FINALLY COMPLETED !!

the kitchen is finally finished!  what started as a stove that was needing to be replaced ended in the replacement of also a dishwasher, countertops, sink and finally the microwave.

here chuck is installing the microwave.....he is actually "reading" the directions! 

aubrey and our neighbor morgan are creating with her pottery wheel while we work in the kitchen

chuck was away for the weekend and i though it would be a grand idea to get started on the tile work.

i went to lowe's the day before to buy a few more tiles......i just had this feeling that it would be wise to have some extras on hand....just in case......

but, they were out!

so, when i got started on the project i decided to lay out all the tiles on the countertop to get a general idea if i would have plenty to work with.  i ended up calling the store to find out that the reason they were out was due to the fact that the tiles were discontinued.  would have been nice to know that earlier!  but, the boy was very helpful and we found some in iowa city.  so, with two boxes extra on hand i felt so much more comfortable about cutting into the tiles that i had............as it turns out i had only one tile left from the original purchase!

i've tiled flooring before but this to me was a bit more difficult to do.  concept was the same, i just had a few more issues with gravity!  i did about double what you see in the above picture then decided i needed to wait till chuck was home.  i felt it was best to work on this together.

we spent two evening finishing up setting the tile..........

then finally we had a saturday free to grout.  i wasn't such a fan of this step either.....that whole gravity thing!  but after a bit i got the hang of it and it went much smoother.

cleaning off the film of the grout is one of my favorite steps of the whole project.  it is that first time you see the completed project and it is very rewarding to step back and realize what you've just accomplished.

on the home stretch of grouting.....the final couple feet!

and then

the finished project!

with everything back in it's place and nice and clean and shiny we went out to eat!

next project?  painting our bedroom and eventually the family room and this kitchen........oh and i think i do want to change out the window treatment above the sink......someday.