Did you know?

Did you know that needing to paint the trim in your kitchen will cause your windowsills to be the ONLY place in the entire 3200 sq feet of house suitable for lounging and play? It renders all other furniture and expensive cat trees unusable, apparently. Go figure. A minute before this was taken I had all 4 cats lounging, parading and sitting on the long windowsill in the dining area. They got camera shy when I tried to get a picture of that though. I am an unpopular Mama today. I finally had to resort to locking them all up in 1 room with food, water, and a litter box long enough to paint and then let it dry (probably an hour and a half...?). Because you know they would absolutely die of starvation and dehydration in that amount of time.
I hope they forgive me because that was just the first coat. I'm gonna have to do it all over again....LOL.

Poverty

Well, to add to my kitchen-remodel induced poverty, we went ahead and ordered the stainless Samsung fridge that I have had picked out for months now. Our fridge is still working, but its 16 years old and has seen much better days. Realizing it might not last much longer we have been out looking at options. I fell for this one mainly due to its interior layout. Its not the french door design. I am not really sure I like that pull out freezer drawer thing. I have looked at them and opened them and tried to imagine myself adjusting to it, but I just don't think I can.

This one is a side by side, with ice and water in the door (gotta have that). But it has a space saver ice maker in the door which frees up a lot of shelf space in the freezer. That was its selling point to me. I also like how it gives you options to adjust shelves and drawers easily. I haven't found another one that I liked more and am excited. It will be here next week, but we have delayed delivery until we get back from Las Vegas....so I have to wait until Nov. 2nd to get my hands on my new toy.

We also looked at stainless induction ranges. These things promise to boil water on the flat cooktop in 90 seconds. Wow. We waivered and almost.....seriously almost...got one of those too. But then I decided to do a little bit of research on them first. I think we can wait on that a little while. My range (glass top) is working fine for the moment. And while these induction ranges are seeming to get great reviews, they are so new to the market that they are really pricey. The prediction is that they will be more common and more popular and more available within the next year or so and then it might be something to consider. Prices are almost guaranteed to drop into a more reasonable range. Hopefully.

Its been a learning experience, having not paid attention to any of this stuff for years. Appliances, colors, finishes....all of these things have changed a whole LOT since we went through all of this back in the early '90s.

Keeping to a Minimum

I am trying to keep my whining to a minimum. Because seriously? Even though I haven't slept much, feel jittery, hungry, and can barely focus my eyes....The soreness and the swelling are quite a bit better already. I feel fairly confident that this is going to heal up fine without resorting to other treatments. Even after letting it go on for far too long. I guess it is all going to be ok.

We have another company coming out to measure our kitchen in about an hour or so. We have done a lot more research of whats out there, and believe it or not (I had to see it to believe it, multiple times) they are making some amazingly REAL looking vinyl planking. It comes in strips that lock together (with glue tabs) and goes down almost just like laminate. Its considered a "floating floor" just like Pergo. Its more flexible, more durable, more feet-friendly, and definitely more waterproof. I think I might like it. It is more expensive than laminate though. If you go with one of the better brands like Congoleum, or Armstrong.

We picked a beautiful pattern out in Home Depot and came home to research it before committing to anything. Thank God and all things Holy for the internet. How did we manage before it? As good as the stuff looked, and as reasonable as the price was it got such a mixed bag of reviews that we made the decision that it was NOT for us. It is called "Allure" and is manufactured in China. 50% of the reviewers LOVED it. The other 50% had horrible problems. Things like the adhesive being defective and not sticking. Or the most scary...some people said it emitted toxic fumes that literally made people sick. And it didn't dissipate over time, either. One woman was still suffering it a year and a half later because she couldn't afford to replace it. All vinyl is going to have that new vinyl smell for a few days, but if it goes on for more than a week then something is wrong. If the Chinese can put dangerous melamine in our beloved pet's foods....who knows what is in that flooring. It seems to be a 50-50 gamble as to whether you get a "good" batch or an evil one. Its not worth the risk.

The more expensive and better known brands all have gotten rave reviews. I think we can go with this stuff with confidence. It is so pretty. One other thing though.....do you know how fast money disappears when you are doing remodeling? Geez! We painted, needed a new floor, then decided our light fixtures were crap, so we have replaced those. Now I am no longer sure I can live with the countertops or sink, so we are heading out to look at those after the floor measuring people are finished. And that is just the kitchen!! We need paint, new carpet and light fixtures ALL over the house. And new den furniture as well. I can only hope I win the lottery in the near future. I don't actually buy tickets so that seems a bit unlikely....damn it. Maybe I will put one of those paypal donation buttons on my facebook page and beg for people to help me fund my projects. LOL. Think that will work? If you are so inclined to send us cash, please go right ahead. Its not necessary to wait for me to get the donation button installed. I accept cash and checks, too. :)

Day 2

Its the 2nd day of a 10 day round of prednisone. I can't tell you how bad I hate this stuff. I feel so jittery that I am jumping out of my skin. I am really tired but can't sleep. I am having trouble keeping a coherent train of thought. And the hunger is starting to make its presence known. I am starving, even after having a reasonable dinner and then a snack of grapes just a little while ago. At the same time, my stomach hurts. How can I have a stomach ache and STILL be hungry? It should be impossible, but its happening right now. Also? I'm getting that strange blurred vision. That doesn't describe it exactly, its more like eye strain that makes it feel difficult to focus my eyes properly.
Ok, I will try to shut up with the whining now. Its only 10 days, and I know from previous experience that while the side effects SUCK, this stuff does work for the purpose of relieving inflammation. I can do this. I may not like it but I will live.
I may not be blogging a whole lot if I keep having trouble seeing....that unpleasant part of it goes away pretty quickly after the course of the drug is finished. I just hate it so bad. I almost panic whenever I hear a Dr. start to prescribe it for me. Not that I have taken it a lot, but this is probably the 3rd time around. The first was for a sinus infection that would NOT go away (it worked). The 2nd was for back pain that hit right around the time that Stephen graduated from ASU (I was on pain meds, muscle relaxants, and prednisone just to make it there. The 5 hour drive was awful, it hurt to sit for long at a time. But again, it worked). And now this round for the ankle thing. Blech. But it will be worth it in the end....right?