week 12

last week was stressful.  after pulling up the protective floor covering in the new kitchen i could smell a very musty smell.  it was wet sanded and then bleached and 24 hours later it was still there.  not as bad, but there.  so, from work i stopped the filling in of the floor boards that were missing and had the contractor remove all the flooring in the new kitchen.  once the boards were removed from the space the room smelled so much better!  however, there was still some smell in the sub flooring as the layers of paint on it still held some of the smell.

after a little more sanding with a small belt sander we realized it needed to be sanded with a large floor sander.  the entire floor was sanded and the smell was thoroughly removed.

as you can see, the new oak flooring is almost finished being laid.  starting thursday morning we need to be out of here so that the entire hallway, new pass through to the communal stairs, new bedroom and living room new kitchen space can be refinished.  i go today to look at stains.  once they are sanded the old floor might have stains that will stand out too much without a little stain.  we will see.

the lights in the new box beams are in.  going to get the faceplates and filters today.  need to get a $70 led dimmer, too.  wow!  hope not ever having to change another light bulb will be true after led expenses.

and finally, the wall that use to separate the living room and new kitchen has been put into it's new place as the wall to the new bedroom(old kitchen).  used the old wood which is great.  the place where the ladder is was our old doorway to our old kitchen.  hard to remember even just 12 weeks later.

more later.  cabinets coming the beginning of next week!!
a

week 10

they are making the box beams in the new kitchen.  they will mimic the ones in the living room.  the support posts are gone.  the room is floating on a beam now.  you can see on the floor the space where the wall had been.  you see up above, where wires hang, that there will be pendant lights hanging.  they are golden onyx, gorgeous!

here is the old wall.  our guy waiting for his 5th birthday party to begin.  that wall will be reconstructed on the wall where i took that photo years ago.  there was a cabinet there and an entrance to our old kitchen.  no longer.

the new bedroom should get a new oak floor put in next week if everything goes according to plan.

cabinets are in full swing.  we might hit close to our 3 month mark after all.  i am guessing early november.

hanging in there with the two rooms for living in.  a rainy day has made it quite cozy in here.  wish i had a pot of soup going.  realize what a luxury a washer and dryer are as well.  we have a hallway of soaking wet coats dripping down our hallway.

more sooner than last time.
a

sheetrock is almost done!

 old kitchen 






stripped down kitchen

newly dry walled new bedroom wall(old kitchen)

old stove area






stripped down and chimney removal from old stove area

(doors from somewhere else leaning against old stove area)

dry walled same space

so the rooms are being dry walled and will be sanded in a day or two.  the posts in the basement will be put back in in about a week, there are temporary ones that don't sit on the newly poured cement.  the cabinets are being started....the laundry room is going to have the old washer and dryer removed permanently tomorrow.  the laundry room will be ready for new washer and dryers in about 10 days.  it has been difficult going  without washer and dryers.  you have to think about the pros and cons of going to the beach.  we finally have hot weather so i am going anyway.  

well, that's about it.  this is week 7.  we're hanging in there and dreaming of a white kitchen.

-a

a bedroom is born

well, the new bedroom(old wimpy kitchen) is taking shape.  all the electrical is done, replacing 75 year old wires with new ones.  the insulation was put into the walls and now the sheetrock is starting to go up.  the left wall no longer has the small window and is going to be filled in leaving only one (it will be longer than this one in the photo) window in the corner looking out onto the top of the stairway to the basement.

the world's worst old kitchen floor will come out later, replaced by a new oak floor.  this is actually going to be such a nice bedroom, for some lucky person in this family.  it was thought to be j's but that might change as the house is finished- if m has anything to do with it.

here is a view of the entrance to the new kitchen, looking through the walls for the last time to the living room/new kitchen.  mary is in the photo.

one friend suggested that this is the time to place a small time capsule into the walls.  fun idea, but weird to think that some day this busy life will just be a memory, as this building will undoubtedly be standing for years to come.  the contractor is super impressed with how well it is made, with beams stretching the width of the house with no breaks in them.  a grove of trees hidden behind walls.

the beam is in the house, almost in its place

meet our steel beam.  it's so big and heavy i find it hard to believe the floor can support it.

the ceiling is being supported by two floating walls, on either side of the old wall.  the beam will go into the space where the white ceiling meets the torn out ceiling.  at either end it will be supported by a post.  the concrete was poured downstairs today.

this is the space where the wall use to be.  the gap will  be filled with the beam, up on top, and a post going down to the floor.

both the electrical and plumbing inspections have passed.  in about 1 1/2 weeks they will start to put up sheetrock.  crazy.

"your house is floating"

we had technical difficulties with our camera, so the blog was held up.  we're back on track.

the latest is that the wall between the living room and new kitchen is about to come completely out.  we can jump between the rooms(as you can see), through the 4X4's, but next week we will have the steel beam put into the ceiling space between the rooms-where the wall use to be.  the beam will be connected to a post on either end.  those posts are lined up with posts in the basement.  at the base of those posts their will be a new, deeper foundation of cement.  right now, in waiting for all this, the house is floating.   (second photo)

we also now have the beginning of our new hallway to our communal stairway.  the first day we came home to find the initial hole in the wall.  (m in photo)

 now there is a door.  photos show door from hallway now.  if you went through that plastic you would be next to the bathroom.

cooking has been challenging, but now impossible.  along with the cooking station pictured below, we also have our beloved bar bq.  the electric tea kettle is my best friend, in the mornings.

we lived without our washer and dryer for 1 1/2 weeks.  that was no fun.  only real complaint is the dust, though.  am feeling sorry for ian, our eel, and his two friends.  the fish tank was so dusty today.  m is taking a water sample to the fish store as i type.

hanging in there.  wish we could live without the dust, that's all.
more later.  thanks for asking.
a

continued comaparisons

one of our readers, my sister, suggested that we post before and after photos.  the last post had photos but i didn't manage to state where they were.  they were taken from the old guest room windows of the doorway and wall, adjacent to the living room.

today i am showing the same space, but looking at the window, showing plaster/no plaster.

the other photo is of the old kitchen, which is being  walled in now.  it is of the old brick fireplace before exposing the brick and after.  there is no fireplace at all now.  the walls are all squared off.  in fact, the new bedroom is being framed, filling in where the doorway to the living room was and soon the pantry doorway.

i'm finding living in such small spaces with family and working with small children all day is pretty hard.  not a lot of patience left by 7pm.  new development for me, as i worked my first solo day with 21 six year olds.

looking forward to dinner, which is being delivered in a matter of minutes.

enjoy the photos
a

suggestions from one of our readers

awesomness

top photo is from the windows in the guest room(new kitchen) looking down the hall.  as you can see, there is no plaster between the living room and this room!

the photo on the bottom is from the old kitchen(new bedroom) looking into the living room.  there is no plaster there, either!

i think the chimney behind the old stove goes tomorrow.

a

ps. o says hi and embrace your awesomeness.

day 2

they have completely taken out all the plaster in what was our guest room.  tomorrow they will take out the fireplace behind where the stove was in the old kitchen.  they will continue to take out plaster and the pantry closet shelving, etc.  the plumber came by today to check out the site and tomorrow the electrician will come by.

there is now a giant dumpster out front on the street.  along with that there is a porta potty.  guess this qualifies our remodel as a real construction site.

the refrigerator is now in our front room, now our temporary kitchen/living room.  turns out the couch can't be put into this room.  the turn is too tight.

tomorrow is my first real day back to work.  will return to more major changes i am sure.

these people move fast.
a

the days are numbered

this is going to be a big change for me and my family. there have been a lot of changes since this morning.   for instance, the guest room is stripped down to its lathe.  the sink and the stove are gone in the kitchen.  the living room is sealed off with cloudy plastic.

stay tuned for tomorrow's update!
j

demolition

demolition has started!

on the road to a new kitchen

we are embarking on a remodel of our kitchen.  moving it from one room to another.  making our old kitchen a bedroom.  opening the old guest room into the living room and putting our new, improved kitchen there!!  all thought of by our neighbor and my sister who, together, created an amazing plan one afternoon.  watch as it unfolds.  wish us luck.

day before contractor comes.  we have just about emptied our back three rooms.  ready for day one from our contractor.  we are all beat.  went out for our first of possibly many meals out of the house until our kitchen is done.  final packing up tomorrow morning as contractor starts laying floor boards.  will try to stay 5 steps ahead of him.

this is diary of a wimpy kitchen.