It's starting....

It's so unbelievably weird. We're actually, really and truly renovating the house. Last night we bought gloves and crowbars. Crowbars, people! I cleared out almost all the cubboards and Cody got to work taking the doors off. It's a very surreal feeling... for weeks I've been threatening him to "get ready" and "we have a LOT of work to do" and somehow I never managed to get it into my own head that I need to get ready. Now here we are about to rip down walls and tear out cabinetry and I'm like, "Wait! I'm not ready!" Tonight I have to rush home and get the final bits of dishes and glasses into our make-shift kitchen in the guest bedroom, move the fridge, oven, and start ripping out the drywall all in time for Saturday's cement brigade. We're pouring a footing for the new ceiling beam and it's going to take 16 - 80 pounds bags of concrete to get the job done. Then next week it's time to hoist the beam into the ceiling (after building 2 temporary supporting walls) and I still haven't bought windows or had the French doors framed. Nor have I been able to get my front door ordered. It's a lot of work and I'm still in shock that's it's already started which is weird considering how much time has gone into the planning stages. I guess that's the weird part, up until now it's all been imaginary and then this weekend I started taking my "before" photos and the realization that a) our current house is in really, really sad shape and b) that things are changing quickly and it's time to get moving. Anyway, here's the first set of many, many, oh so many "before" pictures that will be posted sporadically throughout the reno.