Doin' the Happy Dance!!

Woohoo!!!!!!!!! The counter tops are in!! I am doing the happy dance around my new kitchen. On Wednesday the kitchen store called to set up the appointment for Monday. I gave a huge groan because we leave tomorrow for vacation. But, I told her I would make arrangements for someone to be here so they could do the job. There was no way I was going to wait until after our return, lol!! While I was on hold for something else, she spoke to the installer and he was willing to come today! Maybe it was the HUGE GROAN, lol, but since I didn't ask for that I felt especially blessed. When the two men were here we chatted and it turns out they are both Christians and we had a lovely conversation. God is so good isn't he? I love those little blessings he showers on us for no reason. Dad is hoping to come out while we are away and install our sink and faucet. It could be fully functional very soon!
As you can see, we still have a few doors off, Greg needs to put up the wood valance in between those cabinets so the doors are off for easier access. Now that the counters are in we can put on the back panel of the island as well.
Did you notice the floor? I just love it!! Greg and I were up until 1am Sunday finishing it up. (I don't do 1am very well anymore but a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do) Again, the Lord just blessed us because our budget for flooring was not huge and everywhere we looked materials were easily twice our budget. We have a Big Bob's flooring outlet near us and they sell discontinued/overstock items. They had exactly what we wanted and it goes perfectly with all the other elements in the room! It is a tile looking laminate and was manageable for us to install ourselves. We installed something similar in our bathroom last fall and have really enjoyed it.
And how about those stools by the island? Have you ever just known what you wanted but couldn't find it, or at least not at the right price? I looked on-line for a place to purchase them and discovered they averaged $60-80 a stool. Not gonna happen. There must be another way! I spent a couple of hours on the internet looking for cheaper solutions and finally found one pair, new in the box, on Ebay. The seller stated they were from Ikea. Great! I will check out Ikea myself. Soooorry, discontinued. I am not easily detered so I emailed the seller with the hope he had a second pair of stools. He did!! Including the shipping, I got 4 brand new stools for $128.00!
If you need to know how to do a kitchen on a dime (well, not literally a dime ;)) ask me. I have tricks upon tricks. I even purchased 10% off coupons for Home Depot on Ebay. Did you know you could find a coupon for just about anything on Ebay?? It saved us hundreds of dollars. It almost hurts me to spend full price so I avoid it if at all possible. I have said it before but let me say it again, this kitchen would not be possible without searching out deals, using sales and coupons, Mom and Dad and the countless other people who helped us along the way. Oh the ministry that will take place in this space. I can't wait to write and tell you about it.
A silly little thing, but I cooked pasta for the first time in 9 weeks and boy was it good! Bill, the hubby of the lady I job share with, installed our gas line last Friday. He did an awesome job too! We were able to hook up our old stove that had been resting in the garage for the last year. Greg thought it would never see use again. I am grateful for microwaves but boy was it good to cook on a stove again.
We will leave in the morning for our vacation. This will be the third year in a row we have rented this cottage on Cayuga lake with Chris and his family. This year we have the added additions of my mother and little Logan so I pray for little to no rain. We would be stuffed like sardines if we all had to be inside at the same time. I am sure Greg will sleep in his usual spot, out on the dock. But the best part is...we get to relax and be together. It will be a good week.
I will be sure to tell you all about it when we return.
{{{Hugs}}}