After a long day of rearranging the LR, hooking up electronics, and being w/o phone/ internet service, I am back!!!! Parma - that's exactly what I envision. Since I do sweep fairly regularly I want to find a real handmade broom to keep in the corner in the kitchen. I'm sure that DS1 would call it mommy's witches broom! Martha Stewart did a segment on handmade brooms one time and I wish I'd have paid more attention. And old flooring - I think the more aged, worn and dinged up it is the better for me! Stinky - Gardener (Great name) -I've actually been buying stuff here and there and packing it away for a few yrs. now. The house that we live in is Victorian on the inside but I've known the house we are moving to for a long time and it's more in line w/ our simple comfort level. There's no way that our current bedroom style would work in the other house but I am very happy w/ it and yrs. down the road I'm sure that it too will morph into a French Country Farmhouse style. For now I just want to enjoy the finished product. Tish - that sounds perfect, European Farmhouse! I will def. have to google that term and see what pops up. I'm thinking that Shabby Chic look too but w/ way less cottage & flower prints and a lot more farm and durability! Kmcg - thank you very much for the link. Guess what I'll be doing during downtime at work today after all of my work is finished?! Polly - that sounds so pretty - hopefully you will opst some pics anyways despite living through a reno. A real nice thing about GW here is that we've seen pics of eachother's homes at their worst. One of my favorite threads was one where everybody had to go take a picture of their kitchen in the moment and post it. It was great to see kitchens in their 'disaray state' that were typically posted after having been 'staged' for their GW photo op.! I really want DR chairs w/ rush seats and a farmhouse table but DH is so attached to his grandmother's fancy set that I don't even want to suggest it. Ronbre - both of your homes sound very lovely. I can see where it would be tough to decorate in the exact same manner after such a horrible event. I'd love to see pics of the man room and your MBR. Tina - right now I have much of the hardwired stuff packed away like my chandeliers and sconces. Most of it I'd pick up at deep discounts when I worked at Bombay. Our storage rm. was laid out so poorly that items would get stuck in the most hidden spots and forgotten about until I'd rip the place apart and find things that had been there for yrs. My 2 favorite chandies were only $59. Currently I visit them in my attic and peek in the boxes and dream. I didn't want to hang them all and then have to turn around and take them down to sell this house and put all of the original stuff back up. If things pan out alright I will take pics of the LR after I have some more stuff done. I def. have to paint again. When DH moved all of the entertainment stuff I forgot that I hadn't painted behind it all. There's a big bright blue patch! I'd also like to pick up a ceiling fan and paint out the ceiling after 9 yrs. here. There are just wires hanging from the ceiling now. Someone here had recently posted a photo of their Baby Turtle walls and Limestone ceiling and it was so gorgeous so I am going to follow suit and do the same.

Thank you so much for all the kind words, your interest and your support! I have been on this board for 3 years...just not recently. I took a break from these boards a little while ago, just because I was kind of getting depressed at all the gorgeous kitchens! I admit, I even felt a little jealousy! Then just recently I stopped coming because we had already made our decisions and I did not want to get confused or torture my DH with some possible tweaks and changes. I am so happy to see some familiar names here on this thread. I know this sounds cheesy, but all the kind comments almost made me get teary eyed. Like I said before, this really is the only material thing I have wanted for a long time. But I know that Gardenwebbers on the kitchen forum know that a kitchen is not a material thing ONLY...for folks like us it is (cliche time, sorry) "the heart of the home." I have been cooking incredible meals and/or entertaining non stop. It is such a joy and pleasure to me. outsideplaying-thanks for your comments and for your excitement for me! Maine_Mare-That is good to hear! He actually did not even do these as well as he could have, because he truly thought they would be in for a few months. Where he adhered the counters to the undermount sink, you can see some clear caulking. Also, the end of the peninsula has a gap where he came up a little short! But next time, he will do an even better job and if we can keep them for 7 years like you...then we will be doing great! But I am fine the way they are, truly. Very minor flaws. frmrsdghtr-I really really do not have an estimate. I think my husband said awhile ago that the cabs were about 5k? I could be wrong, and he just said that figure off the top of his head. Thanks for the compliment! Hi colorfast! Your kitchen is lovely, too! Originally we wanted wood stained cabinets, but the darkness of the kitchen (no natural light) plus wood floors and a desire to have butcher block counters (eventually) made us rethink that! I never dreamed I would have white cabinets, because I lived in a townhouse for 14 years with white formica cabs and I wanted a big change from that. I am happy with our white now, tho! I have considered SS for the hood and I have seen your style before, but for some reason I am stuck on white. I attached a link below of an idea, although I have heard mixed reviews of that futuro futuro company. I *really* liked some of their other styles. They look more like light fixtures than hoods. onedogedie-thank you for being so kind about my long post! It's true, it was such a crazy and long journey, it seemed it warranted a little more than "here is my kitchen!" I have read so many "finished kitchen" posts here, and whether long or short, I like the ones where I can *feel* the pride in the post! I wonder why plywood is not mentioned more often as an alternative, whether temporary or more long term? I just never hear it mentioned and thought my hubby was crazy when he told me that was what he was going to do. I had no idea it would look so nice. As a matter of fact, even he gets a little frustrated when the first thing people notice when they walk into the kitchen is the countertop! LOL. Good idea about the kick plate, I will mention it to my hubby. Thank you CEFreeman! :) Lake_Girl-Ohhh, you should see what he is doing with the chicago brick pavers that are the walkway in front of the barn! They were put in half assed by previous owners, so he has his paving equipment here at the house and is using fill and making it look PRETTY. A total do-over. My friends ask me if he can do stuff at their house (they are willing to pay, of course) but I say NO WAY...he still has too much to do here! I think we compliment each other well because I NEVER nag him. To be honest, there are some other things I think he should be doing rather than the brick pavers...but I also know that feeling when I feel "inspired" to do a project and I wouldn't want someone nagging me to do something else instead. mmhmgood-lol, inside the cabs we left it the natural wood color! So that is what you are seeing, it isn't orange, LOL. I can see how it looks that way, but heck, even *I* am not that daring or funky! lol rhome-I had posted to you awhile ago about the oven. Your comments made me VERY excited. So far I love it. Do you think if I do not use the self clean mode, I will be ok with the blue porcelain? Or do you think I will have issues either way? I will try to find out about the door, but I have a sneaky suspicion that it will be pricey. It doesn't bother me *that* much. Thank you for your comments and help! marti8-he had ear plugs in. He had already purchased that tile chipper years ago. he said it does chip up thinset, but you have to use a different blade. Thanks for the comments! Thank you soooo much, gscience, catlover, About togetdusty and KrisMA! Here is a link that might be useful:

I love the kitchen photo! That is such a farmhouse kitchen :) On a farm, having the laundry, pantry and mudroom together is no big deal. Everything is muddy! LOL I mean, bringing in armfuls of dirty lettuce and spinach to wash in the pantry sink is going to be just as dirty as anything else. If you can afford to go bigger, it would be nice to have a den where you have that bedroom below the kitchen. Then the separate large living room....with bedrooms off on their own wing. If you're not doing a two-story farmhouse, having the bedrooms in their own area would be a nice alternative. If you don't mind the stairs, it would be nice to put the kids' room upstairs and keep the master and a guest suite downstairs. That gives you a lot of flexibility for the future. Older relatives, sick child, sporting accident, etc. That extra bedroom downstairs will be a nice option....and the kids can have their space (maybe a central loft/study area) upstairs. And if you do that....think about a book/reading nook. Maybe one downstairs by the living room...and one upstairs in the kids' area. Cozy spaces in a larger room are always fun!

Claire, nope they are all level. But maybe you’re seeing the gaps in between the planks that are typical for old floors. We choose to not fill them in. They still have to finish the toe trim.