The Nerliens

2.25.2009

Day 1 of Remodel

My parents came down last Thursday to begin the remodeling our kitchen and adding a 1/2 bathroom to our downstairs. Everything went great! I am so thankful that my dad is handy - he is saving us A LOT of money! My dad framed up the bathroom and knocked out a partial wall to open up our kitchen and living room. Adam and I spent about 6 hours in Menards last weekend ordering new countertops, kitchen and bathroom floor, paint and bathroom fixtures. We also purchased new bar stools and a kitchen table. Now we're just waiting on the plumber. We need him to rough in the plumbing, so my dad can install the bathroom fixtures, floor, and hang the drywall. We're also waiting on our hardwood floor and countertops, which should be here in a few weeks. A few nights ago we applied our first coat of paint, and will finish painting this weekend. Here's a few pictures of the progress:

The aftermath

We will be putting a coutertop along the cutout along with 3 bar stools

Helping with the bathroom wall

My dad framing up the 1/2 bathroom

2.18.2009

Busy Busy

It's only Wednesday but I feel like the weekend should be here already! This week has been pretty busy and I feel like I haven't seen Adam for more than 30 minutes at a time. I have been putting in extra hours at work because my bosses father is in the hospital and she is staying with him. Actually, she was gone most of last week as well, so I've been in charge of the after-school program, making sure everything is running smoothly. I've also subbed the past two days, which makes my work day 10+ hours! (I'm used to 4 hrs - unless I sub) When I get home at night, Adam is already at work - so he'll stop home for a 30-min supper break and thats it!

Tomorrow my parents are coming down to survey our kitchen and figure out what we need for our remodeling project. My dad has happily agreed to add a 1/2 bathroom off our kitchen, knock out 1/2 a wall to open up the kitchen and living room, measure our countertops so we can order new, and help install a new kitchen floor. Sounds like a LOT of work - but I guarantee my dad will have it done within a month. Remember - he lives 1 hr 15 minutes away! I am SO thankful that he is handy - because Adam is not! My dad will make sure everything is PERFECT - he takes pride in his work and will settle for nothing less! We were going to spread our projects out over a few years, however we got a first-time home buyers tax credit - so we can afford to do everything now. Remodeling our kitchen and adding a bathroom downstairs will add tremendous value to our house when we want to sell it someday. However, I am nervous to have our kitchen turned upside down for the next few weeks - it'll be worth it in the end though!