And Then We.....

After we had stuffed ourselves with turkey and all the fixins' and it was just the four of us I announced we were going to set up and decorate the Christmas tree! You should have seen the look of horror on their faces! LOL Son1 asked, "The BIG tree?" Eyes wide as saucers (and not in the good, childlike, Santa's coming way.....)
I pulled out a plastic bag, handed it to him and said, "Here, you have the honor!"

The star, ball and tinsel were even still on it from last year! 

We are now officially decorated for Christmas! 

And a Good Time Was Had by All

It was a little nerve wracking. First time using the new oven....with the automatic probe.....which claimed to cook your turkey to the perfect temperature and then turn off the oven.

So.....bright and early we got up, stuffed the bird, inserted the probe and put him in the oven. The instructions said to set the desired temperature of the probe and then the temp for the oven.

 So far, so good. 

Then we went about our business but kept an eye on the oven. The probe temperature went up quite quickly. Too quickly we thought....and we began to worry. At that rate the turkey would be done by ten AM! Oh no! We told everyone dinner would be served at 1:30-ish.......

But in the end it all worked out and dinner was on the table at the prescribed time. Whew.....

And it was the BEST turkey ever! 

(Just for clarification.....we say that every year! LOL)

.....And to Answer Your Question About Where I put The Art Supplies

I don't know where anything is......but, I managed to get it all in. Husband says he's going to make me pull-outs for here too. That will make it easier to access 'stuff'. And I might just take over one more cabinet....you know.....for future supplies I might, possibly acquire......
This is the end cabinet on the outside of the island. The end that I plan to use for 'doing my thing'!

I like that it's all out of sight....and best of all, it won't get dusty! 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

To all those who celebrate this day of overeating......HAPPY THANKSGIVING! 

The Greatly Anticipated........

......(semi-finished) reveal!
Just in time for Turkey Day.......it's functional. Not that I know how any of the new appliances work....lol. (There is a strong possibility we might end up eating out on Thanksgiving because I burned the turkey in my new oven that I don't really understand.....yet.)
But we are tickled pink at how it looks! There is still a bunch to be done....trim, shutters, banquette in the eating area, new table and chairs, pull-outs for the cabinets, retro-fitting those two drawers where the island outlets are, etc......but that will come in time (and with more $$$.)

Funny Monday

Into Each Life A Little Rain Must Fall

....and then there's total failure.......

So, things here in remodel land have been going along swimmingly....until they weren't! LOL

Husband was plowing through tasks left and right. We got the oven/microwave into it's cabinet....I helped (it was HEAVY!) It went quite well........

Then it was time for the tile to go up on the wall behind the cooktop. No big deal. Husband is a pro at tiling by now......except maybe not......

We chose marble tile, a natural material. We knew that it being a natural material there would be differences in the coloring/striations. We KNEW that in such situations you are supposed to open ALL the boxes and mix them up so you don't see one 'block' of tiles looking too much alike and then blam another 'block' that look different. Except in our excitement to get it up on the wall and see it we.....forgot that step.......

Sooooooo halfway up the wall we stood back to admire our handiwork, and open the next box of tiles aaaaaand.......EEEEEEEEKKKKKK.......they were all mostly WHITE! Up to that point what was already on the wall was.....all grey!

OH CRAP! Now what??

Well, we could pry off some of them here and there and fill in with the 'white' ones.....maybe???

Long story short...... Husband pried off ALL of the tiles he had already installed (except the ones he cut to fit around the outlets) scraped the thinset from the wall and off the backs of EVERY SINGLE TILE.......he was NOT a happy camper.

The next morning we laid out two shipping blankets, opened ALL the boxes of tiles and laid them out in a cohesive design that we liked.
I think it's going very well.......second time's the charm!

Lesson learned: Open ALL the boxes BEFORE you start your tile installation!

Here's How You Do It

How do you and your wimpy wife lift a 250 lb. oven/microwave up and into the cabinet without causing all sorts of damage/pain and possible divorce proceedings?????
You 'bunk' it, that's how!!!!!

Sometimes Husband's ideas are a bit.......questionable.....but in this case he was downright BRILLIANT!

I had never heard of this procedure but it really was pretty easy, if not time consuming.

First you measure how high you need the bunk to be, multiple times just to make sure your math is correct.......then you cut as many 2x4's as it takes to reach that height making sure they are long enough to support the oven. Then you get wifey to help by stacking the boards underneath the oven as you hold it up.

So.....picture Husband lifting one side, as I slip a 2x4 under that side. Then we switch to the other side and repeat. When we've gotten two 2x4's stacked Husband screws them together for stability. Then we repeat the process for each side....lift, slide, screw....lift, slide, screw.....alternating the direction of the boards for steadiness until it's just the right height....except it's not because....well, let's just say SOMEONE mentioned that the weight of the oven was compressing the 2x4's and the math might not be exact.....not naming names here....

So......we have to 'unstack' the last four rows to get it down to where SOMEONE had slipped in  unauthorized pieces of wood......un-screw, un-slide, lower......un-screw, un-slide, lower.....and then reverse the process AGAIN using the CORRECT pieces of wood...........lift, slide, screw....lift, slide, screw!

We finally got it to the right height and were able to slide the oven into the waiting cabinet. It was perfect! It all lined up and worked just like Husband said it would.

And I apologized for doubting his math.........

We are READY FOR TURKEY DAY! YAY!

Funny Monday

Unexpected.....Benefits?

We had to buy new pots and pans.....for the induction cooktop. I thought at least some of my old set would work....ummmm....apparently not.....lol.
I didn't want to spend a fortune. These looked like a good set. Calphalon Tri-Ply Stainless Steel 13-Piece Cookware Set....I had a coupon so I got 20% off! They have a nice weight to them and the handles are very sturdy. I haven't used them yet but my old ones were stainless too so I don't anticipate much difference other than getting used to induction cooking.

Right now they're on the table we're using in the living room.....sort of like showing off wedding presents....I like to sit and admire them! LOL 

I Am Over the Moon!

The countertops were delivered/installed last Thursday.......

The owner came to supervise. 

He said in eighteen years in business this was the largest slab they have ever installed! It's ten feet long by four feet wide and weighs over 800 lbs!  

It's the perfect place for a buffet for a large gathering. Too bad I'm anti-social! LOL 

This is where the cooktop will be. I might even enjoy cooking again now that I have some space to spread out!    

Now I have to decide on and order bar stools....... 

The sink is so big you could do laps in it! LOL

....and the plumbing is a work of art! 

This is becoming my favorite kitchen EVER!

Funny Monday

(these next few Funny Mondays were pre-scheduled....and I thought they were worth sharing...)

……The Rest of the Story

Here are the last of the Inktober renderings, #21 through #31.

#21 drain (self explanatory)

#22 expensive...a diamond encrusted fountain pen.....

#23 muddy....the squiggles are supposed to be the mud! don't judge! lol

#24 chop......made me think of Lambchop, the puppet from my youth...and then to 'fix' my drawing I added the 'chopper' accoutrement.....

#25 prickly...couldn't decide between a prickly pear or a hedgehog so I did both.

#26 stretch....uninspired, but done is better than perfect.

#27 thunder......

#28 gift....another uninspired one but I stand by done being better than perfect! 

#29 double.....double stuf oreos.

#30 jolt.....Frankenstein's younger brother, Jesse....because of the bolts....oh, never mind....

#31 slice.....FINISHED!!! 

YAY I did it! 

I think I enjoyed this challenge…..for the most part, lol. I didn’t realize how much I missed the tactile feeling of drawing ‘for real’ as it were. I enjoyed the scritchy scratch of the pen on the paper, making mistakes you can’t erase so you have to figure a way to incorporate them into the finished piece (unless you cheat and finish them in Photoshop…..but that has its issues/limitations too….) The hardest part was trying to figure out what to draw, even with the prompts. Originality isn’t always an option.

Having said all that….. will I do it again next year? Probably, depending on my mood.