Everything AND the Kitchen Sink

I have previously mentioned how grateful I am to my father-in-law. Let's start showing off what he got done on my new house this past week! As you can see from the "before" pictures, an ancient, four-inch stainless steel sink covered in hard water stains (despite scrubbing them last week) wasn't exactly my dream kitchen environment. All I had to do was purchase a Kohler Anthem Double-Bowl, Cast-Iron, 9-inch basin sink to fix that problem! The best thing? It is guaranteed to never chip, rust, or crack. This thing will last longer than my love for Pretzel M&Ms...as if that's possible.

I am not exaggerating when I say the sink weighs approximately fourteen tons. And it was just the two of us transporting it from Home Depot, since John was at working slaving away. What would it be like to have a real job?! Anyway, once we got the sink home and in the kitchen, the sink-dismantling process began. It literally took all day to install the sink, faucet, and new garbage disposal. We weren't planning on replacing the disposal (surprise!), but when we opened it up and saw the corrosion, I made the executive decision to throw it away. It's much better to replace it now since everything is torn apart. Mick also discovered that our shut-off valves under the sink do NOT shut off the water. He replaced those, and now they work. Look at all that calcium deposited in the old ones. Yuck! It's nice to have everything new and shiny and operating properly. I can't stop looking at it and touching its smooth surface. It's just so surreal to me that this is all happening!

I love my new sink and faucet. It's better than I could have imagined, and believe me when I say I have been imagining this for months! I am getting a brand-new kitchen for about $800 dollars and countless hours of manual labor. I am enjoying the process but am really looking forward to the end result! Isn't it pretty? I am glad the fourteen tons are in place and will never be moved again. And I can hardly wait to start cooking in this new kitchen!

A Short One

You see this guy? He's an angel!

I don't think I've ever gone so long without posting. Let's just say I've been a little busy. And I have the blisters to show it. I don't think I've ever looked forward to a Day of Rest as much as I am looking forward to tomorrow! I hope to blog some of the two-hundred pictures I have taken this past week, chronicling our adventures in our new home! It has been pure heaven, I will just say that. And what progress has been made!

This progress is largely due to this man. And I must admit I want to keep him locked up in our house to work on whatever my little heart desires. John's Dad, Mick, came down to help us for most of this past week, and I can't believe how much he got done. HUGE projects, too. Wait until you see them! Things that would have taken us months or lots of moola to get done. I invited him to stay forever...but he left on Thursday. It has been rough without him! Thank you, Mick! You are a life-saver! And you just feel free to visit with a truck-load of tools any time you want (pretty please?).

Snowflake Pioneers Galore

We are back in town after a wonderful family reunion in Snowflake, Arizona. John's entire family made it for the Pioneer Days weekend, and it was fun to meet people I had always heard about but had never met. All of John's siblings were at our wedding, but some of them left their wives and kids home. So I was finally able to meet them all in person and confirm their existence.

I drove up Friday late morning after being able to show my sister our new house. It's rather important that my best friend approve of my new digs, and, thankfully, she did! She was also kind enough to swap me cars for the weekend, since I realized that my old Ford Taurus with 225,000 miles probably wouldn't fare so well on the steep mountain climbs to northern Arizona. Somehow, T'liese fell for my story and let me borrow her won't-break-down-at-any-moment vehicle. It was a relief to not worry about potentially odd sounds from the engine during the three-hour drive. I am not much of a road-tripper, since I always calculate how long it would take me in my airplane. About half an hour, in case you want to know. And being stuck in a car during constant rainstorms isn't nearly as fun as being in an airplane flying through clouds! But, for some unknown reason, I am not allowed to take the airplane for personal trips...

We ate, visited, watched ping pong, attended the parade, played lots of games, and enjoyed a family talent show. I really enjoyed getting to know more of the family. We even had a bed to sleep in, despite thirty people being in town! It was a fun-filled weekend.

Now I'm off to disappear in home improvements for the week! John's Dad, Mick, is arriving today to help us. What a blessing..and not just because he is bringing a truck. We are so happy to have him, and I am tickled to be doing projects on this house! I am hoping once I actually start working on things, I will be able to quit thinking about them all night! Day 1 of that experiment starts in half an hour with some sanding and first coat of gel stain on kitchen cabinets! Wish me luck...I'm pretty overwhelmed right now with all that I need to do, so I am pretty certain lots of luck will be needed!