Kitchen Renos – Oh, What A Beautiful Day

Monday – Somewhat rested and trying really hard to begin this week with my usual routine, I did my workout and was finished by the time the boys arrived to continue on with the renovations. It felt good to get back on the treadmill (something I thought I’d never hear me say) and get back to my story I’ve been following. For 45 minutes I was able to clear my head watching a TV show where other people had worse problems.

The rest of the day wasn’t as bad as Nat and I thought. Simon and Dale worked along at a pretty good pace and before we know it, the range hood was up and the sink was down. I’m loving the new sink – all white and no more discoloured stainless steel.

I managed to get some errands done at WalMart as Nat watched the goings-on in the kitchen. By mid-afternoon the kitchen was really beginning to take shape. Dale worked vigorously attaching every drawer pull and door knob while Simon installed the other hardware. By the end of the day Simon advised that tomorrow would probably be the last day. The Electrician and Plumber would be here to finish up their installation and we would have lift-off. He even told us to go ahead and start loading up cabinets, if we wanted. Not yet, for me, at least, as I wanted to clean each one out before putting anything in.

Tuesday – What a difference a day makes. The plumber arrived while I was doing my exercises. Once changed and ready to go, it wasn’t long before the bad news began. The Plumber was unable to shut off the water from downstairs. The valve was so seized up it was going to break off if anyone tried to turn it any harder. It was soon concluded that the Town had to be called and turn our water off from the main shut-off valve in the front lawn. The Plumber tried to call the Town but knew it was going to take more time than he wanted. He grabbed the shovel, handed it to his apprentice and said “start digging” – the valve in the front yard was buried about a foot down in the ground and no one was able to reach it without digging.

My heart is starting to go out to our contractor and plumber. Every time they turned a corner something unexpected came up, including finding a pumpkin carving kit hidden deep beneath an old drawer. Simon told Nat and I not to worry, that they’ve seen so much worse and even told us a few horror stories.

The Plumber and his apprentice were, with a lot of effort, finally able to get the Town water supply to the house shut-off. The Plumber was then able to give us a new main shut-off valve downstairs and then continue on with the kitchen hookups. I must admit Nat and I did a damn good job on picking out a new kitchen faucet and range hood. We received approval from both our Contractor and Plumber. Trust me, it helps to please these guys as it makes for an easy install and less fuss and muss.

I had my semi-annual appointment with Dr. Broski at 2:15 and was going to go alone at first because of any future plumbing problems, but once Nat was satisfied everything was good he tagged along to get out of the house. We left quite a bit early, leaving Simon and Dale to their own devices to finish up. Before leaving I packed up my usual package of homemade cookies for the two boys and (in case we weren’t home in time) thanked them for the fabulous work and workmanship. Always appreciated.

Good news awaited me at the Doc’s. He was thrilled that I had lost so much more weight and congratulated me on a job well done. Because of the weight loss he said I could now be categorized as glucose intolerant instead of pre-diabetic. I’ll take whatever downgrading I can get and almost skipped out of his office. Walking on Cloud 9 with my good report, Nat and I headed home and discovered the two boys were just finishing up – packing up the truck, cleaning and dusting. Again, more thanks all around and we’ll see Simon again once Nat and I decide on the new back-splash, which he agreed to instal. We still needed the Electrician to arrive and finish up with the lighting and then all would be good with the world again.

Now that we were alone, Nat and I took a look around our new kitchen and grinned from ear to ear. Despite the little surprises, heated discussions and running around, we both came to the conclusion that it was all worth it. We were now living in a home that was complete – with only one or two rugs to be replaced. We’re looking forward to a peaceful summer and hopefully some family events that we can host feeling good about ourselves.