Christmas Cookies in the Kitchen

Ever since we started to plan our new kitchen I have been looking forward to making Christmas Cookies. The kitchen did not disappoint!

Breaking in the Kitchen

Our kitchen renovation has been complete for a number of weeks now and we are breaking it in. The kitchen feels huge when I am working in it. I love that most of us can be in the kitchen and all be doing things without the waiting and bumping that used to happen. We still have to wait for a turn in the refrigerator or silverware drawer but when it is our turn, there is actual space to move to to get out of the way for the next person.

Everything felt very foreign at first. I would go for something and realize that it was no longer in that spot. I wasn't sure what counter to put things on or where we wanted to keep certain items. We spent the first weeks rearranging. One day Jim and I both opened the cabinet under the kitchen sink to throw something away, only to realize that the trash cans have their own cabinet in the peninsula. The funny thing is that we never used to keep our trash can under the sink. We will continue to shift things a few things around and hopefully find a resolution for the calender that lays on the counter.

Most things have now found their proper homes and I have mapped new muscle memory for the routine tasks. I am appreciating the new space daily. I appreciate being able to run the dishwasher without having to roll it and hook it up to the sink. I appreciate having enough counter space to make 10 sandwiches at the same time. I appreciate the color palate that I sent so much time trying to get right. But mostly I love being able to fit us all in. The new kitchen didn't undo our old habits and our brand new granite counter top is regularly covered with our life. The extra deep sink doesn't do the dishes but it does hide a whole meals worth of dishes below the line of sight. I am grateful the shiny new surfaces are easier to get back to clean. The kitchen still feels and looks new but we are breaking it in as only a family of 6 can.

Kitchen - Week 5

Things are starting to come together this week and it is fun to watch. The new ceiling fan was installed as well as our new dining room fixture. Both of them have a brushed nickel finish. They also installed most of the door and drawer pulls, which are an antique brushed nickel finish. Don spent a lot of time leveling the base cabinets and getting them just right. Our floor isn't level so this was a painstaking process and he checked all of the doors and drawers to make sure they would open without interference.

Having the base cabinets in place allowed for the granite template to be done. We reviewed all of the edges, overhangs, and corners, to make sure we will get the look we want. We spent a lot of time on the placement of the sink since they will cut out the hole at the shop. They will cut the faucet holes onsite when they install it.

Next week all of the components will fall into place.

Kitchen- Week 4

This week had a completely different feel to it. At the end of everyday there were visible results to enjoy. Monday they painted the walls and the trim. Tuesday they put in the upper cabinets. Wednesday they put in the new floor. Then Thursday they unpacked and laid out the base cabinets. I have noticed that everyone in the family has been drifting into the kitchen, and after a few minutes of looking around leave with a pleased look. Now that the cabinets are in the room there are a few things that I would have done a little differently, but since we will have so much more room everything will have a place and it doesn't matter. Friday they didn't work because of a charity golf tournament for a friend who died, but Jim and I picked out the granite slabs for our counter top.

Kitchen - Week 3

Our 3rd week of kitchen renovation doesn't seem to yielded much progress, but I guess we are still moving along. they put in the recessed can lights and new window trim. they removed our sink and garbage disposal. It is good timing that I just bought a composter to put our food scraps in. They did more work on smoothing the ceiling and did all of the paint prep. They ended the week by painting the ceiling.

new recessed lights

missing kitchen sink, waiting for a new one

wall ready for paint

Kitchen- Week 2

So the 2nd week of our kitchen renovation came and went. We have adjusted to eating in the basement, and the idea of dinner didn't make me want to run away. I was prepared to prep and cook some real meals and we were blessed to have friends drop a meal off for us one evening. I have to be honest though making lunches every morning in time for school still seems to require multiple trips up and down the stairs and both Jim and I dread the task. We have had them buy lunch a few times even though Emma doesn't like that buying cuts into her time to talk with her friends and Rachael is unimpressed with the food. Meg likes buying lunch but I think that is mostly because of chocolate milk.

Don our contractor, wasn't at our house 2 days during the week due to family needs, but John and the electrician were here. Visually it didn't look like much got done in the renovation but they did lots of the behind the walls items like wiring and moving the gas line. Until the end of the week when the new drywall went in. They put it right over the plaster walls, it will look much cleaner and the extra layer will help make up for the complete lack of insulation in the walls. Our cabinets were delivered on Tuesday and they now pack the garage, with 3 that didn't fit winding up in the dining room. Don opened one of the boxes for me so I could have a cabinet to take with me to pick flooring and counter-top, and paint. On Friday Jim and I picked out the new vinyl  flooring, new ceiling fan and dining room light fixture. I can't wait till we start to see the new things in place.

New wiring run through the basement ceiling

Maple Cabinets with a Mocha Glaze

 

new dry wall before the window casing is replaced 

end of week 2

Kitchen Demo- Week 1

Our first week of the kitchen renovation is over and we are rolling with the changes. On Easter Monday we moved our kitchen to the basement and just like with every other moving event, what I thought was enough boxes wasn't even close. We did manage to get things out of the kitchen and packed or moved to our new temporary kitchen in the basement. Bridget has been inspired to play restaurant and has eagerly shown her cousins our "new" kitchen. Rachael requested a new seating arrangement and is now sitting next to Emma at meals. We are still getting settled and are finding the right place for things.

Meals were a struggle this week. I hadn't done any meal planning amidst the packing and prepping for Easter and my ability to just throw something together was severely debilitated. It was nice to have straight A report cards as a great excuse to go out to dinner. This weekend friends have lent us an electric skillet which will come in really handy and I am planning ahead for next week.

The first day they took out the old cabinets and I had called around the previous week to find a company who wound pick them up to resell. and right before rain storm the cabinets and our old stove were gone. I am impressed with our contractor, Don and his employee John, so far. It turns out that the wall separating the kitchen and dining room, despite 3 contractors telling us they didn't think it was load bearing, actually is. So they spent a day putting in a recessed beam. They also discovered that the kitchen ceiling was 3 inches lower in one corner and the dining room ceiling had a belly (low center). So while they had the ceiling ripped open they jacked up the dining room ceiling a little and fixed the low corner. I don't think they got as far along as they wanted but I feel like the work has been productive.

Megan was fascinated by the gaps in the sub-floor, where the wall was removed and was trying to make out things in the basement through the cracks. Emma stood in the basement and poked a pencil next to the duct for us to see upstairs. They like to look around in the evenings at the things that are exposed. They have been good about not touching things. On the second day Don brought a dumpster and Rachael was eying things in it for use in her fairy house. She asked me and I said I would come take a look and maybe we could get some things out. I came outside to find Rachael and Megan both standing in the dumpster. We then thoroughly reviewed the rules.

Day 1, Cabinets removed, wood trim and soffit over cabinets removed

 Day 2 the load bearing wall, plaster removed

Day 3 New beam recessed into the ceiling

 

Day 4 Ceiling leveled

 This coming week the electrician will come in and they will patch the floor, walls and ceiling. Our new cabinets will be here on Tuesday. they won't go in right away but I am really glad that I will be able to have a door with me to help pick out the floor and decide on the granite color. That is the fun part.

Kitchen Before

Upgrading our kitchen has been in our thoughts for a number of years and now is the time. Every time we hosted something at our house it was a challenge to prepare food and serve it efficiently. Large baking projects were a piling and juggling act with cookie sheets balanced on flour canisters and cutting boards balanced across the sink. Our dishwasher rolls up to our sink and I am grateful that I don't have to hand wash dishes but the dishwasher gets in the way. We have been considering finding a new home in the area and we realized that this roll up dishwasher was going be a detractor if we put the house on the market. And so we decided it was time to renovate our kitchen. If we do decide to sell, it will be a selling point and if we don't sell we will enjoy a more functional and pleasant space.

We spent hours working on cabinet configurations and appliance placement just trying to come up with a floor plan that fit our space. Even the designers that we consulted were surprised how hard it was to get things to fit. After a number of visits by contractors we determined that the wall between the kitchen and the dining room could be removed. Removing that wall gave us more flexibility and by going into the dining room 18 inches we will wind up with a great space. the girls have been hearing about cabinets and upcoming constructions, but none of it impacted them until now. Demo begins the Tuesday after Easter. Boxes are all over the kitchen, dining and living room and pictures have been removed from the fated wall. That wall has now become a huge canvas and the girls have taken full advantage of it. we got out the markers and the crayons and they had a blast. Jim and I added our touches in between unpacking the kitchen cabinets and moving things around to set up a kitchen in the basement.

Bridget has been hearing a lot about the kitchen renovation since I make calls during the day, and she was worried that we wouldn't have a bathroom when the workmen were here. She thought that everything was moving downstairs and she was happy to find out that we would still have the use of the rest of the house and she would still sleep in her bed. Having "only the kitchen" out of commission will be a big enough change.

Here are some "before" pictures of the kitchen.