As anxious as we were to get our kitchen back in order, we took our time. We continued to putter about putting the food back and deciding what went where in the new order of things. Nat discovered a small leak under the kitchen sink and luckily it was just a lose fitting which was soon fixed. He also replaced the recycle drawer front that got damaged somehow. We weren’t able to put back any appliances as we were still waiting for the Electricians to do the under-cabinet lighting, so we were in limbo until Monday when they were due to arrive.
Friday was pretty much a day where little things got done around the rest of the house. Nat worked away cleaning up sawdust and other small debris that floated in, out and around all of his tools, workbench and other areas in the garage while I went for a hair appointment. We decided to take the rest of the afternoon off, do nothing and rest our weary souls.
With Saturday looking good, we trekked our way to Ikea Burlington to return the two unused cabinets, door fronts and a few other small accessories, got our refund and headed straight to the kitchen department to shop’til we (or at least I) dropped. Nat just pushed the shopping cart and watched as things went flying into it. I had my Refund Card in hand and I picked up everything on the list I had prepared the night before – kitchen drawer organizers, bins, utensil holders, drawer dividers and even a floor rug for the patio door. Nat knew enough to keep to the side and let me do my work – Bless his loving heart – but did help with a few suggestions. Once we were checking out we discovered we were going to have money left over – bonus!!!!
Sunday saw me organizing the cabinets and drawers with the organizers I bought the day before. God, they now look like something straight out of the Ikea Catalogue – and with room to spare in the pantry now, I’m floating on Cloud 9. You can tell I’m in my element when I end up taping my favourite Sunday morning show – Sunday Morning. I had things to do and I wanted to get them done – no rest for the wicked.
The Electricians were due Monday morning and as Nat was going to be around to make sure everything went as planned, I headed to Winners at Niagara Square looking for a small kitchen clock – despite the digital time on the oven, I still need an actual clock. I had done extensive research on the internet looking for something a little different than the norm, but there it was looking straight at me at Winners and bonus, it came with a matching mirror. I knew exactly where both would go. Just because I was at The Square I had to drop in at TanJay/Alia to see what was new for Spring. What were the odds I would find a “little” something that jumped into a bag for me to take home. I also headed over to Michael’s but didn’t have a whole lot of luck in getting anything funky for the two wall shelves, but I’ll keep looking.
Having returned from shopping, Nat headed off to his golf game and I took over watching the Electricians finish their job. Once they were gone, I was now able to oil the Butcher Block Countertop, as called for to protect the surface from stains and blots. As I had to leave things alone for several hours, I headed to the office and got caught up on paper work – sorting through a mass of invoices, etc.
What a fabulous difference having under-cabinet lighting. We can now light up underneath all of the cabinets at once, or by the flick of a switch we can just light up one or two or three, etc. On those dark and stormy days Nat and I will be able to actually see what we’re doing on the countertop without cutting ourselves and using the more hydro-sucking ceiling lights. When Nat returned from his golf game he handed me the Home Hardware Spin Mop & Bucket. It’s not what you think. We had both talked about a better system of getting up to the baseboards and wouldn’t be sticky (as with the other “spray” mop we have). Again, we paid careful attention to the ads on TV and then double checked online. Pleased with what we saw, it was agreed. This would be our new floor caring system – a non-abrasive and quick way to wash floors.
As the Kitchen was now back in shape – the appliances plugged in, the cabinets and drawers super organized, I washed floors on Tuesday and actually loved it. This mop and bucket thing was pretty damned good. The mop itself had a lot of looped edges to get up and around any baseboard, underneath a good portion of the fridge and stove, and maneuvered easily enough. Plus the :spinning” feature of the bucket was a blessing, along with the fact that the mop portion was removable and when finished I just tossed it in the washing machine. Back to the good old days but with a modern twist.
Tuesday evening was our first meal in our new kitchen. Nat and I looked around and liked what we saw. Once the backsplash is done, we’ll be even happier. But for now, we have our lives back to normal and only have to pay the piper for the damage we’ve done to our pocketbooks.
Filed under: Family News, Humour Tagged: Cloud 9, Home Hardware Spin & Mop, Ikea Burlington, Ikea Catalogue, Ikea kitchen, Ikea Refund Card, Kitchen looks like Ikea Catalogue, kitchen renovations, Michael's at Niagara Square, Niagara Falls, Niagara Square, oiling butcher block countertop, pay the piper after renovations, Refund Card from Ikea, Spin and Mop from Home Hardware, Sunday Morning CBS, TanJay/Alia at Niagara Squarae, The Square, Winners at Niagara Square
