the remaking of a kitchen

we now have in our possession 2 more permits from the city. one covers the attaching of the sink, the dishwasher and the garbage disposal to the existing plumbing. all of things have been complete and functioning since may 22. according to the inspector a pvc pipe needs to be changed out and a connection better connected, and according to the women in the office there is a 1 to 2 week wait for the inspector to appear after being notified. can you see that there is construction and remodeling happening in every other home in our fair city??? i called dana yesterday but have had no response as yet. will try again today.
we are again baby sitting for the neighbor's caterpillars and larva while they vacation. hopefully will have a butterfly in their absence. maybe the caterpillars will halt their gobbling down of grape leaves and get on with larvation!

alas, although dana arrived with impeccable timing simultaneously with the inspector, we did not pass the acid test. this inspector told dana we needed two new permits, one for them having installed the sink and dishwasher and one for their having extended the length of a vent about 6 feet. he also said that one connection under the sink should be changed and one length of pvc should be black rather than white. you will notice that i am using past tense.....yes, the sink is installed as is the dishwasher and the heat vent in the floor. so, we as homeowners need to pull these permits listing ourselves as the permit-getting party. egads. it's weird that the previous inspector never mentioned these needs.
interestingly enough there was a recent article in the local press about the large surplus in the city coffers which they attributed to two things, one of them being various building permits. we are so pleased to be adding to that surplus! NOT
today we received another bid on the flooring, and he projected the length of time involved as 4 or 5 days, and we liked him, but his bid was rather eye catching. we will continue getting recommendations and do more interviews. sigh.

just got the word today from dana that he will appear at 9:30 am on monday and the inspector will do his final blessing at 10 and hopefully put the royal seal on the permit. this is really fabulous.....we have been in limbo waiting for this happening. we want to do the flooring in the 3 rooms, but can't do that until we find out about connecting water to the mudroom, and that is not included in this permit. (the dining room floor will have to be opened to connect plumbing). another floor guy recommended by our neighbors is coming over on tuesday evening......so we'll need to get the plumber too. this takes more coordination than i imagined!
speaking of coordination, don and i took all the stuff to the history center this morning and set up my display stuff and erected the canopy in readiness for the beginning of the minnesota crafts festival tomorrow. it doesn't start until noon, and that sounds good to me. i am feeling a bit of sleep deprivation these days.
i made a pair of earrings yesterday that could go with my recent collar made with my hawaiian beads. i'm referring to the beads i purchased in maui last february. with a bit of luck another pair may happen today. i have some new orange striped beads that i like, also some green and black ones.

i added these photos to prove that the kitchen actually gets used. it's not just a pretty face. it gets used and it actually functions just like i hoped it would. it's so neat that the room we cussed and discussed for over 2 years has actually turned out to be just what we had in mind. that magic triangle that everyone mentions works so well, and the island is just where it should be to catch items from the ovens or the refrigerator. it also works well for prep with an easy turn from island to cooktop and back again. when tracie visited i prepped the meal while visiting, and then don plopped plates and flatware on the island and we just ate there and continued the conversation. wow!

susan sent me this photo taken when she and kurt visited. i was getting ready to serve mary b's sun city, az, lemon pie. it was delicious, but would have been better with lemons from mary beth's tree. actually having a tree that bears lemons, limes, oranges or grapefruit right in your yard is pretty hard to believe while living in the upper midwest!

look what don did while i was away for the weekend. well, you can't see what he did, 'cause you can't see what isn't there. the green and gold vinyl that we covered soon after we moved in is all gone, and he has a blister to prove it. GOOD JOB don, and thanks!

brian is here today doing some little clean up tasks; fixing a wall, caulking under the dining room windows and one more very important thing. the latter relates to my excitement during susan and kurt's visit. we had not used the appliances much or at all before their arrival. after dinner their first night, i was loading the dishwasher and had the lower shelf pulled out and filled with our heavy dinner plates, bowls, and flatware. suddenly i became aware that the dishwasher was coming toward me. i finally realized it had not been attached to the countertop. eek! needless to say i never forgot that again! i was very careful loading and unloading, always bracing the door against my leg so it wouldn't tip forward. brian has taken care of that today, and it is securely fastened. whew! i suppose this could be under that heading "it's the little things" but, it certainly seemed like a BIG thing at the time!!