Half our backyard was a dirt pile when we first moved in. It took a few months of work and 400 square yards of sod. Our yard is so much nicer! And we can eat fresh vegetables right from our garden!

Check out the before and after pics below:

We just bought a new BBQ. I have a ribeye selected for our new Char-Broil Commercial Infrared BBQ from Lowes. Check it out here…

The kitchen was tough, but the bathroom was by far the most time-consuming room to remodel. Sunny spent more time picking out fixtures in this room than any other. In fact, when we were done, only the tub remained from the original bathroom (and we almost replaced that too). We replaced the mirror with a medicine cabinet from Kohler. The faucet, pedestal sink, and toilet are also from Kohler. The tub and shower fixtures are from American Standard (I specially ordered the round escutcheon plate). The mosaic tile floor is gorgeous. We ran a heating pad below the tile which warms your feet – I almost don’t want to leave! We used a recessed light with a quiet fan on a mechanical 60 minute timer. I finished the room with a dimmer switch on the recessed light for comfort. Sunny and I put a lot of care in this room and it has become one of my favorite rooms in the house. Here is a few quick before and after comparison:

Two months of hard work has turned an old rundown bathroom into a warm and inviting throne room. When I first looked at the house I knew this room had to go, but it was Sunny who really wanted to make this room shine. Sunny spent a lot of time picking out floor tiles, faucets, towel rods, a sink, lights, fan, and a host of other pieces that would turn this room into one of the nicest bathrooms I’ve ever visited. The demo was fun to! We had a lot of help tearing the room apart and putting it all back together. My step-parents, Scott and Laurie, helped demo. Mario and Gabrielle demoed the old floor (one and a half inches of solid rock). My Dad ran the plumbing. Gene was our tile guy. Even Mike’s Artisan Hardwood Floors pitched in with a beautiful threshold between the hallway and bathroom. We painted the walls and ceiling, but Sunny is planning on hanging wallpaper. This room is gorgeous. Watch the transformation below.

Sunny and I fell in love with the house partly because of the old-fashioned look of the kitchen cabinets. So when we decided to remodel the kitchen we realized that not just any standard box would do. We approached my Dad, and after a little nudging (begging), he agreed to build our kitchen cabinets by hand. Going into this, I knew this would be the most difficult part of the entire remodel. The kitchen is arguably the most important room in the house. Making a mistake in this room would be serious. So, we measured twice and cut wood. I took a vacation from October 11 to the 18th to help. Within two weeks we were installing the cabinets. They look gorgeous and the appliances fit perfectly. I am real proud of the work we did. Take a look.

The kitchen changed dramatically, but I feel we kept the old cottage look that we were after. Some details: We increased the width of the lower cabinets from 21 inches to the standard 24, which allowed us to install a dishwasher (we made the lower cabinets from scratch). We raised the upper cabinets 7 inches to give us 18 inches of space above the countertops. This allows us to put small appliances, like mixers and coffee makers, under the upper cabinets. We raised the height of the cabinets from 34 inches to 36, which feels more comfortable. We removed all the old vinyl flooring, uncovering a beautiful tongue and groove fir. The sink remained about the same – ours was manufactured for us out of Corian. The countertops are gorgeous, the Corian should last us forever (we chose the Cameo color). We reluctantly removed the in-wall faucet for a countertop faucet from Kohler. We added a 3/4 horsepower garbage disposal from InSinkErator and four new appliances from GE Café. We covered up three holes in the wall, using one of them to vent the microwave (two holes were from an old icebox, the other was used to vent the range). I ran lines for under-the-cabinet-lights (future plans), Dad ran all new pluming and Boyer Electric ran new outlets (all to code). The kitchen actually feels more open than it used to, there is more cupboard space and more countertop space. I can’t wait to entertain! Take a look at the before and after photos:

My father-in-law, Scott, and I trimmed the trees and rhododendron bushes around the house today. Removing the huge rhododendron bushes from in front of the spare bedroom made a huge difference in the amount of light that filters into the room. We also pulled the brick away from the front stoop. In the process we discovered that the soil had settled about four inches below the brick. We also discovered a tiny amount of dryrot in the treated wood against the foundation. Not difficult to repair, but we will have to wait until it warms up before we can lay mortar. More to come.

We just received the keys to our new home! Here are some photos. We are planning a two month remodel. If all goes well, we will move in by December 1st, just in time for Sinterklaas!