New Kitchen

So, for those of you who have been dying to see what our new kitchen looks like, the suspense is about to be over. Please understand that the condition of the kitchen in the following new photos will probably never occur again, so take it all in while you can. ;)

What you see are new Maple kitchen cabinets from Williams and new laminate counter-tops from there as well. New GE appliances in Black (minus the microwave which has yet to be installed above the stove), new granite sink and faucet. We also have under-cabinet lighting and new pendant lighting above the sink. The entire kitchen has been rewired and new flooring installed as well.

We still have a little molding to do on the floor, hardware on the cabinets, and eventually a tile back-splash, but those things are going to have to wait a little while longer. There has been other progress in the house as well and hopefully I can show you some more before and after pics tomorrow. We are getting ready for vacation so I can only do so much!

Enjoy!

Before Picture

Before Picture

Happy Easter!

The girls loved being able to find the eggs that the Easter Bunny left for them to find at Grandma and Grandpa B's house! The weather was beautiful today for a change and a great time was had by all! Hope ya'll had a great Easter Sunday as well!

100!

This, my friends, is my 100th post! And I am happy to announce that we are officially moved-into our new home. It's mostly just a pile of boxes and furniture right now, but that will change fast enough. I'm really excited to start putting things in their new places, sorting out items that will find a new home in the trash or the yard sale box. Less is more, right?

The move on Saturday actually went pretty well. We were able to empty the majority of the house out in one trip and we will be going back for the rest over the next several weeks. Our goal is to have the old house on the rental market by the beginning of May.

We would never have been able to accomplish what we did on Saturday without the help and overwhelming support of our friends. I would like to personally thank the following people:

• Mom & Dad Brace: for taking the kids for the weekend so we could focus on the move.
• Mom & Dad K.: for taking care of our niece Hailey on Saturday so we could have Anna and Shaun's help.
• Members of The Moving and Packing and Setting-Back-Up Team.

1. Anna & Shaun
2. Jim & Jeanne
3. Deane & Linda
4. Scott & Jennifer
5. Ty & Pat
6. Rudy & Bonnie (and Leksi & Briarlyn, too!)
7. Khan & Simeon
8. Carl
9. Jenny
10. Renee

I think that's everyone but my mind is a little cloudy. Everyone jumped right in and made the process easy on Mike and I. We went back to the old house yesterday to do some laundry and grab a few more boxes-boy did the place feel weird...and small. We're glad that we're here and plan to stay for awhile. I have no desire to move again in the near future after all of that!

A big "Thank You" again to all who participated and were able to lend a hand. We'll be happy to return the favor in the future...you deserve it!

Overload

Whoa! Things are starting to get a little crazy around here. The good news is that all of our flooring has been installed! Yay! New carpet, tile and wood laminate flooring is in place and ready to be walked on! :)

The countertops finally arrived today and they look fantastic. Now we just need to officially install them. We also had Modernistic out to clean the "1" room that we actually kept the carpet in (the girls room) and I swear that it looks brand, spanking new. Nifty.

All the new appliances arrived yesterday as well and are waiting to be installed. We still had to run a water line to the fridge for the ice maker and water dispenser. We also needed to run a new gas line for the stove and re-connect the water lines for the sink (which we still need to purchase-oops) and the dishwasher. The microwave also needs to be installed, which will take a little work, but nothing we can't handle.

We are getting down to the little things, like blinds, outlets, ceiling fans, trim painting, touch-ups, quarter-round molding in the kitchen and foyer, grout, and some of the bathrooms. They are all things that we can work on once we are actually living there.

So, the big moving day is this Saturday and I am more nervous about that than you can even imagine. God only knows what's hiding behind the couch, under the piano, or in my sock drawer. I just hope that our family and friends understand that life has been hectic and I really am sorry in advance for any messes that might be found in the moving process. At least I can say that the new house is clean! Well, mostly clean....ish.... :)