End of Week 11

No more cooking and eating in the basement! Yahoo!

Last week the electricians were here two full days. They installed the nine can lights, outlets, chandelier, pendant lights, and under-cabinet lights. They also hooked up the refrigerator, double oven, cooktop, and dishwasher. The microwave will be installed this week after the missing screws arrive on Wednesday.

Working around the electricians, the carpenters installed all the remaining cabinet doors and most of the drawer pulls and door knobs. The rest of the pulls and knobs will be installed this week after yet another trip to Lowe's for the right length screws. In addition, the brushed nickel door knob and hinges on the laundry room door were replaced with black ones.

The carpenters/handymen also installed the faucet and turned on the water. What a wonderful thing to have water, again, in a real kitchen!

Of course, there are a few things that need to be fixed, but nothing preventing us from using the space. First of all, we recently discovered one of the doors on the island is the wrong size, and one of the doors under the sink is warped. (How neither one of these obvious problems wasn't noticed weeks ago amazes everyone!) Replacement doors have been ordered and should be here next week. And now that the cooktop is in place, it's clear the back of the drawer underneath needs to be notched out an eighth of an inch. Plus, one of the two under-cabinet lights has a hum. A replacement is due this week.

So how do I like my new kitchen so far? It's wonderful!

I've been washing dishes and stocking cabinets off and on all weekend. My new deep single-bowl sink and gooseneck faucet have made washing large casserole dishes, big pots and pans, and cumbersome refrigerator shelves and drawers a breeze.

I haven't used the cooktop, yet, but the electrician gave me a short demo. I was amazed at how quickly the burners heated up to full power. I think I'm going to really enjoy having nine heat levels plus a warm setting.

I also haven't tried the double oven. Although I read the manual and am hoping it works as well as described. Logically, it has to be better than the 30+-year-old double oven I had been using. At least I now have a working oven clock!

The carpenters will be back in the morning to install the remaining ceiling trim on the cabinets and the crown molding. This week they will also be putting final touches on the banquette and painting window trim and walls.

Then we wait for the window treatments and seat cushions, which should be in no later than the first week of November. We can finally see "the light at the end of the tunnel!"

(Happy 35 birthday to my baby girl, Emily!)