Friday Night Fun

Ok, so my weekend activities are quite different now then they used to be. Before kids, Friday night would often consist of dinner, drinks and a movie with my husband and friends or playing cards and games until wee hours in the morning. Now, my Friday nights are a little bit different. Eating out has become eating in with delivery from some local venue, movies are DVD's that usually have some sort of superhero, transformer, spaceship and/or explosions, etc. (no chick flicks allowed). Cards and games...well, I hope you are up for a mean game of Uno, Candy Land or Yahtzee! Do I miss being able to go out on a moment's notice with my husband and friends? Sure I do. Would I trade this life for my "before" life? Not a chance!

Can you believe it? I am finally in a picture. Wait, I'm in more than one! It's a miracle. Well, not really. Stephen has found that he loves taking pictures as much as I do and he's not bad at it. Here I am just hanging out with our four legged, furry kid!

After watching Sadie and Matthew duke it out, I decided to give it a try (see the next post). Boy oh boy, Sadie is tough for an old gal!

One of the really cool things about home improvement projects is that you end up with a lot of cardboard boxes. Well, the boys think that it's cool. Stephen and Matthew gathered up some necessary "tools" and went to work changing some ordinary boxes into something magnificent.

Stephen had to make sure that he fit inside his box.

Hard at work building his house. Don't panic! It's a butter knife in his hand and he is being very careful.





Just chillin' in the new digs. Cutting out windows is hard work.






Matthew decided to get in on the action. His box wasn't big enough to fit in so he and Stephen came up with a different idea!






Anyone hungry?
(No, he doesn't have a moustache. It's blue gatorade from earlier in the day that will not come off!!!!!)

Matthew's first customers! Sadie was quickly rewarded with a doggy treat for being such a good sport.

Matthew hard at play. After all, isn't play a child's work?

Now I ask you, why would I want to be anywhere else besides here on a Friday night?

Sadie vs. Matthew

In the left corner is Matthew "Gatorade Mouth" Meister. In the right corner is Sweet Sadie Meister.

There is definitely a true winner in this little battle. You be the judge!

Finished, Terminado, Fini, Fertig, Finito!

Well friends, I can actually say that our kitchen is FINALLY finished. Aside from a few paint touch ups, all of the remodeling is complete. While I enjoyed picking out the lighting, tile, etc., I have discovered that I do not handle home renovations very well. I found most of it quite stressful, primarily because I know very little about the subject. This, compounded with the fact that Michael was at work and I was here having to make quite a few executive decisions on my own, left me too often second guessing myself and feeling stupid. I did manage to hold it together in front of the contractors so that they didn't think I was completely psycho. All in all, I have learned a lot and can honestly say that I would not do it again in a heartbeat. But with that said, I do LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the way the kitchen turned out. Please join me for a pictorial journey through the birth of my, (oops, I mean our) new kitchen! I know that some of the pictures were included in previous posts, but wanted to show the complete progression.

BEFORE - As you will recall, this is when I discovered that I am NOT cut out for camping! The pink tub from here on out will be used solely for keeping beverages cold during large gatherings, not for doing dishes!

DURING - Oh happy day, I have cabinets, a counter top and a beautiful kitchen sink. Have I mentioned before that I missed my sink? Progress is being made and I am a happy girl at this point!

AFTER (part 1) - Looky, looky, my kitchen is back!!!! Woo Hoo!!! Hello old friend. Now all that is left to do is the tile back splash and install the new lights. The tile is in, but where are the lights? Oh, they're still in New Jersey, hmmmm...... Let the stress begin. (We were supposed to have the lights in 3 weeks, which turned out to be more like 4 1/2 weeks! UGH!)

AFTER (part 2) - After too many phone calls to count and several trips to Lowe's for miscellaneous items, the lights and back splash are finished! I can't believe the transformation. I loved my kitchen before, but this is beyond what I had envisioned the final look to be. I think that it is absolutely beautiful. Now all that is left is to put my stuff back on the counters.

Welcome to my beautiful new kitchen. I can't wait to start cooking!!!!!

Michael is now talking about renovating our master bathroom. While I love the idea he has of making it more like a spa retreat, I may very well have to seek refuge elsewhere while the changes are being made. This would simply be for the safety of my loved ones and my own personal sanity. Love you all!!!!!! :)

Cottage Retreat

We made our 2nd annual trip to the cottage in Suttons Bay. Even though the weather wasn't always the best, we had a wonderful family vacation. What a blessing it is to have a week to focus on being a family and enjoy each other's company. While most of our time was spent lazing away on the beach, we did venture out to partake in some local dining, miniature golf and playing at the park. As always, I took lots of pictures to share. Click on the link below to view our vacation photo album.

http://picasaweb.google.com/MMeister326/SuttonsBay2009?feat=directlink

The Kitchen is Open for Business!!!!

After a long couple of weeks, our kitchen is finally back to normal. After all new bottom cupboards, a new island, kitchen sink and new flooring, we are back in business. All that is left to do is the tile backsplash and new lighting that has not arrived yet. The tile is being put up tomorrow (8/26) and I can't wait to see how it turns out.

The kitchen cupboards are in the kitchen, just not attached to anything.

It's amazing how quickly everything was installed. I took the boys to lunch and when we got back, everything was where it was supposed to be...even my sink!

Scholten did a beautiful job matching the new cupboards to the original ones. They were also able to save my countertop! Now we're just waiting for the floor.

I never thought I would be so grateful to have a kitchen sink. Like the old song goes... You don't know whatcha you got till it's gone! I LOVE my new sink and faucet!

The floor is in and just as beautiful as before. All is right in my world once again! :)

Kitchen sweet kitchen! Stay tuned for more updates!