Renovating

I'm currrently learning what the phrase "burning the candle at both ends" means. For those of you who know me well, you might be expecting me to be a little stressed at the moment, but surprisingly, I'm still very excited about the move and things are moving along well.

However, it's a huge undertaking and I'm working 9 hour days at work with a very busy schedule as we undergo a huge server upgrade at work. We have 150 staff and more than 50 computers and I'm the only I.T. guy for the building, so it's the busiest job I've ever had.

When I get home, I barely get a few moments to hang out with Tasha and Gabe and then I'm deep into the renovating. At the moment, we're working on the kitchen and we're really pleased with the progress; both in terms of how fast it's developing and also how much better it looks than before.

Here are some pictures that only those who saw the kitchen before we started will really appreciate. (The photos are terrible, but that's what I get from a phone camera and a shaky hand!)

One of the first jobs was to take down the cabinets and put them up straight!

They were visibly wonky before with a gap between cabinets.

Now they're level thanks to my dad's laser-level!

The floor has also been replaced. We opted for vinyl tiles for speed and ease and we're very pleased with the result. Much better than the previous laminate job.

Above is the view from the kitchen to the front door. Again, it looks amazing, but more so if you ever saw the old hallway. Previously, there was a second door frame only 3 feet past the door frame that you see in this picture. We took out the unnecessary wall and door and the room looks more spacious.

We painted it a cheerful yellow, with a bright white wainscot (thanks for the help Dad) and then added a brand new laminate floor and finished it last night with a coat rail and a picture frame.

Above, you can see the view from the front door back to the kitchen.

Note the makeshift diner in the hallway. It's a tight squeeze but much cleaner than the kitchen (hence the blue tarp holding back the dust in the kitchen at the end!!!)

This blog post is mostly for my Dad, as I'm sure no-one else cares about the renovations. Even Dad must be sick of the conversations we have about renovations, but he politely asks for updates and photos every time we speak (and that's why I love him!)

Other updates:

Tasha's last day of work is tomorrow and then she will fly home around September 16 with Gabe. I'm staying a little longer until the end of September and I finish work on September 26. 10 days without Tasha and Gabe means a very lonely Ryan, but I'm sure the housework, packing, shipping and a healthy dose of good friends will keep me busy.