Thursday, June 2, 2011

At this point... all you can do is laugh:)

So our kitchen first went from looking like this
& this:

To this:

We were welcomed into our new home by a pesky little or should I say big rat! (it still makes me shudder to think about it)  If you put your two fists together that was the size!  
This was no ordinary rat- I kid you not this stinker was SMART
I had Terminex come out 3 times
We originally set out the sticky pads- we found his paw marks on it- but NO rat
We set out peanut butter on the snap traps- peanut butter licked clean off but still NO rat
One night I left the trash on the floor  and he went for the banana peels so...
we loaded every trap with banana around the trash, set up the baby monitor so we could hear when he came, and took shifts trading off to catch the darn thing! Problem was as soon as he heard us coming he would escape.


After this DIDN'T work- we set up our own trap and used the two lap tops to set up a video. 
 We wanted to see exactly where he was and where he was coming from.  
The rat would enter and exit under the dishwasher - so Joey set up this speaker box with a rope connected to a wooden spoon that came out to the living room.  When we saw the rat come out the plan was to pull the rope so the speaker box would drop and block off his escape route.  It almost worked and Joey got a couple of good hits on him but the box didn't drop flush with the dishwasher so he got away again.    It was like Ratatouille in our kitchen.  (I started thinking maybe we should just find a trap like the one Gus-Gus was caught in in Cinderella)  But after the night we almost got him he hasn't been back.
So after all this we NEVER caught him.
Unfortunately, there was a terrible smell for about a week and I'm pretty sure it was him.
He must have tried the rat poison Terminex put out on their 3rd visit
This went on for a week; Avery named him Squirt and apparently prayed for us to catch him when asked to give the prayer in her primary class.
After the big rat fiasco we now are in the process of redoing the kitchen and a lot of other things, but this is the main focus now.
The demolition crew came out today to take out the cabinets 

 & unfortunately this is what they found:


(No not a dead rat- that would have been better)
The particle board under the sink and dishwasher is rotted from a previous leak
The bad news:  
We have been so good about sticking to our budget without having to use the Contingency $ and now we'll have to use it- but at least we have it left to use.
They will have to rip up all the old particle board and put in new subflooring as it extends into the parque so we will need new floors too.
Also the guy who is to install the cabinets leaves to go on vacation Saturday for a week and then they are booked with appointments for a couple weeks after he returns.
That means 3 weeks without a kitchen
We also have been working on the bathrooms and the tile guy ripped out all the vanities so for the time being we are brushing our teeth, washing our hands, and drinking water from the tub faucet :) 


 However,
The Good News is:
At least we found the problem and can make things right
I'm pretty excited about new floors
Its a good thing Joey and Avery could live off pizza because for the next 3 weeks we'll be having lots of Little Ceasars Pizza :)
 In the meantime my beautiful new cabinets will sit in these lovely boxes until things are taken care of-
At this point all we can do is laugh- it will be funny to look back on and laugh too!
& I know it will be worth it.

For a fun and beautiful kitchen remodel to glance at check out my cousin Suzette's!
Now ours won't be near like hers (that'd be awesome if it were) but I love looking at her ideas and how well everything coordinates!!!
Its Beautiful!

On a more positive note
Avery is loving helping with the house and her room is coming along nicely


 My dad (Grandpa) is very proud!
 My sweet 92 year old Grandma asked if there was anything we needed for our new home.
I quickly remembered all the paintings she painted herself that hung in her home.  I asked her if she had any extra and told her my color schemes.  She sent a big box and I chose this one for Avery's room.
I plan on sanding and repainting the dresser white, the front face of the drawers pink and leave the knobs white.  Its all coming together a little at a time.
& BIG NEWS Ansley started walking a few days shy of being 10 months!
She AMAZES me multiple times a day!!!!!
We sure love this girl


8 comments:

the fowlers said...

the only thing wrong with your house is ... it isn't in Athens! :)
it looks like it is coming along slowly but beautifully. i'm so excited for you. (but seriously, in Athens i'm sure we would all take turns having you over and feeding you and nobody would mind.)

and GO ANSLEY! i can't believe it!

kristin said...

WOW, Rachel! You have been busy! I can't wait to see your kitchen...and Miss Ansley is AMAZING! To think of her rocky start to life, and now, oh my gosh! We would love to have you guys over for dinner when you are ready for a break from Little Cesears!

Suzette Selden said...

Rachel, I'm so excited about your kitchen remodel. It's going to look awesome! I like the appliances you have. I'm so excited to see it. For fixtures and other stuff, I used overstock.com. You can find some great deals on there. Thanks for the sweet card you sent me, it really made my day. Keep updating everything so I can see it, I know it will look amazing!! You are sweet to say my kitchen looks nice. I feel for you without a kitchen, we didn't have one for 5 mths, so you've timed yours out much better.

Abbey and Todd said...

I love all the clever ideas you guys came up with to trap him! So funny! And you are amazing to put so much work into the house - I know it will be so worth it when it's all done. I can't wait to see how the cabinets look!

Cat and Blake Potter said...

i love your attitude with this whole ordeal :) it will all be worth it in the end!

The Hacketts said...

I dislike rats 100% and I know how frustrating it can be to catch those pesky little things. But good news it, he is no longer around to bother you guys :) Sorry to hear about the whole flooring things but as soon as it gets repaired you all will feel so much better. Good Luck and I cannot wait to see photo's once it all is finished. I know you are ready for this to all be over with and hopefully the 3 weeks will go by SUPER fast. Love you all

Rosanne Boyd said...

I am so excited to see the finished kitchen, I know it will look beautiful! You crack me up about the rat, especially that Avery prayed for you guys to catch it..lol! Hope to see you soon!! Miss and love you :)

Penny said...

I can't believe the effort to catch the rat!! That's awesome! My mom told me about this stuff you can buy at feed stores that they eat and then go outside looking for water and when they drink water they explode or something. I can get the details if you want. I love that everything is coming together! I can't wait to see the finished product!!