What was I thinking?

Home Improvement Projects always seem easier than they really are.  Case in point… My husband and I took an Excellent Tiling Class at Home Depot.  So excellent in fact that we decided to tile something ourselves.  Here is the ‘What was I thinking?’ part.  So for our First-Ever-Tile-Project we decided to tackle… are you ready for it?… the Kitchen floor.  160 square feet of pure Madness.  I guess we should be grateful that our first project wasn’t the Master Bathroom.  Just sign me up for the Looney Bin Now!!!  We have been constantly working on that dang floor for over a week.  And aside from cleaning, grouting and sealing I thought I’d give you a sneak peak at our kitchen.  I know I should wait until it’s done but I so relieved it turned out.

Here is some wild, short-haired creature laying the finishing touches at 2:20 A.M.  Because that’s how long it took.  Three stinking days to design, layout, cut, then thin-set in all those pieces of tile.  And that doesn’t include the previous week of a day spent prying up the particle board floor, then another day spent scraping all the liquid nail/particle board remains off.

 

What a nightmare.

 

And you can’t begin to believe the dust layer that now covers my entire home.  The dust bunnies are very happy, it’s like snow to them.

Oh and before I forget, it took yet another day to add some self-leveling floor muck to all the dib-bits we hacked out of it.  Plus who makes a perfectly level floor anymore? – not our builder.  Then tack on another day to lay down the hardy backer with more thin-set.

 

What’s the count up to. That’s right forgot to mention that while all this was going on, we were also working on other areas like hanging some refinished chandeliers.  I seem to be refinishing everything.  But it’s looking so good.

 

I also had to take a wee break right in the middle of tiling to take the three girls out for their Christmas Present that Santa gave them.  Instead of typical presents from Santa they got tickets to Great Wolf Lodge.

 

It’s a pretty incredible indoor Water Park and Hotel.  Here’s my darlings fashionably wearing their so momma won’t be paranoid of drowning suits life jackets .

 

How’s this for a Gi-normous fireplace?  And this is a picture of just the bottom quarter of it.

And honestly no matter how upset I was at Santa for interrupting my floor project with such ill timed tickets – I have to secretly and profusely thank him because my muscles were howling from all the lifting, scraping, and mucking I’d been doing.  The sort-of rest was just what I needed to come home a tackle the rest of the tiling.  And that wild, short haired creature?  Let’s just say I wanted spring so bad that I shed some fur.  Some really heavy because it was so thick and long, and always-in-my-face-when-trying-to-do-home-improvement-work, hair.

 

Whew, no more pony-tail headaches. At least until it grows out again.

Sorry I got distracted.  Here’s the sneak peak.  Erik’s motorcycle turned into the chunk of rock you see on the right and my handwork is on the floor below it.  See how the border design ties the two pieces together?

 

There’s still tons left to do besides the floor.  Need to refinish the cabinets as well.  They are starting to look their age.  Let’s just hope it doesn’t take me another week and a half to finish the floor.  Oh, and if you ever consider tackling a ‘What-was-I-thinking-project, don’t let me dissuade you, with my previous grumbling.  It is SO worth it, just plan on it taking three times longer than you originally thought.  Plus it’s a great work-out.