The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week, and showcase books and things we have received.
Don’t forget to look at my giveaways on the right sidebar.
Sunday, I was a little lazy this morning since I have much to do today and tomorrow will be an early start. I can’t express how much it means to me to read your Sunday posts and have an understanding of what is happening with you. I wait eagerly to read them. I spent much of the evening finishing up the kitchen packing. We should have gotten takeout for tonight since then I had to run the dishwasher again.
Kitchen before photos:
Monday, I quickly packed up the last items from the dishwasher. The contractor got to work with removing the cabinets. It feels like I have nothing to do but I have lots to do I just need to regroup. Things didn’t go perfectly but not badly. The old cabinets are mostly out and he says they will start putting in the new ones tomorrow. I took my daughter to get her COVID booster and we ended up running around to 3 restaurants for takeout. yeah, we need to get that better organized. I wanted an old drawer stack to put the microwave on. I got that at the end of the day and had to clean it up. The cord didn’t reach so I had to get a heavy duty extension cord; it’s lucky I had one. Lulu is a little confused but she’s adapting well.
After the first day:
The dining room set up for eating:
Tuesday, I really wanted a day at home. The contractor team showed up about 9 talked to me for 10 minutes, then they took down the microwave and left. I did a bunch of chores. Then started a bunch of blog planning and setups. I was nearly falling asleep in my chair. So of course I missed the Fated Blades Netgalley setup which was there and gone quickly. I took Lulu for a walk in the late afternoon. My daughter is having pain and arm swelling after her shot. Having both the microwave and toaster oven is a perfect combo for our current eating.
After Tuesday:
They removed the left set of pantry doors and cabinet.
Wednesday, I had to get going as usual. I met the contractor at the granite place. They didn’t really have the ones for which I had samples, so I looked at 3 new options and picked something really unique. I was always going to want to see the whole sheet anyway. It’s called River Blue and has a flow rather than the typically “blobby” granite. Then I came back to help my daughter take notes for her class since her arm hurts. We had dentist appts, then picked up takeout. I spent a lot of time before dinner printing online menus and maps of 7 areas where restaurants are. I’m planning to go for takeout Monday, Wednesday and Fridays. On the weekends, I can also grill out and steam or roast vegetables if the weather is ok.
After Wednesday:
Thursday, I wrote some reviews and caught up on emails and laundry. I didn’t sleep well. Then Lulu was barking at 7am which is extremely unusual. I was emailing with Jeanienne Frost about the details for the Read-along 2022. I am getting so excited! In the afternoon we had chiro / massage appts, voted early in the town elections, then picked up a few grocery items. Our massage therapist is celiac so we had a timely discussion of the best restaurants for gluten free. When trying to make dinner, we found the contractor had turned off 4 breakers so I had to turn them on so we could use the microwave. We finally got more rain over night.
After Thursday:
Friday, Lulu was barking a bit again this morning. She is not a fan of construction. Another day of running around which I don’t love. I did a bit of things around here, before heading to Walmart. I spent the end of the OTC benefits card and got a bunch of things we needed. An added plus was I found some Christmas gifts for my daughter and some bras which are going to work for her. Then I stopped home for a snack and Lulu care before heading out for food pickup. I spent a half hour on hold with Walgreens, never got through, and ended up just going to their drive thru. I was there 40 minutes but at least I got the 2 RX and won’t have to make another trip. I was only about 15 minutes late for my first pickup and would have made the second one on time if the GPS hadn’t been telling me to turn right instead of left. I got home just as the contractors were leaving. They stowed their things in the garage but there was still room for my car which I wanted for Halloween. After dinner, my daughter did fashion show of some things she got from Thread Up plus she tried on the bras I got for her at Walmart.
After Friday:
Saturday, another morning of waking to Lulu barking. I took her out in my robe and then went back to shower and dress. Now she’s content on her bed under my desk. I made a list before I went to bed to make sure I remembered what I wanted to do this morning. It’s so nice to have the house to ourselves on the weekend. Next Wednesday, the granite people will come to measure, so the cabinets will be mostly in by then. The next two days will be sunnier and I hope to do some leaf suck up. I need to pick all the ripe tomatoes. Only 2 of 8 broccoli plants have heads and they look like they might go to the flower stage so we should eat them soon.
Coming UP:
Nov 18 HoHoHoRAT Thrifty Thursday Challenge
Nov 20 Top 10 of 2021 announcement (December 20-25, 2021)
Dec 5 2022 Read-along announcement – Night Huntress world by Jeaniene Frost
Dec 15 2022 Library Love Challenge Signup
Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Reading Reality. These are the exciting ARCs I received this week (If you click on the cover, it will take you to the Goodreads entry):
I am so thankful to Kensington Books, and St Martin’s Press Minotaur Books.
(If you click on the cover, it will take you to the Goodreads entry)
I got my two “free” books from Amazon first reads.
Now the really scary one. This is all the Kindle and Audible freebies I grabbed this past week. You can see why I need to do Thrifty Thursday to be sure I read a few at least one each month.
I really meant to cut back on freebies BUT they are free so I guess that won’t be happening.
I’m not including things like reviews posted or upcoming as they are always in the right sidebar. And, my challenge status is also there.
Anne
- Sunday Post – 8 December 2024 @kimbacaffeinate @readingreality - December 8, 2024
- Read A Series in a Month Challenge November 2024 Results @AndrewMayne @OhSusannahJones #BrillianceAudio @Limabean74 #BerlsS #SeriesinaMonth #LoveAudiobooks #KindleUnlimited🎧 - December 7, 2024
- Love You A Latke by Amanda Elliot @AmandaPanitch @BerkleyPub @BerkleyRomance #HoHoHoRAT2024 - December 5, 2024
I love all the contracting pics and what a project to show in the making. I ran into a woman at the theatre this week and delighted with her about her wedding pics and I didn’t even know her too well, but these days social media is drawing everyone closer.
I love an improvement project, the planning and organizing once it’s done. I just hate when it’s actually happening!
Happy Halloween! Looks like your kitchen is coming along well. It’s so interesting to see the progress, day by day. I love that granite top; the flow is beautiful. I hope your daughter’s arm feels better soon. And happy Halloween!
Thank you Kara, Her arm is better. I like seeing the progress so I thought others might too. I didn’t expect to pick that granite but I really like it.
I love seeing the progress on the kitchen! You must be so excited! Have a great week!
It is exciting and to see progress. I just hate having people in my home. It’s not their fault or anything.
Renovating feels like actually moving, doesn’t it? I remember those days at my last house.
Enjoy your week and your outings, too.
Thanks for visiting my blog.
You know it does feel like moving with the packing and unpacking. The hardest part is not having a kitchen sink
Your progress in the kitchen looks good. I wish my apartment would be as tidy and neat at the moment as your house *smile* Happy reading and have a great new week.
I don’t know about tidy. There are boxes everywhere. I look forward to the unpacking though.
Happy Halloween 🎃
Thank you for sharing your kitchen renovation! I love this stuff. And, I gotta say your before kitchen was pretty nice. Hang in there and I’m sure it will turn out beautifully💜
Thanks Jonetta. The before was better than where we rented but the laminate inside the cabinets was delaminating and 20 years old. Plus there was no good place for garbage and recycle and no pullouts on the bottom of the cabinets so you had to stand on your head and take everything out to get to it. I much prefer natural wood too. Oh and plain white laminate counters are hard to keep clean; they stain.
Wow I don’t how you find time to read, you sound so busy and all that construction. I’m glad to hear things are back on track. Hope you have a great week.
Thank you. Well I’m not doing any of the work. It was much more demanding when I was doing all the work for my planter. The packing leading up to this was tiring. But I love the unpacking part!
Havins a new kitchen is so exciting Anne!!
It is! If I can get thru the construction part, I love the unpacking and getting everything in place.
Love the pictures. You’ve been busy.
Happy Halloween! I hope you get some trick or treaters and some good candy to snack on as well.
Yes we are always busy.
I”m enjoying the photos of your kitchen renovation. Your granite choice is amazing, I love it!
Thank you Wendy! I love seeing the progress. I didn’t even know that granite was a choice until the last minute but I really like it.
I love seeing the kitchen progress! Wow it’s coming together fast. I love the cabinet color and the granite! Have a good week😁
Thank you Tammy! I hope it will continue at a fast pace.
Oh my goodness – what a hectic week! It brought back all the memories of when we had our dining room and kitchen knocked through and completely redone back in 2004. It’s always such a HASSLE! But I love that granite and it will definitely be worth it once it’s completed. I hope the coming week is a smoother one, Anne:).
It’s fun to see the progress each day. Last week would have been ok except for the 4 medical appts for my daughter and that I hadn’t organized the takeout options in advance.
A bit up in the air this week, but I’m sure it will be wonderful when it’s all done. Hope your daughter’s arm is feeling better. I missed the Fated Blades too, but maybe we can catch it on audio. 🙂
Have a great week, Anne!
Yes I know a little better how it will go plus only 1 med appt this week for her so it won’t be so much running. We are excited to try some new restaurants but then sometimes they aren’t so great. Yes I requested Fated Blades on audio.
Looks like a busy week! Good luck with the restaurants and hope they are good while your kitchen is out of commission! I bet it will look amazing when it’s done.
Happy Halloween!!
Thanks Greg! You called it on hoping the restaurants were good. I’m spoiled by the fact I can cook better and less expensive than restaurants so they sometimes seem like a waste of money. But we hopefully we will find some great new ones also.
Wow, that is a big kitchen reno. I hope it’s worth the wait. Have a great week!
Well it’s smaller than the last one I did in Minnesota but it’s a good sized kitchen. I’ve pared down to the dishes and utensils I really need to cook the things I do but yes, it’s still a lot.
Thanks for showing us all the progress on the renovation—it’s looking great!!
Thank you Nicole. I love seeing the progress.
Funny how we went opposite with our kitchen remodel. You went from white cabinets to wood and I did wood to white. Your cabinets are a much better version of wood, though, natural looking while mine were the 80s oak grain. Also, my kitchen is smaller and I think the white makes it feel more open. Your kitchen looks beautiful so far! I’m looking forward to seeing the final results! 🙂
Thanks Rachel. I just always want natural looking wood.
I can’t wait to see your finished kitchen but oh the disruption, noise and mess you are having to live with. I hope things continue to go well with it all and that Lula settles down a little better. Enjoy your reading and have a great week.
Thank you Louise! I got up early enough today she didn’t bark. She was better around the tools too.
Your floors and the new granite are beautiful!
One of my old co-workers is married to a master carpenter. They decided to build new kitchen cabinets themselves. Score one for saving money, right? But he was so busy with paid projects that I think it took months for him to put their new cabinets in! While they were cooking and living in a situation that sounds much like yours looks right now! She was beside herself. I think she finally had to put her foot down and make him take time off to prioritize their own kitchen.
Good luck with everything!
Yes it’s really tough to do your paid work for yourself, because you could be serving clients. I like the shorter time frame overall.
So exciting to see all the progress on the kitchen. You’re so good about getting shots in the different stages. Can’t wait to see what it looks like when it is done. You got some good books. Hope you have a good week!
Thank you Lisa! I just take a couple shots each night after they leave. I just like to see the progress.
Happy Halloween!! (Better late than never ;))
I love watching the progress of your kitchen! And I’m really curious to see the end result.
Have a great week and happy reading.
Thank you Maureen!
I also really enjoy seeing everyone’s weekly posts. Your kitchen is going to look great! It has to be odd living with everything being torn up though. I keep NetGalley open on my work computer all day and just happened to see Fated Blades when it was posted. I guess there are some benefits to being trapped at a computer all day sometimes. I hope you have a great week!
Thanks Carole. It just means so much to me to hear about how everyone is doing. I wonder during the week in between too. It is weird with no kitchen sink. I definitely don’t like people in our house. I love to watch the progression though. It has meant we are really learning about all the gluten free restaurants in the area though. Spoiler for next week – I got Fated Blades for audio review.
Wow! Look at all the progress you’ve had in one week on your kitchen! That’s amazing! And I love the new cabinets. I also woke up to Lulu barking the other morning. I swear she sees dead people outside. Lol.
Thankfully it does seem to be progressing pretty quickly.
My first glance at the top photos had me assuming those were the after pics. Color me surprised to read that those were the before! 🙂 Your kitchen was already so pretty so I can’t imagine the final product! Love the granite you chose… very pretty and different. I imagine you will be so tired of takeout and ready for some home cooked meals by the time the kitchen is done!
There were a variety of issues I had with the old kitchen including that they were 20 years old and delaminating. The white formica stained so easily. And I just prefer a more natural wood for kitchen cabinets. I can almost always cook better food than at restaurants but it is kind of fun to find and try restaurants in the area which have gluten free. We just get dinner takeout. I have oatmeal or rice chex for breakfast and salads or sandwiches or leftovers for lunch. Then the takeout for dinner.
That granite is absolutely beautiful!! I totally see the flow versus blobby.
I have been thinking about trying out Thred Up! Was your daughter happy with it? Also, how did you boosters go? My brother just got his and was a mess! Lol. I am hoping he was just overreacting. Lol. I am scheduling mine and my mom’s for next week hopefully – either I am getting my booster or Wyatt is getting his first! I am beyond excited that it is approved now for his age group!
It was different than any granite I had ever seen but I liked it. She has done Tread Up a couple times. We think you have to read the description very carefully. We both have strong preferences for certain fibers. Between the restocking fee and the shipping, you can almost lose money if you need to return. She had 2 items to return this time and one was because the sleeve was ripped and had some holes at the bottom. The total for the 2 items was $17 but the restocking fee was $4 and the shipping was $9 so we will get back about $4.
The booster went the same as the last 2 shots. I had almost no reaction. My daughter’s arm hurt and she had some aches for a few days. I am so excited children can get vaccinated. Hopefully parents will be responsible enough to vaccinate for those it is appropriate.
I love that granite! Redoing our counters, sink and backsplash ranks high on my remodel list. We completely redid the kitchen 18 years ago and I love our cabinets. I got all new appliances 2 years ago. Now I just need to get rid of the Formica counter and old sink. Thanks for sharing photos of the remodel progress.
Thanks Jen. I loved how unique it is. The kitchen is a key area I need organized. The small but important changes made here will help for many years.