I Think It's That Time Again

I've mentioned before that when we bought this house in 2002, it was a MAJOR fixer upper.   It was the time of a California housing frenzy and often people had what seemed like minutes to make a decision about buying a house.   My late husband and I were moving to this area from Santa Cruz and had been house hunting for only a short while, but had already missed one place by a matter of a few hours.   And so when we found this one, with a nice piece of land and minutes from town, the best school district in our area, we jumped.   He had all the contractor skills to do everything that needed to be done.   And we did a lot until he passed away in 2006.   But there is always more and more, as you know, with a house that the original owner didn't have built so well in the first place.   

In the past 3 or 4 years, we have replaced the heating/air conditioning unit and all the ducting.   We have had all the plumbing in the house replaced.   We replaced the leach (leech?) line for the septic.  We had the old "popcorn" ceilings removed and new ceilings finished.   We had all the bedrooms, baths and hallway repainted.  We have torn out old flooring, put in new flooring where it was still needed, remodeled the master bath, built a new laundry room, and the biggest job of all was remodeling the front of the house and repainting.    You'd think that would be enough.




As much as I really dislike the idea of having the house under construction again, it's time to remodel the kitchen.   It's such a difficult room for me to consider because the choices seem endless.   But I really must because it just has to be done.   What type of cabinets, what color, what type of countertop, what design, and all that has to be done within whatever budget we decide is workable.   The first step, however, is for me to measure the area, take some photos, and go to a design center for the layout.   So that's on my list of things to do.   

Dreaming of a new kitchen....after the mess is over.   It's time.

And did I mention the pipe fencing all needs painting, the road needs to be redone, and Erik's office needs new flooring and paint?    *sigh*



Comments

A new kitchen is exciting! I know there are tons and tons of choices to make, but it's all part of the fun. Don't overthink it. Close your eyes and imagine the kitchen of your dreams ... not one of those impractical, too-pretty-to-use blog kitchens ... a real kitchen that will make you happy and make using it enjoyable. Now, do what you can to make the actual room look like the picture in your head. (I've done a lot of kitchens, and this is always what I do.) Holler if you need help.
Anonymous said…
You will be so elated when you have the kitchen done all pretty with clean, new work surfaces, etc. It makes such a difference in how you feel when you walk out to get that morning cup of coffee and see everything shiny and new. Can't wait to see the end results. xox

Go with solid surface of some sort on our counter-tops. Tile grout holds too many germs. Tons of great choices out there.

Comfypjs said…
Ooooo, I love remodeling and upgrading. I love pouring over pictures in magazines and such trying to find the perfect look I am going for. Can't wait to see before and after photos! Oh and I agree with Diane that a solid surface with no grout. Grout is nasty.
Anonymous said…
We went through all of that as well. It took 16 years to get our house to where we wanted it. We, also, had the skills to do most everything ourselves. But, when it came to the kitchen we hired a contractor. The biggest obstacle of doing that project ourselves was the time constraint. I probably don't have to tell you, when you do a project yourself, it takes 10 times longer than hiring a contractor! Well, I wasn't going to deal with that with our kitchen. We worked very closely with the designer and pretty much we told her what to design, but what she was able to do for us was to help design the cabinet and drawer layouts and to get the job done in 6 weeks. It was worth every extra dollar spent!! Now, we're going through it all over again with a fixer-upper second home! Good luck...it's such a wonderful feeling of accomplishment when you do a project yourself!
How very exciting!!! a new kitchen is the most awesome of renovations, and so much to choose from.

On a side note, I'm sorry you lost your first husband, that must have been a very sad and difficult time for you.
Unknown said…
Always something to do for a home owner, thats for sure. Hope you post photos of the project as it takes place, would love to see that.
And really sorry for your loss.
Daryl said…
it often seems never-ending ... everytime i read about a home or even a room being renovated i am glad to live in an apartment where aside from thorough occasional cleaning sprees the most that needs to be done is every few years a paint job ... tho i would dearly love to have the floors re-done and new counters/cabinets in the kitchen would be nice ... its not happening ... so i will live vicariously through your renovation!

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