Where do I even begin?
...I'm sorry?
...I failed you?
...I'm sorry I teased you with our kitchen and then left you hanging?
...I beg your forgiveness?

Yea, all of the above.

No, Chris and I didn't die mid-remodel, and no, there was no terrible accident which left me without the ability to type, post pictures, etc... I just simply got caught up with the 10,000 other things going on with life that I left you all without a word or whisper.

In my (pathetic) defense, I was also involved with two week-long trade shows (yes, weekends included), caught that AWESOME flu which has been going around (no joke, I only visited two spots in our house for 10 days: the bed and the floor of our bathroom), and then was in NYC for a week for yet another work trade show (just got back last night).

Excuses aside, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I AM SORRY!

Yes, the kitchen remodel is still going on (33 days and counting) so let me catch you up to speed...(I promise to go back and give a full detailed explaination of everything, but I just wanted to give you a quick progress report without going into every single project).

1. The floors are down and look beautiful... 

I'm loving our 3x6 travertine pavers in the kitchen... even if we did have to do them over more than once.

2. Our new fridge arrived from Sears!
 With tags still on and everything.
 It keeps our food cold and we love having water/ice in the door (a convenience we didn't have with our old fridge).

3. Ding-Dong the evil fan in the kitchen is down and dead...
 Chris installed and wired new recessed lighting which looks awesome! Makes the kitchen feel 10x taller!! (and yes, Chris patched the hole and you can't even tell a fan monstrosity used to be there)

4. Chris and his dad flipped the guest room door (it used to open right to left but now it swings left to right so you don't see our built in right when you walk in).
Somehow, someway, we found paneling that matched the existing room which kept it looking seamless without being awkward (**we still plan to repaint the room a different color but havent gotten there yet**).
 5. After a couple days of "down time", our custom cabinets came in and were installed.
 My favorite feature? Our custom wine rack and pantry for the built in...
 Ready for this???
 Yea, I know... beyond awesome... I seriously started crying when I saw it.  Real tears people, real tears.

6. We hired a fabricator to come cut and install our granite.

Why, yes, that IS a St Patrick's day beer pong table/work bench behind him... thanks for noticing our awesomeness.

Our sink was definitely the hardest part to cut out, especially since its so close to the edge, but I am happy to report all went smoothly and it looks beautiful finally installed.


7. After getting 8 (yes, EIGHT) different quotes to paint the kitchen, we finally found a company to make our cabinets all white and pretty without having to take a second mortgage out on the house...

Chris also installd and grouted all our back-splash that we bought at the marble and tile auction (remembered here) and his dad made a brand new, custom casing for the window above the sink.
 It seriously looks amazing.

8. After spending WAY too long picking out a microwave, we finally decided on one we liked and Chris built a trim kit for the cut-out space...by himself... saved us more than $300.

Don't worry, our countertops are red... we just covered them after install to make sure they stayed pretty throughout construction

 Did I marry a talented man or what?!

9. We spent a couple of weekends looking for a decent range hood (and even tracked down a couple unsuccessful Craigslist leads) before deciding to turn to eBay.
We are SOOO glad we did since we saved a bundle and couldn't be happier with the look and function of it! (again, full story to follow soon!)

10. I will leave you with our most recent update... Chris installing lights in the upper-upper cabinets.
They are wired to the main can lights and really give the room an extra burst of bright light!  I love them.

As I finish typing this out, I can hear Chris in the kitchen with a hammer and nail gun... I'm not 100% sure what he's doing (door casings?) but I promise, promise, promise to keep you guys more in the loop (especially since we are close to finishing... pray for us).

What are you guys most eager to hear about? My tears of joy over the new pantry? How painters wanted us to sign over our future first born to paint the kitchen? How eBay saved the day with our range hood? Let me know!!

-Samm