Thanks! I am thinking I am going to go ahead and wait another 24hrs, lol. I wish the cage was here already, lol. The other cat stopped wandering and started doing his normal eating and sitting on a leaf thing. I guess he decided he wasn't quite ready, he seems fine, he's eating a LOT! The day he was wandering so much, I had accidentally touched his head with his new leaf when i was putting it in his box, and he stuck those "horns" out, which was the first time any of them had done so indoors, I didn't realize what an awful, lingering smell that is until then!! I wonder if that was the reason he was pacing around and acting so anxious for the rest of the night? i didn't think that smell would ever go away, lol. I can't imagine how any bird or other predator with a sense of smell would eat one of these guys after smelling that!!

: ( Forever and ever.... We started last May it feels like longer than a year. It seems like it is never ending. My DH just told me he does not like the crown molding and wants to hire someone to come in redo our ceiling and crown molding. I would say I am about 85% done. The kitchen is functional, I have had friends over but there are little details that still need to be ironed out. And sometimes I get sad about it. And other times I remind myself that I have a good excuse to visit GardenWeb kitchens. ~boxerpups

We were without a usable kitchen for somewhere between 2 and 3 weeks. This included removal of old cabinets (Habitat did that for us), removal of old floor and installation/finishing of new HW, relocating and adding plumbing, a bit of construction to reframe an interior window (long story), having the whole kitchen completely rewired, and installation of new cabinets and countertop. There was another couple of weeks of kitchen work that I did myself (filling nail holes, caulking, painting, final coats of finish on the wood countertop, having the backsplash installed) but we were using the kitchen during that time. This is what made it go so fast: 1. not being a normal GW kitchen (cabs/counters are from IKEA). 2. LUCK. 3. Lots and lots and lots of advance planning on my part -- I was the "GC." 4. Wonderful trades (flooring, plumber, electricians) who came when they said they would and got their work done efficiently; ditto local inspector. 5. Great installers with extensive carpentry and IKEA experience who were available on short notice (see point 2, Luck) when original handyman bailed out after reno had already begun. 6. Choosing a floor finish that was ready to walk on the next day (Rubio Monocoat). 7. Using a countertop that could be installed by the cabinet installers (IKEA butcherblock). 8. Having almost everything on site in advance, and having me available to run to the big box stores at a moment's notice for unexpected bits and pieces (corollary: being willing to have most kitchen components come off the shelf from somewhere local; there were only a few special-order things). 9. DIY'ing the final steps and using the kitchen during that time. 10. Almost forgot -- keeping the scale of reno fairly limited -- basic footprint of room did not change (some wall and window work had to be done, but no walls were moved and we left the original plaster in place for the most part). I still can't quite believe we pulled it off so fast. It wouldn't have happened if the people I hired hadn't been so professional and helpful (a big deal, I know, since I'm just a homeowner and can give them only so much business). I really do sympathize with all of you with the longer renos. Your kitchens are on a different level than ours, though, and ours wouldn't suit everyone.

My GC said 4-5 weeks, so my big dog and I moved into a friend's condo with her and her 2 cats. 2 weeks in, they were clearly nowhere close and they provided a schedule showing not done with the bathroom for 8 weeks! My sweet friend said no problem although the animals were driving us both crazy. Then we got to 6 weeks, it was pushed out more, and I said I need to get back in my house. At that point there was a tub with running water, and a toilet within a few days. Several times they had to remove the toilet for tiling or other work, so I used their porta potty outside, then eventually bought this camping toilet to use at night. I showered at the gym. My project included reframing most of the bathroom walls and relocating the fixtures, in conjunction with a kitchen remodel. Much more than simple bathroom remodel. If I did it over, I would have insisted on seeing their schedule before starting work. I think the GC gave me the initial estimate without actually crunching the numbers, and I think they could have done more to prioritize the bathroom completion first (as opposed to the kitchen work, which was lower priority).