Demolition

With the help of five families we were able to demolish most of the interior of the house.  Ten men, who were ready, willing, and able, accomplished quite a bit in two days.  What did they accomplish? They...took out all of the kitchen cabinets, counter tops, and appliances; pulled up the carpet and linoleum in the entry way, hallway, family room, bathrooms, kitchen, dining room, and pantry; pulled out two showers; started to remove the "crap ceiling"; and took out a wall!

But the men weren't the only ones working!  The girls kicked some demolition butt, also!  Sophie and I removed the shelving in all of the closets, pulled up all of the carpet tack strips, removed wall paper, and scraped linoleum glue off of the concrete while looking fabulous the entire time! :)

Aunt Betty was our resident clean-up boss.  She made sure we weren't making a mess and cleaned up after us if we were!

Michelle was our photographer!  She took tons of great photos, which you can see below.  And, she even fed us!

I have to say, this was the most fun I've had remodeling a home!  More updates to come!

Erik, Mark, and Eric pulling out the cabinets.

Dennis, aka Bosley, removing the "crap ceiling."

Ed and Erik scraping up the linoleum glue.

Our lunch provided by Michelle Payne!

The Charlie's Angels of Demolition!

The camera shy, Zaia, did an awesome job on the two bathrooms.  I told him I would put a plaque with his name on it on both bathroom doors! :)

Atorina patching up holes.  She's a pro!

Buffy watching over her palace.

"A small key opens big doors" -Turkish Proverb

Today, we got our keys! The doors to our new life, in our new home, have been opened! Tomorrow, the work begins...at 10:00am with coffee and doughnuts!

The Bold Look of KOHLER

Who knew kitchen sinks would be so expensive!  And have so many options...undermount, overmount, single basin, double basin, acrylic, cast iron, stainless steel, and the list goes on and on.

I did have something in mind, though.  I've been obsessed with Paula Deen's kitchen sink from the moment I laid eyes on it.  However, I don't have thousands of dollars to spend on a kitchen sink, but I was able to find something similar.  I'm a huge fan of deep, single basin sinks and I wanted one that would be undermount.  My mother-in-law, Debbie, and I searched far and wide for this type of sink and finally found the perfect one at Abe's Plumbing.

Isn't she a beauty?! A white, single basin, cast iron sink that measures 33" x 22" x 9" made by KOHLER. 

And I've found the perfect faucet to go with it!

I can't believe I'm saying this, but I can't wait to wash dishes in that sink!

White Pepper

A decision has been made!  We are going to use a White Pepper granite for our counter tops that we found at Turlock Granite Gallery.  It hails from China and it will look amazing with natural oak cabinets, white appliances, and black and red accents!

We've got a house!

It's official!  Mark and I have a house!  This was one of those "it was meant to be" sort of situations because it happened so easily and so quickly.  The afternoon of Saturday, June 4th we were asked by Mark's parents and aunt and uncle to meet at the house.  Two hours, four Starbucks coffee drinks, and two Foster's Freeze milkshakes later we were discussing paint colors, kitchen cabinets, and granite counter tops!  Monday the 6th the offer was placed and on the 7th we found out the offer was accepted by the sellers!  We were all ecstatic!  July 6th is the official close date and when we will receive our keys!  Here is a photo of our lovely ranch style home with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, formal living, formal dining, sun room, and a large u-shaped backyard for Buffy to play in.

So what have we been up to so far?  Well, for the past two weeks we've been in and out of Lowe's, Home Depot, Bedrosian's, and Turlock Granite Gallery and on and off of various home improvement websites.  Also, we have brand new home appliances thanks to our loving family that we can't wait to start using!

So what needs to be done?

• New kitchen cabinets
• New kitchen counter tops
• New paint for the entire interior of the house
• New carpet in the family room
• New master bedroom shower
• Carpet cleaning in all of the other rooms
• Possibly new kitchen and entry floors
• New ceiling fans and light fixtures
• A security alarm system
• New locks on the doors
• And whatever else we can afford at this time!

How are we going to accomplish all of this?
Keith Mello, my father-in-law and the mastermind behind the whole remodeling part of this, and helpful family and friends who have already pledged to donate their time, strength, and love to this project will be working together to get everything done!  We are truly blessed!