Kurrent and Komplete Kitchen

We have lived in our house for just over 6 years.  When we moved in, there was a lot of work to be done.  The entire house was covered in old, nasty wall-paper and stained carpet.  The first thing we did was assess what we could live with, what we had to get rid of right away, and what we could afford.  We got rid of all the wall-coverings and painted, then slowly worked on everything else.  Now it's six years later and we're still working on everything else.  But that's because we do what we can when we have not only the time, but also the money.  And we make everything else work until we can work on it.

The kitchen probably needed the most work.  We had to buy a refrigerator but the rest of the appliances were here.  They were functional, but nothing to look at, and nothing that had any bells or whistles.  The oven was black with a white top, the dishwasher was white, and we had bought a black fridge with the intention of going all black in the kitchen someday.  The appliances worked most of the time and, in the case of the stove, was original to the house when built in 1979.  The floor was old, worn linoleum that showed the perfect triangle path from sink to fridge to stove (and where the 4 chairs had been at the table for several years).



First thing we replaced?  The floor.  It was so old and scarred and just felt beyond dirty to me because it was also pitted.  Yuck.  Then we replaced the stove.  I got a beautiful flat cooktop and an oven that was considerably larger than the old one.  Not only that, but all the burners work on the new stove!  The next thing to be replaced was the dishwasher.  The old one didn't get our dishes clean and was horrendously loud.   In the meantime our microwave also died and was replaced with a nice, new and sleek model.  All that was left was the range hood.  The disgusting, grease-laden, impossible to get clean, white, loud and inefficient range hood. (and I don't know how many times I gouged my forehead on those sharp corners!)

And here's the new range hood, my new love...

Take a look at that beauty!  Not only does my kitchen now look consistent and current, but it's also quiet!  The old fan was so loud that I couldn't hear conversations at the kitchen table if I was cooking.  And the fan was so permanently gross and greasy that I had to always use it on high for it to be effective--and that's using the term mildly.  It did the bare minimum of sucking out the steam and stank from my cooking.  But this new one...oh it works so great and so quiet and looks so good.  And the filters can go in my dishwasher!!  How awesome is that?  My old filters I would soak in hot, soapy water for an hour and then scrub with an old toothbrush--all to get them as clean as possible which was about 25% clean.  Ugh.  So happy to see him gone!! 

See how much of a face-lift our kitchen has had?  We replaced the refrigerator, oven, dishwasher, microwave, floor, and 2 light fixtures (on the ceiling and above the sink).  We removed some wall-paper, painted, added vinyl wall lettering, and took the doors off the peninsula cupboards.  Now to finish removing the old wall-paper, get new counter-tops, put up a back-splash, replace the door/drawer pulls...

The girls planted sunflowers at Sunday school and are so excited they are growing! 

Tell me, how many of you have a fridge like mine?  I know they say that a clean fridge door can make the room seem bigger and cleaner, but I have 3 kids and do daycare.  I will not get rid of the ABC magnets that keep them occupied while I cook.  And my HUGE dry-erase calendar? I live and breathe by that thing.