Having your kitchen remodeled is really no big deal, as long as you do it while your lying on the beach. Preferably a beach on a warm tropical island, with a pleasant trade wind keeping your margarita cool from the oh so scorching rays of the sun. More...Surely you must think I jest, I assure you however, I am serious. We had our kitchen totally remodeled a few years ago, while our three young children were all under the age of eight. Not a simple remodel, I'm talking serious stuff here. Old drywall (and walls) coming down, new drywall going up. New hardwood floors (the kind you sand with lots of dust), and old linoleum ripped up. New windows, new kitchen doors, new plumbing, new appliances, all new kitchen cabinets and kitchen counters to match. We even moved the sink and dishwasher with it's plumbing and electrical from the west wall to the north wall of the kitchen. In total, the elapsed time for the remodel, lasted about 4 weeks. So how do you continue to feed your young family and continue to live in a house whose most important room is in a shambles.



Kitchen Drywall Dust vs Beach Sand

Well, I'll tell you it isn't easy, but the only real solution, is to get the heck out of town. That's right. Time for a winter vacation. We decided, since we're dumping a ton of money on a entire new kitchen, we may as well dump a ton more money on a well earned vacation in Aruba. So, for the first two weeks of the remodel, we were hanging out on a beach, or by the pool, or swimming up to a swim up bar while the contractors were sanding drywall and hardwood (cough cough). We figured that during the two messiest weeks of the kitchen remodeling, the best place to be would be just about anywhere else.

Rasta Man in the Kitchen

Your probably thinking to yourself, if you're on vacation, then whose watching the workers? The key to all of this is to get a bunch of contractors you can trust. Otherwise you'll be worrying yourself sick instead of drinking yourself sick with rum punch. We were a little lucky, and a little smart about pick out the crew for the kitchen remodeling. We didn't go with the cheapest guys in town. We were also lucky to get a contractor that oversaw the work who was top notch. He acted as if he was remodeling his own kitchen. And he made sure the guys he brought in acted the same way. The only real issue we had to deal with was one phone call from the flooring contractor. Apparently they had incorrectly measured the floor, and it was really gonna cost me another $800 over the original quote. Hey, sure why not! Problems like this seem like no big deal, when you're on the phone from your Caribbean suite starring of into the sunset, wondering which beach side restaurant has the best margarita this side of the island. No problem mon.

Palm Tree Kitchen

By the time we got back, there was still some work to be done, but all the messy and nasty stuff was finished. Plus, things we're pretty much on schedule. So, we converted the family room into a makeshift dining room for a week or so, and made due until the rest of the kitchen remodel was finished. A couple of palm trees in the family room would have been perfect, but hey mon don't worry . . . every little ting gonna be all right.