Progress?!?

There are good things happening in the kitchen!  With our arbitrary deadline of July 24 rapidly approaching, the work days are getting longer as we get the room ready for installation.  The walls are done and painted, and the floor is 1/2 tiled as of right now.  The paint was a fiasco, as the off-white color we chose looked like peach on the walls.  Not attractive.  So much soul searching resulted in picking a gray-brown color that would tie together the floors and our countertops.  We hope.

Today I will install the wall cabinets (some of which still need to be assembled) and then tile the rest of the floor.  All during the hottest week of the year in Chicago!!

-alan

Kitchen update - July 15

First, some news to report - we had our first significant injury of the project.  This afternoon, Rachel had a run-in with a 7/8" spade bit that resulted in an impressive amount of blood.  First aid was applied, and the wound was tended in short order.

Mom came to town yesterday to help out with around-the-house issues, so that Rachel could have the baby-caring load lightened a bit.  She was able to get in and help me with the drywall today.  Hopefully the injury will not deter her.

The drywall is all hung, and tape has been applied.  There is still more mudding and sanding to do, so don't get too excited.  But it is good to see progress.

We cleaned up a little in the basement - a couple weeks worth of dust and grime filtering down from above made it pretty messy.  Unfortunately, the kitchen is directly above our laundry and our utility sink, which is where we currently do our dishes.

The mess is still bad in the garage, where old cabinets and construction junk is piled up.  Where's that two car garage now?

Some stuff for the garbage, some to save, some to sell, some to give away.  A little bit at a time.

Finally, some FAQ:

You really are putting all the cabinets together yourself?
Yes, the cabinets from Ikea, like all the merchandise, comes in flat boxes and requires assembly.  We have 100+ boxes downstairs ready to be opened and put together.  I am sure I will be sick of those little wrenches when this is done.

How did you learn to do all this?
Basic skills carry over from time spent in my Dad's workshop and many trips over spring breaks of the past to volunteer doing construction.  Specific skills have been learned from the handy picture books I borrowed from the library.  Anything else usually involves a phone call to someone more competent than I.  I give it a try and figure things out as I go along.

When will you be done?
Impossible to say.  I set short term goals, but there are always unexpected roadblocks - like ripping out the threshold today, or rewiring an outlet, or finding more layers of hidden flooring, or patching holes in the floor, or making yet another trip to Home Deport, etc etc etc.  That being said, I am hopeful for my work to be mostly done by the end of the month.

-alan

A weekend away from the kitchen...

Although we have surely thought about and purchased things for our kitchen, this weekend we stayed out of the work zone.  I am happy that Alan got a break from the manual labor and a chance to hang out with Andrew.

Yesterday evening we got to hang out with Sharon and Jenny who were in town for a dance competition.  Andrew had a lot of fun and even bonded with one of Jenny's American Girl dolls.  Jenny was very concerned that our drool monster was going to ruin her doll's hair but he was on his best behavior.

 This morning we all slept in and missed the early service we planned to attend (had to go at 11:30).  Andrew got a bath and then lounged around for a bit in his robe reading the Tribune.  I had to shut down his relaxing moment when he tried to reverse the cleaning he had just received through spitting up!

Today we witnessed and recorded Andrew rolling over from belly to back.  It was on the couch, but it definitely counts.  If you want to see video check out my facebook.


This evening we went down south for Alan's softball game.  Alan got on base twice and we were quite proud.  Andrew was happy but didn't pay much attention to the game...his rings were far more interesting.  In this shot you can see Alan in red and Andrew in orange :-).

Alan and I finished the evening sharing a blizzard from the Dairy Queen down the street.  Tomorrow we will begin installing the drywall in the kitchen after we make yet another venture to Home Depot.

-rachel

SMILE!

Andrew has officially started smiling regularly.  No this has not eliminated crying, but it makes those tough moments a lot easier to deal with when you see his precious face!


Aunt Sharon caught him in the act of smiling!

Now aren't you in a better mood?  I know I am.

Good night.

-rachel

Project Update, Day 9 (ish?)

I have not been keeping a regular count of the work done on the kitchen, but I feel it is somewhere around 9 calendar days.  We worked through the 4th of July and the demolition is certainly done.  Eric came over a couple nights ago to get me started on the electrical wiring - thanks for the help, by the way! - which is just about done.  I have to remove the old sink drain today, and prepare for the new location of the drain and water lines once the sink is moved.

I hope to get a plumber in to move the gas line tomorrow, and then we can start drywalling.  Hmmm....I guess the drywall process can begin before the is moved, now that I think about it!

This morning I had to drive to Niles to get a special part that was not carried at the Big Box home improvement stores.  Andrew and I went on a little field trip while Rachel slept in.

Time to work!

-alan

Independence Day!

Living in another country helps you to appreciate all the privilege of being an American.  Happy 4th of July!

Prior to a wedding we attended on Saturday, Rachel and I were apart much of the morning, and so did not have much time to communicate.  Andrew got TWO baths that morning, so he was extra clean for the festivities.

The wedding was fun - we went back to the site of our ceremony and our reception, so it was a nice reminder of the fun times from 6 years ago.

Another picture of Andrew, who played for a good 30 minutes with his balloon.

Work is progressing on the kitchen.  I finished demo of the dry wall (part of the walls will be salvaged) and today we tackled more of the flooring.  Thanks to Dave and Sarah for coming up to help on their holiday!

I am thinking of what work I need to get done now, while the walls are exposed.  Certainly electrical upgrades, as we will need more outlets and more efficient wiring.  There are plumbing issues, as there is a drain pipe that needs to be capped.  The gas line needs to be moved. 

But the fun part is using all my "new" tools (from my Dad) and practicing skills I have not used in awhile.  I am also finding all kinds of uses for my (limited) physics knowledge, as leverage has been a key factor in pulling down walls, pulling up floors, lifting heavy objects, and getting rusty pipes free.

Here is what we are looking at now:

This is the galvanized steel gas line, which was almost as troublesome as the steel water pipes that took me nearly 3 hours to unstick and cap off.  An exciting diversion in that project was the "opportunity" to use our fire extinguisher for the first time.  In my defense, I do not think operator error was a factor. No further questions, Mom! 

-alan

Our week thus far in pictures.

Oh the lazy days of summer have yet to come in the Allmen household.  This week we've gone full speed ahead with our kitchen remodel.  Sunday I thought of a new design plan.  Yes it involves more shuffling of the room arrangement, but will hopefully be a more efficient use of space.  I am not going to try to describe it all here, but you will see it when it is complete!


Monday we spent our day at IKEA picking out our new cabinets,

 So tiring deciding on layouts!

Little blocks help the planning process

 A basement full of IKEA boxes

Tuesday we set up a makeshift kitchen in the living room,

Wednesday we cleared out the old cabinets, Thursday Alan battled dust as he ripped out the tile walls and drywall, and today he continues demo and tries to figure out some plumbing issues. 

I got to go pick out our granite today while Aunt Sarah babysat the little guy. 

I am sure we will have many more reflections on and funny stories from this remodel but I wanted to share some pictures!

Day 0

Day 1

Day 2

Peeling back 3 layers of linoleum

The construction zone

-rachel