About the kitchen renovation

During: there go the cabinets. And the plumbing.
Originally uploaded by Deluxx

Construction on the kitchen remodel began on January 7. The picture you see is from January 8 -- shocking to me when I came home from work. Things have happened very quickly since then.

We've had some bickering with the contractor and a couple of minor disasters (such as the window getting broken 2 days after being installed)... the whole downstairs is a complete mess and covered with plaster dust... and living without a kitchen takes some getting used to. BUT. He started early, and it's progressing fast. Generally, we feel confident that he knows what he is doing. And I am starting to visualize what will be.

New lighting has been installed (fantastic), both windows are in, the new door to outside is in, and yesterday he refinished the closet to hold the refrigerator. He's begun prepping the walls to paint, and then the cabinets will go up next week. I have to say, this guy moves fast and that is a huge, huge plus!

The thing about doing a kitchen renovation is that we have to make 1,209,394 decisions. NOTHING is simple. Need a new window? Sure, contractor says get an Andersen 400, 42x28. How hard is that? Except: do you want grids? if you want grids, on the outside or the inside? or both? removable or permanent? what kind of hardware: traditional, modern, retractable? what finish: nickel, satin nickel, polished chrome, bronze, or white? painted or not painted? on the outside or both sides?

And that's just a window. There's also a sink (undermount or over? square or D-shape? big or small? single or double?), faucet (don't even ask), floor tile, backsplash tile, appliances, etc. Even GROUT was a decision! (what color? what texture? sealed or unsealed?) I like choosing things for my kitchen but this could make a person crazy.