breaking a few eggs in the kitchen

We've lived in our house for 14 years.  Katie was born the week after we moved in.  During the entire time we've lived here, our kitchen badly needed renovation.  The tile floor had been laid on particle board and has been cracking and chipping apart down through the years.  It's really gotten ridiculous.  I had plans on reflooring the kitchen at the same time I was working on the basement and the upstairs bathroom five years ago.  The renovation money ran out when Gina and I decided to start Occupational Therapy of Gadsden, LLC.  All of our attention and resources had to be put toward the business and the home work had to be put on hold.

A few weeks ago Gina and I decided to break down and DO SOMETHING about the kitchen.  The work days are still busy and so I've been working week nights in the kitchen.  It was nice to have Gina help me this past weekend finish the de-glossing of the cabinet doors.  

I finished emptying out the kitchen cabinets by late Saturday afternoon.  It's amazing how many boxes I filled with kitchen stuff.  The livingroom is filled to to ceiling with kitchen stuff.  Our house is officially a mess again.

The kitchen cabinets are now empty and all the wood is prepped for painting.  I've been mentally geared into forward motion.  I've been doing little projects around the house that have needed my attention.

Sometime later in the week Jose' Rodriguez will be coming over to help me pull the old tile off the floor and remove the old sub-floor.  I can't start painting the cabinets and walls until the old flooring and sub-flooring is removed.  I am now in a holding pattern.

Gina has been trying to find time to go with me to go hunt for floor tile.  We've found some countertop ideas at Lowes.  Gina loves the granite, but we both know all that we can really afford is the laminate. We'll have to keep the '70's era harvest gold range-top, range hood, and double oven.  They are ugly and dated but still functional.  I know that when we are finished with the rest of the kitchen, the harvest gold appliances will stick out like a sore thumb.  Eventually these appliances will be replaced with stainless steel units.

There's so much to do to the house as a whole.  Kelsey, when she was little pulled much of the wallpaper in the upstairs hallway.  I'd like to someday soon pull the wallpaper remnants down and splash on a fresh coat of paint.  The entrance and livingroom are still the teal color that sickened us when we first moved into the house.  I really would like to see the teal go.  The house would look a lot better with some painting.

It's funny how I don't think about all the things that need to be done in and around the house until I start working in one area.  Once started on the kitchen, other projects start calling to me.  One thing at a time - one thing at a time - one thing at a time!