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By sarah @ 9:54 PM :: 281 Views ::
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We realize we haven't put an update in a while, but that is because we've been busy. These first 2 weeks of February have seen us paint and paint and paint. There are now 5 coats of paint on the walls! We put on the primer then 2 coats of semi-gloss. The lady at Lowe's talked Ryan into buying the semi-gloss 'kitchen and bath' paint. Since you can't return custom colors, we went ahead and used it. We were painting in the evenings after the boys went to bed, so we never really got to see it in the daylight. Saturday afternoon when the sun hit the wall (and the undercabinet lights were installed), we could see the semi-gloss highlighted every flaw, brush stroke, and roller mark, even though we had been very careful. So back Ryan went on Monday to buy eggshell finish paint and we put the second coat on Tuesday (yesterday).
Last week, the gas connection for the stove and water line for the fridge were moved. The electricians came and wired all the outlet plugs/light switches, undercabinet lights, and installed the chandelier in the dining room. Some trim went up at the top of the cabinets. The microwave was installed (but still needs venting to the outside before we use it). Lots of little items.
Besides the 4th and 5th coat of paint, this week 2 layers of kitchen linoleum were removed. The cork flooring is going in and looks really nice. We've been enjoying walking on the new floor and how pretty it looks.
Last week we went to a granite distributor and looked at samples. Ryan has been calling around to different installers for quotes. We are also looking at engineered stone and have a lady coming out on Friday to give us a quote and let us look at samples. Ryan is leaning toward granite, I'm interested in the engineered stone (no maintenance). Hopefully we will make a decision about countertops this weekend. Until then, we are working on our taxes to see if we can afford stone, or need to stick to the original plan of laminate or granite tiles!
Speaking of a budget, we are pretty close to plan. As an FYI, Lowe's and Home Depot will honor the Menards' X% off bags. We had already priced out some things and knew where the best prices were for the things we wanted. Ryan ran around and bought our garbage disposal at Menards, our faucet at Lowe's, and our cabinet hardware at Home Depot all for 17% off last Saturday. In total, we saved close to $100 over the already lowest price at each place. I'm enjoying getting what we want while still meeting our budget. After the shock of the electrician's quote ($3K over my budget amount--I obviously had noooo idea), we are pleased to see how we've made up for it and then some. If we go over budget, it will be because we opt for the solid granite countertop.
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