The great kitchen reveal: Appliance day

The day the appliances arrived was a magical one. After being 4 weeks late we were so desperate they could have delivered the wrong models and we might have kept them. We put them in place to make sure they fit and everything was looking pretty good.

Also, don't cabinets look a million times better with hardware? We got these knobs and pulls for a deep discount online thanks to a code from younghouselove. How great are John and Sherry? The best! Here's a tip, don't get your hardware from a big box store...you get get way better and cheaper stuff online!

Did you see my pot rack installed? I love it and don't know how I'll ever live without one again! It was really hard to put the rack up because the butterfly backed bolts that we got were a little too short to go through our lath and plaster walls. Again, the complications involved with this old house were mind-blowing!

The ear doctor spent a full weekend plumbing the lines under the sink. We learned that there are a million different sizes and threads for plumbing fittings and after trying every single option under the sun we actually got a fully functioning water system. I can't tell you how proud I am that the ear doctor figured this all out on his own without having to hire someone. I would have lost it. Sorry there aren't any pictures of him doing this...I tried to stay away to avoid adding to his frustration.

Next up? My favorite job! Tiling the backsplash. This job is FUN and a great project for DIY...just like everyone said!

Our walls are old and irregular so the tiles don't lay perfectly flat...but I like it that way. It fits with the character of the house to be a little imperfect.

Here's another lesson in what not to do. We decided to save all the funky cuts to the end. Mistake. The surrounding tiles hardened in place and made it really hard to fit in the leftovers in place. Lesson learned: Do it all at once and rent the stupid wet saw!

Everyone told me how easy it was to install a floating floor so one night before the kiddos came we attempted it. I'm not sure it if was because it was 3 in the morning or what but we honestly could NOT get it together. We ended up paying a guy to come and install it. He was a professional and it took him 8 hours to get it in place! No wonder us newbies couldn't get it to work! Lesson learned: hire someone to help when you find yourself telling your husband, at 3 am, that everything in the new kitchen is total crap and you absolutely hate it.