesday. Which may or may not be before cabinets.

Kitchen GC is supposed to come when the electrician is here this morning, so I'll try to get info from him, both about when they'll start cabinets and ideas on some of my prepping q's.

Also, the plumber was unsuccessful snaking the line (drained, but slowly and not all the way, still blocked) and will be back out today with the jet and the camera. We'd used the same plumber the whole time we'd been here, second and third generation of plumbers that inlaws used first, second and third. But we'd not been happy with them the last few times. Second generation died earlier this year, so we decided to switch. Using another local company that the neighbors seem to use and inlaws had in as a sub on a job that a GC called at their new home.

We've known that we have a line of bottle brush and pineapple guava that act as a fence/screen from the neighbors' driveway that are right over our sewer line and the roots are an issue. We're planning to take them out, but then we have to build a fence and/or if we have to replace the sewer line, then, can we plant there with a new and improved sewer line? So that project, and finishing the front yard landscaping always gets pushed down the line. But we've never had it looked at with a camera. I'm hoping that we'll get a clear idea of what to do and just do it now. Not in the budget, but...

CEFreeman ... It's the hardest and the last good thing you can do for a pet.

OMG I missed all the talk about the pet problems. That's sad, I've thought a few times about my own dog getting old someday and it's not something I can dwell much on. I can't imagine what one goes through when that time draws near. :(

Over here I finished the high side of the ceiling. Only the last partial row of the low side remains. Tomorrow I caulk and paint. I wanted to cut the grass but last time I used the mower I forgot to turn the key "off" so it sits on a battery charger tonight.

Looking good!
Well my accomplishments were in the kitchen. All food though.
Today's list:
Double batch of Maple BBQ sauce
Homemade vanilla wafers
Homemade vanilla custard
Triple batch of BBQ Rub
Spicy ranch dip
Salted caramel sauce
Flourless Chocolate Torte
Cranberry Cream cheese

And shortly I'll turn 1 standard pillow case into two small accent pillow covers.

Oh we just put the new aluminum door sweeper on. Which required a trip for hubby to town for a new hack saw.. 3/4" to long..

Tomorrow's list:
Snickerdoodle Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Buttercream
Gunner's Pasta Salad (GF noodles, browned beef, kidney beans, grn pepper, tomatoes dressed with homemade Catalina and seasoned with taco seasoning)
Turkey rollups (Costco copycat, hence the cranberry cream cheese)
Slice and marinate chicken breasts for skewers
Rub rib racks
Spinach Dip

Oh and clean the house.

Then run to Costco when hubby gets home from work.

Many hugs for you and Morgan, CEF. It's a tough time for sure. We love our pets and don't want them to suffer but we don't want to let them go, either.

Holy cow, I am going to terri's for dinner. Ohhhh yum!

Party is Saturday at 2.

Ooh there's more than all that..that'll be made and grilled that morning.

Kitchen has a nice trench in it, the downdraft vent is gone, and there's lots of drawing on the walls.

The electrician didn't do any electrical work, just get briefed by and strategize with the GC and then went for supplies. GC left after talking to him, then came back to do the trench in the slab for the electrical to the island. Tomorrow the electrician and plumber should both do everything, theoretically.

GC says that the guy who patches drywall, etc. will be available Tues or Wed. Then cabinets installed Thurs, Fri, maybe into Sat or Mon. So I need to set templating up for Mon 7/28.

Glad to have a plan, but that puts us getting appliances and doing finishing touches just the week before we go back to school 8/11. Better than after, but I'm sad that my summer will be over. I'm sad that I'm looking forward so much for my summer to be over.

Mostly frustrated because that means that these cabinets will have been in my house a full 2 weeks before they'll be touched. Grrr.

Should get things mostly painted by then though.

It may be a good thing that cabinets hang around for just a little while; at least they won't get bumped/banged while other things are going on.

I'll second going to terri's for dinner. Last night was Taco Bell and PBR because I kept working until late again.

PBR and Taco Bell..........oh my

I could have fed you waffles, sausage patties and scrambled eggs with chipotle cheddar. But we are out of beer.

CalQ, that sounds like progress. If you are done from demo to finished in several weeks, you planned well.

True. Keep telling me that. I will need it these next couple weeks.

Definitely want Terri's party/food. Taco Bell and PBR sound pretty good right now too. Last night...Pizza and Vodka. :)

I need to work in the yard today. Besides plant tending, I'm going to clean the patio so I can do some food prep out there and enjoy sitting out there. It looks like, knock on wood, it's going to stay decent temps for the duration of the summer that I'm home. Woo hoo! I prefer 60's and 70's. I can deal up to low 90's. But I definitely am in the wrong spot, because we're frequently over that. Luckily, not a lot this summer.

They've got the kitchen/DR door sealed up with black plastic. It's maddening! I want to watch! Electrician is here. I only made 3 changes this morning. ;) Asked him to not make the outlets on either side of the range the focal points that GC has them drawn out as. I asked him to move them down and outward. On another wall (drywall, not masonry) I asked him to also make the outlet not so obtrusive. And I asked about putting an outlet into the utility cabinet to charge hand vac, etc. So far, so good. Plumber and GC due soon. Then I'll run up to the inlaws and start some laundry!

The weather has certainly been pretty good for us too. :)
Black plastic? That is cruel!

I can go no further in the food prep until I head to the store for 2 things. I thought I was good...oh well...and stop by my mom's to grab the meat that was thawing in her empty fridge. ;)

Okay there is a bottle of pink wine my oldest left when he was here with his wifey for the 4th.?? And some large containers of frozen water in the freezer.

I did not know window washing was such a work out! I can't show off my "view" with water marked windows. ;)
At my mom's the 3 livingroom tall skinny windows face the back yard, only needed cleaned once a year.
So I've sprayed down the showers/tub and sinks. Squirted blue stuff in the toilets. Time to move back to the bathrooms for the scrubbing. Then a few more windows.
Then out on my errands.

Almost time to go home from work, finally. I can't wait to wrap up the ceiling work, get back to caulking and begin painting already. That's the one thing really keeping me from putting the family room back together. I have no way to paint the area above the entertainment center so this will probably be a 2-3 day affair. Late tomorrow if I'm lucky.

More than anything I'm curious how caulking everything will impact dehumidifier run time. With the ceiling nearly complete I've noticed humidity tracking a couple of percent lower today but I'm not sure if that's a real change or just statistical noise. Air finds creative ways to sneak in though.

Interesting that it maybe, a well caulked and insulated space will eventually even out. Although with that fancy steam oven, you'll be creating more. ;)

Fence is DONE!!!!!

However, nothing has been done on the inside plaster since the rear bedroom was finished ... I'm priming it and will paint and keep living in dust and chaos.

Ordered a NEW STOVE ... double-oven with the small "pizza and muffin" oven on top of a larger oven. Replacing an elderly (1996?) flat-topped Whirlpool with an LG dual oven flat-top 5-burner. :)

Losing the pan storage drawer but I don't care.

Need to buy OTR microwave/exhaust combo ... getting back some counterspace will be nice.

Lazygardens,
I would love to hear how you use that new oven..after you've had it a while.

I'm trying to decide between a double of some sort and a huge three rack like I put at my mom's.

I finished stitching up the side of my mini plum pillows!

I tended to some roses today, but that was the extent of my yard work. May squeeze some more in, but it's doubtful.

Electrician looks to have another full day of work Monday. He found some interesting things in my walls that made it take more time. Plumber moved the gas line from previous gas dryer to new gas range (I've got to check the specs...looks high and looks like it sticks out quite a bit) and moved the one supply line for the washer over as needed. But...I think it's too tall. But that should be easy enough to cut down if needed. I emailed GC, plumber didn't fix sink plumbing yet. Supposed to get new angle stops etc. GC's wife called and said that's no biggie, it'll get done before cabinet install, or even after. I said since they're leaking, I'd prefer it was before. She didn't know they were leaking, so it will now be before.

My big accomplishments for the day were nailing down almost all lighting issues, I think. I bought the recessed lighting things (I don't know what they are each called...the attach them in the ceiling part and the plug them into that part...but don't call it a bulb), a few dimmers, one receptacle with usb holes. I ordered a few more lighting/switches related things on Amazon and should be here Sunday. And I emailed and talked on the phone with Environmental Lighting and got a plan for my UCL. I'm sure I could have pieced together something less expensive, but I understand this and can install it myself, so that'll be a savings in itself. Also, I confirmed that I need one less outlet for the UCL installed, so that will save.

I 'adjusted' a few things re: the electrician's work. The GC had drawn the outlets smack-dab in the middle of the backsplash. I had him move them down and over on either side of the range. I didn't ask the one in the middle of another wall to be moved, though it probably could be. I may end up asking about that if it wears on me this weekend. And I also asked him to install an outlet in the utility cabinet so I can charge my hand vac, Braava, etc.

Tacos just arrived. :)

Sounds like things are going as scheduled, something that's more than envious.

5am and I'm here at work... commuter mugs are still mostly full at this point. Today's goal is no nap when I get home this afternoon. I finished caulking the high side of the ceiling yesterday and painted most of that end. I asked for the exact same paint color that I was using on the walls. What I got was something slightly different. Of course it's not returnable and I found out after I started anyway. It's quite close though and I may just use it. In order to see a difference from the floor you have to really be looking for it and know there actually is one. If I'm still not happy with it, apparently it's a whole lot easier to paint the ceiling than I thought it would be.

Today if I can finish painting the ceiling on the high side + cut the last thin row, caulk and paint on the low side I'll be more than happy. That means door frame work and casing / baseboards start tomorrow.

Shicksal, at least it'll look like it was on purpose, vs. the middle of a wall that is so evident! Great job on finishing that ceiling in the 1st place. That's a huge accomplishment in the face of many.

I put down about 5 wheel barrows of wood chips, then it became meltingly hot.

Moving to the shade, I cut out some shrubs that just weren't recovering from the cold winter. They are just skanky and pathetic. It was hard to give up on them, but enough is enough.

I admit it, shrubs never spoke to me, but I thought they'd grow and provide shade from horizontal sun. Nope. Never got big enough.

I'm creating a whole different looking garden. I've planted a few of my hosta that have been in pots for almost 10 years. I should divide, but I'll let them establish, then probably. I couple of huechera, heucherella and tirrella. They look really nice. A birch I grew from about a 2' stick (whip) is shading them. I just don't have enough shade! I'm going to move some day lilies into the sunny part, and divide some incredible iris that make huge blossoms.

I mowed the lawn: 3 hours.

Sat on the porch and stared a while.

This post was edited by CEFreeman on Sat, Jul 19, 14 at 7:40