House progress

This last Monday T and I got to pick out the design details of our new home before construction can begin.  It was so much fun but seriously overwhelming.  I thought about things I never thought I would ever have to consider - where do outlets go in the home, do we want an extra outlet in the garage and basement, do we want crown molding on top of our kitchen cabinets, should the edges of the counter be rounded or bevelled?  Seriously, half of the stuff we had to decide, I honestly had no opinion on, which of course, made T happy because he is a very detail-oriented person.  (I'm much more "big picture" person.  Details don't matter...)  

We made a trip to browse at the design center a couple weekends ago, and we got the majority of our decisions made.  I think if we hadn't done that we could have been there all night.  The appointment was set to only take three hours, and we managed to do it in 2 1/2 hours.  (It seemed like three to me, though...)  However, we left very satisfied with our decisions, and we can't wait for construction to begin on our new home.  This should begin somewhere after the holidays, weather permitting, of course.  

Now we begin the waiting part. It'll take a few weeks for everything to be ordered, permits to be approved, and all of that important pre-building stuff.  I am sooo not a waiting person.  Part of me wants to drive past the lot daily to see if any change has happened, but...we might scare our future neighbors.  I do promise lots of pictures of the progress as it is made, though!

The part I am super stoked about...my kitchen.  I love to cook.  I never thought in a million years I'd be that girl, but I am.  My current kitchen (mouse infestation not being an issue at the moment) is not a dream kitchen by any means.  There is no counter space, the stove is older than I am, the pantry is just icky, and it's just not...what I'd want.  (It could be the fact that the previous tenant painted over the wallpaper and border with bright yellow paint that is clouding this fact, but...)  Since we are building this house from the ground up and have $9,000 in free upgrades to play with, T and I figured that since this would be it, the house we'd be in for a good long time to raise our family and enjoy all of life's big moments, we want it to be something we absolutely loved.  And to me, that starts with the kitchen.

The pantry is a walk-in pantry.  No gross looking contact paper for the shelves, no mouse turds (thankfully).  The stove we got is an upgraded one with two actual oven units and the surface of it is just sleek with a flat top.  The dishwasher is also an upgrade, as is the microwave, all stainless steel, baby.  And the refrigerator is a stainless steel Whirlpool, side-by-side.  Our current one is small because anything larger wouldn't fit in our kitchen, and this new one?  It will be huge by comparison.  I won't know what to do with myself.

We upgraded the cabinets and the counter top, as well.  On suggestion from T's mom, we chose the silestone counter top, with an under mount sink.  Seriously, this thing is a beauty.  I couldn't stop looking at the sample on Monday.  It was seriously painful to come back to our gross kitchen and use the normal, stained (and a few spots with cigarette burns) counter top.  But, patience grasshopper, it will be mine.  OH yes, it will be mine.  (Extra props to any of you who got the Wayne's World reference.)

Now I'm not just sitting here bragging for the sake of bragging.  I feel I have paid my dues and then some in terms of crappy kitchens, lest we forget Mousegate 2010, Parts 1 and 2.   I just absolutely cannot wait until I see the finished product.  It's our home.  Our home.  And it's only a few months away.

So in my opinion, that's my Christmas present...sure, it's a few months later, but this one is going to last me for years.  I can't wait until I get to unwrap it...