If you had asked me a few months ago, I would not have said it was wise to embark on your own kitchen renovations. I would probably still say that today.
However, I am very proud of what we’ve achieved these past four weeks, even though these four weeks have been stressful, uncomfortable, cramped, and full of back-breaking labour and little creative work.
Actually, that last part is not true. This may be why Erin and I feel so proud. Because building a new kitchen, and doing it well, is creative work. We’ve created something amazing (at least, to us), and we did it with our own hands (and, of course, the much appreciated hands and tools of my parents, Erin’s parents, and some friends).
I can hardly believe it’s been a month already since we started removing things from our old kitchen and moving them out to the rest of the house, where they seem to take so much more space. We’ve done a lot of demolition, and a lot of heavy lifting. We now have wonderful cabinets in that Erin’s painted (with colour suggestions by Vivian and Rosemarie), a nice set of countertops (which our kids picked out), a floor we love, electrics that are to code (thanks to Home Pro Electric for making us breathe easier), and a sink and a dishwasher that work.
I’m impressed, and people around me have been impressed — some have remarked that it’s amazing that Erin and I have gotten through this without arguing, given the old saw about a couple putting their relationship to a real test by wallpapering a room together. However, Erin and I trust each other’s judgement, and we seem to keep each other calm, or at least understand each other’s frustrations and offer support. It has been a stressful time, but we’ve come through it with something much better than was there before, and that’s a good feeling.
You can see the album of our progress here on Flickr.