Kitchen Day #2: D-Day!

As scheduled, today was kitchen demolition day.  It's hard to believe that the mythical day in the future is actually here.  I've mentioned before...the kitchen is the final frontier in terms of renovation.  Certainly, there are other little projects here and there that we will continue to work on through the coming months.  But the kitchen renovation is the final big project, and when it's completed, (with the exception of the living room ceiling) we will have re-finished every wall, floor, and ceiling in the entire first and second floors of the house (7 rooms, 3 closets, and a stairwell).

And, as promised, here's today's update!

When I came home from work at lunchtime (don't feel bad for Justin, he wanted to do this part alone), the kitchen looked like this:

I helped Justin relocate the cabinets to the basement over lunch (we have other projects in mind for them later...), where we're currently storing just about everything but the kitchen sink.  (This is the first time in my life I've ever heard that phrase used literally).

When I returned home after an afternoon at work and a grocery-shopping trip, the kitchen looked like this:

We're now down to the studs, and have been extremely pleased with their condition.  We were tentative about today, nervous about what we'd find.  Justin found a few assorted treasures (including plastic doll dishes, a picture, marbles, and a raunchy 1970s magazine ("treasures" used loosely on that last one)).  More importantly, the studs are not rotted or cracked, and the bulge behind the refrigerator was nothing more than extra insulation.  (My irrational fear was that we'd find the body of a deceased raccoon.  Yes, I am aware that a raccoon obviously could not die within our walls without a horrible stench, but this knowledge didn't convince my irrational side that it wasn't the case).  We also expected ant colonies, mice skeletons, and the awful insulation that was in the kitchen ceiling, but thankfully none of these came true.

In all, it was a very successful day.  The only minor mishap was discovered in retrospect.  I was washing our dinner dishes in my very sophisticated shower-sink (see exhibit A), when I noticed that an overzealous crowbar strike had wreaked a little havoc (is "a little havoc" possible?) in the adjacent bathroom.

Glamorous temporary sink

Oopsy spot on the bathroom drywall

The back of the shower, from the kitchen

I'm not too worried, given that I have plenty of other places that need to be spackled and painted.  But, it did remind me that I hadn't shown you the beautiful work my family did while visiting a few weeks ago.  A full post about the laundry room is on my to-do list, but for now, enjoy this sneak-peak!

I'll be back tomorrow with more kitchen progress, as we start re-insulating and hanging some drywall!