the kitchen remodel has begun . . .

so the kitchen remodel officially started today. the contractor is there as we speak tearing out the cabinets & the floors. we had the floor installer come by on saturday am to measure and give us a quote. the cabinet installer comes tomorrow to do the same. the floors have been picked out, the cabinets have been chosen, and the countertops have been ordered. we've got the sink and range purchased and the lighting selected (with some purchased). i need to pick a range vent/fan and order the floors. at some point soon i'll go buy the dishwasher from lowe's but we're a ways out from that.

mac & i spent the weekend packing up my kitchen and getting her house ready for suki and i to descend upon. it's been fun and exhausting. yesterday was our 6 month anniversary and also the first night i'd *moved in*. it was nice serendipity that timing worked out that way. i brought some kitchen stuff over and packed other stuff away for revisiting later. we're planning a yard sale the weekend of march 22nd to get rid of some big stuff as we start to consolidate households. it's fun to plan a home together.

of course adding to all of this stress is that i leave for 3 weeks in, well, 3 weeks. i'm mildly relieved that i won't have to be here to witness/live through the mess but wish i could watch the transformation and feel bad that i'm leaving mac to deal with it all ... but i guess as a designer it's her forté to oversee a project without the client around. am starting to get excited about the trip (although i do wish the timing was better) and finally booked my hotel in rome over the weekend. it was the last straggling part of the itinerary i hadn't handled so i'm relieved i finally did.

work is good. am starting to settle in and am getting excited about my first site launching in late march . . . right before i leave of course. isn't that always the way? speaking of work, it's almost time to head out so i should get a few things wrapped up before i head home to see the house.

i'll post pics when i can so y'all can follow the progress with me.

today i'm thankful for . . . 6 months with an amazing woman who's willing to design my kitchen and put some sweat equity in