An Expensive Week

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Quite honestly, this has been one of the most stressful week in the past two or three years.  Today, I am going to share a little of that stress both financial and personal with you.

I talked last week about the fact we discovered a nail in our new vans tire on Saturday. Matt took the van in on Monday morning and discovered that not only was the tire not fixable but we actually needed to replace all four tires.

Amanda’s car, which we are still responsible for major repairs on, was not working properly. Amanda said she did not have any heat. This ended up being a minor repair of less than $150 but still a unexpected expense.

Kendal is scheduled to compete in her first cheer competition on Saturday, so they have had practice 3 of the 5 nights this week. Lily also has had practices on these nights but at later times, which means we are playing taxi a lot.

Zach and Kendall both are not feeling at 100%. I took Zach to the doctor this afternoon and he has a double ear infections. I am so thankful that this is the first real sickness for him since starting school in August.

On a more positive note, both Lily and Kendall had orthodontic appointments this morning. Lily will be in braces most likely at age 11 or so. Kendall unfortunately is going to require several phases of brace and some other really expensive work. The good news is that it is felt that waiting another 6 months to a year before starting this process is our best options.

Matt has a doctor’s appointment in the morning and with the multiple trips this week we have accomplished very little in the way of remodeling this week. I hope to share at least some progress this weekend.

Thanksgiving- 02/21/2016

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Our Sunday School lesson this morning was from Priscilla Shirer, The Armor of God.   I was reminded, ok slapped up side the head, with the truth about thanksgiving. I am so abundantly blessed, that I should never have to think about the things I am thankful for but they should bubble up all during the day. With all things, practice never hurt so here is a short list for today.

  1. The awesome ladies in my class, who are not afraid to be real and who share experience and the idea that we are all sisters of the King.
  2. My new van, which has a nail in the tire but is still driving without any weird movements.
  3. A husband, who is not only available to take the above van to get it fix bright and early Monday morning but who will also fill it with gas before exchanging it for his older van while I am working.
  4. A warm house with an abundance of food and drink. We talked about our first world problems at lunch today.
  5. A job, I enjoy and feel allows me to make a difference, hopefully a positive difference in at least one person’s life daily.
  6. An unexpected free weekend, which allowed me to catch up on several different items and still enjoy some downtime today.
  7. Friends both in real life and on social media who keep me accountable.

Kitchen Project Update

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Matt has continued to work on the kitchen this past week and I managed to help a couple of times. One of the huge visible changes this week was us re-framing the window.

Before

Before

During

During

Finished.... which I LOVE!

Finished…. which I LOVE!

Matt also painted all the walls in the current kitchen white. We were given antique white but after looking at it, we decided it was not bright and clean looking enough so we decided on “high vee white” I actually like it. Matt also added trim around the top of the ceiling to replace the crown molding.

Today was a huge day for us. We decided to make it a shopping day. I wanted to check out several different stores to see if we could find/decided on cabinets and countertops. Our overall decision is to go with a “farm/ simple” kitchen feel.  My one standing rule was that it either had to be on an awesome sale or both of us had to agree this is what we wanted.

Our first stop was Home Depot. They did have a sale but we could not get things to work out. I did make a list of the items we found and prices so we would be able to compare with the other stores.

Next kitchen stop was IKEA. I did a little research last night but was not anticipating the additional choices offered in the store. Our first decision was that we definitely would not be purchasing cabinet from here as they only have “plastic” cabinets. Yes, the have a wood grain appearance but still are plastic.  We did find the “perfect” sink and pick out a counter top for the new sink area that we both agreed on. Of course, we picked up several other items that will be used in the kitchen but the kids and Matt are most excited that we purchased reading lights for each of the kids and one for Matt’s art desk.

Our final physical stop was the local Lowes store. We found our great sale here. Cabinets were an additional 20% off after purchasing $400. I was also able to find a “drawer” cabinet that I really wanted. So we ended up purchasing new bottom cabinets including ones for the new sink area. We also purchased a new faucet that fit both of our “wants”. I am still not certain if it is the right one but it at least is a place holder until I find a better one. I was disappointed when we discovered that the tile, I had chosen several weeks ago was no longer available in our local store.  So after arrive home, Matt went on-line and order us enough tile for the back splash as I am afraid this is being discontinued.

I joked and posted on Facebook that we had enough supplies to keep us busy several week but in actually I think these purchases today will keep us busy a month or more.

Goals for the week are :
1. Patch and paint the walls in the new dining/ play room.
2. Build 2 shelves one is for the microwave and the second for Keurig. I want a third for holding bottles but this is low on the list so I may save for another week.
3. Finish staining and hang up remaining trim around door and window in the kitchen.

Items we have supplies to work on
1. new sink cabinet- assembled, painted and new plumbing ran. When this is complete we will need to purchase the new dishwasher.
2. installing of new dishwasher along with moving of instant hot
3. Cutting countertop and cabinets and installing stove in it’s permanent home.
4. Removing old cabinets, painting and installing new cabinets.
5. Stripping and repainting old top cabinets
6. Installing new tile backsplash.

 

I know progress is slow but it is progress and we should not need to spend a great deal in the next month except for purchasing the new dishwasher.

Random Thoughts Tuesday 2/16

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imageWe decided to change out the window and door cases with our kitchen remodel. What we discovered is that there was no insulation around the windows. I purchased two cans of foam which is the yellow you see above.

imageAll three of the kids got “Olafs” for a special Valentine gift. They are a huge hit. I was really good at keeping these hidden.

IMG_5532.JPGKendall enjoyed the circus and even more so she enjoyed the special time with her big sister. Do you think they look alike?

IMG_5530 (00000003)Finally, I have learned how to fix Lily’s hair for cheerleading and it stays up! It does take close to an hour to complete but at least it works.

IMG_2389

Menu Planning Monday 2/15

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As I mentioned on Friday, menu planning went out the window this past week and my grocery spending actually hit outside the $400 I planned. I am beginning to see how the two are definitely related.  I did order several large storage buckets to use for bulk items such as flour and rice. I am starting a list of Costco and am planning to restrain myself until March if at all possible. I did cook several meals ahead of time on Sunday so hopefully we will stay on a better track this week.

Breakfast–  Saturday- biscuits, Sunday- Egg Spinach omelet. Monday- Baked Oatmeal, Tuesday- Trisha Yearwood Breakfast casserole, Wednesday and Friday- Frozen Muffins or Left-overs. Thursday-eggs.

Lunch-I have several containers of cabbage soup and will also take a salad for lunch. The kids will be eating chicken nuggets 3 days each, sandwiches the other days.

Dinner-  Saturday- Lunch- pizza bites.   Dinner- Leftover soup
Sunday- Lunch and Dinner- Taco Soup
Monday- Salisbury steak, rice, corn and peaches
Tuesday-Shepherd pie
Wednesday-Pork roast or pork chops
Thursday- Chicken and dressing in the crock pot with leftover cream corn and carrots?
Friday- Chicken fried rice.

 

5 Things Friday 02/12/2016

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  1. Our menu plan this week has consisted of leftovers. Monday- wing and snacks. Wednesday- Sandwich and chips, Thursday- pick your left over, Friday- Spam and mac and cheese. Saturday-left over soup. The kids have enjoyed donuts for breakfast 2 days and we all ate leftover this morning.
  2. Kendall is spending tomorrow with Amanda, plans include the circus and a art workshop.
  3. The weather is COLD and we are suppose to receive snow on Monday. I am hopefully for the snow that will give me an extra day to paint in the kitchen.
  4. I am finally see a vision of the new kitchen and simple is working well.
  5. Budget wise this month is going to be tight but so far I think we will be under budget with both gas and groceries.

Thursday Thoughts on the Kitchen

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I am so excited to say that we have finished our first stage in updating our kitchen. You can read our plan if you would like. We started tearing down the wall that once separated the kitchen and living room two weeks ago. Pictures of the fun are on a Wordless Wednesday post.  Today, Matt finished install the “beam and capping off the wall. It turned out great

image image imageIt feels awesome to actually be at a point where we can stop for a couple of weeks. The current plan is to “wait out the weather” as we are anticipating snow both tomorrow and next Monday.  If this occurs, we do not want to start anything with the kids out of school for several days. So once that is settled we will paint next.  We have been given antique white paint which is perfect for our “farm house” theme..

Even better news is that I have been keeping track of everything we have spent, so far that is $694!  I know that we need some painting supplies and will have to purchase the materials for the back splash but my goal is that we spend less than $1000 before the new appliances, cabinets and floor!

Remolding the Kitchen

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I decided during the month of December that our kitchen was simply too small and after some discussion with Matt, decide that we would begin to tackle this huge project.  I posted on Facebook that the anticipated time line for total completion of this project was 2 years. I have had several questions as to why it is going to take so long, I decided to lay out our anticipated time line for you today and to also discuss why this is such a complex project.

I honestly think it will be 2 years or longer before we sit in “our new dream kitchen.” There are few reason for this. First is money, we do not want to go into debit for this remodeling project and with the loss of several of Matt’s websites at the end of the year, we really don’t have any extra to spend on the project. Reason number 2- time. Matt and I along with some help from friends will be completing all the work. The problem is that we also have 3 small kids and 2 big kids that each have schedules and expectations of us.  The next reason sounds silly but it is the truth and ties in to both of the other reasons I have mention, I am having a hard time, trying to decide on themes and colors. Finally, I like a orderly house and can not stand to live in a construction zone for longer than a week or so at a time.

Now on to the fun stuff, stages of remodeling: 1.Wall Destruction. 2. New sink and Dishwasher   3. Painting/New cabinets.   4. New Floor.

We are about 90% finished with the first stage. The wall has been removed and the electric wires have been relocated. We added 12 recess lighting cans to add light in both the new kitchen and out in our living room.  The ceiling was scrapped and painted. We have decided to install a beam to make the transition between the two rooms, which needs to be completed. Finally we have to remove the old baseboard heater. My goal is have this step complete by February 21st.

The second step includes several major decisions about colors and style of sink, faucet and dishwasher. We have been given a counter top which reduces the overall expense so we will start making decisions and purchasing the new items . The walls will be painted in this step along with new window facings and new molding around the ceilings. The Goal for completion of this step is end of March.

Stage three is by one of the most labor intense steps. We will first repaint and repair all the upper cabinets in addition to adding a shelf around the top of the cabinets to provide additional store space and add function to a “dead space.”  We will have to replace all the lower cabinets and may add additional cabinets if we can afford and decide it would be beneifical. I have already pick out a new back splash to be add as well. My goal is to complete the cabinet repainting and have the back splash installed by the end of May. Based on our current financial situation this will most likely be the stopping point of the remodeling. The purchase of new cabinets will be placed on hold until we can decide on what we want and  can afford to make this large purchase. I have an estimated budget of $1000 for lower cabinets. I also have an additional $2000 budget for the new “bar area” which includes replacing our current countertops as well. My estimate for the completion of this items is next February.

Stage 4- New floor is approximately 18-24 months away due to the huge expense of both time and money that will be involved. In addition, this decision has already been the most discussed and hardest one to make so that may also add to the length of time it will take.