The long awaited kitchen remodel!

We have been wanting to remodel our kitchen since we moved in 5 1/2 years ago. The bathroom won out and got remodeled first. It was bad. So is the kitchen but the bathroom was definitely worse. I would show before and after photos of the bathroom except I didn't want to remember the before so I didn't take any photos.

Both rooms are original to the house. No updates since 1938. This would be ok if they had been cleaned and well maintained but they weren't. Just old and dirty to the point that it doesn't matter what you do, the dust and grime will not come off.

Then there is the matter of the kitchen sink. I told you here about the new dishwasher that Thayne got me for my birthday. In order to install it we had to take a small section of drawers next to the sink out. We thought it would be fine but through the next few weeks the one side of the sink started to sag (see photo below). It finally came to rest on a peice of wood. So, the left side of the sink has sat about 2 inches lower than the right side ever since.

This wall has been screaming out for cabinets. There will be a cabinet between the stove and the fridge with a little counter space on top. We will also add a cabinet above the fridge and another above the stove with a microwave.

The microwave cart will go and we will be adding a tall utility cabinet there to hold the trash can, broom, cleaners, etc.

We are moving the sink to sit in the corner and that will allow us to shift the dishwasher to the right another 18". Then we will add another cabinet on the left side of the dishwasher.

We are getting the unfinished cabinets from Sutherlands Lumber. They will cost us less than half of what we would pay for basic cabinets from Lowe's, Home Depot, or Ikea. The doors are just basic and flat so we will be adding some molding to them ourselves and then I'm going to paint and glaze them. I'm going to do a gorgeous glass mosaic back splash and the jury is still out on the counter top and floor. We are also going to paint (I have in mind the color I want but I still need to go stare at all of the paint swatches at Lowe's for awhile) and we will leave the copper light above the sink and add some can lights throughout the room. I'm on the hunt for copper knobs for the cabinets. I have a picture in my mind of what it all will look like and I can't wait to show you the finished product. I will also show you our progress along the way. We will be picking up the cabinets within the next few days so I should have some awesome cabinet painting photos to show you soon. :)

I'm being shaped.

No matter how old we get we never stop having experiences that shape who we are. This week has been one big fat shaping experience. I'm feeling stronger and more confident in my ability to make the right choice under extreme pressure but I'd be lying if I said I appreciate the experience. I'm not to that point yet. Not really sure if I ever will be. I don't think anyone should ever have to go through what I have this week but unfortunately I know that plenty of others do. I don't know any personally but I'm sure they are out there. I don't want to get into details on here but I found myself almost losing a close family member and then I found myself in a position of having to choose between doing what I knew was right for her and doing what she wanted in the moment. I had to risk one of the most important relationships in my life to stick to doing the right thing. It was terrible and hard. But I never wavered. Even though I wanted to. I even wanted to curl up in a ball and just give up. But I couldn't. She would never give up on me and I will never give up on her. It's the agreement that we've always had with each other. And we always will. It's slowly improving with each day and there is a long road ahead but rest assured that we will be on that road side by side every step of the way. And in the end, both of us will be better for it. That's what it's all about.