Kitchen Remodel--Bracing Day

We had a busy day at the house today! I had to meet the locksmith and the carpet guy, so I planned to be there most of the day with my kids. This ultimately means they rotate between the bag of toys we brought, eating, playing in the backyard, and trying to "help" me. There is lots of "help," but I've been surprised at how patient they've been.

My oldest thinks that everyone who comes to the house is there to visit him. If they're doing work, he wants to "help" them too. Today, it was the locksmith and the carpet guy. This probably means I should be more careful about what I tell him because he's going to repeat it!! He's already talked the ear off our new neighbor. I asked her to kindly forgive me for any future things he might tell her than are vastly inappropriate. 

But mostly today was about the kitchen! I'm trying to get all my messy stuff done now as they demo the floors next week, and my mess can just mingle with theirs so I don't have to do much cleaning! I was up a ladder most of the day, and I chuckled when I got this text from my friend Kristen:

She went on to ask me if my oldest child could get to my emergency contacts if needed. Good point... got right on that when we got home!

But I was up a ladder most of the day installing the braces for our plywood that will cover over the top of the cabinets. Talking to my dad on Sunday, while I wandered through Home Depot picking up lumber, he commented that I might need another set of hands. Well, my husband is at work (DIY isn't his thing anyway—he's got terrible sinuses and ultimately it stirs up too much dust for him) and my dad is 300 miles away. Because of my limitations, I decided to keep my pieces small and controllable. And I used a clamp when I needed more hands. 

I used 1x3s for my braces and cut them about 10.5 inches long... give or take. I was using my circular saw for the first time, and I was wishing I had brought my miter saw. I really only intended the circular saw to be used on the plywood. I did have the plywood ripped at Home Depot, but left it in long strips became I was going with the "measure twice cut once" scenario. Circular saws make me a little nervous to have with kids... ok, MY KIDS. Because they just find every possible way to get into everything!! So, my dad and I devised a plan when we bought it a few weeks ago. TSA lock fits right through the plug. They can't plug it in, they can't hurt themselves too badly! 

Once I had my 1x3 pieces cut, I used a level to line it up at the ceiling. I don't have a lot of upper body strength, so I use a very light-weight drill. I went ahead and pre-screwed a bunch of pieces. While I was standing on a ladder, I was really glad I had removed all of the doors first. It gave me ample workspace for all my tools that didn't fit in my handy tool belt!

I screwed those in to the ceiling (I decided finding the joist really didn't matter because this is primarily decorative and will bear no weight). Then, I lined up pieces with a cut piece of plywood across the top of the cabinets and then used the nail gun to secure those. The nail gun may be my favorite tool. This one happens to be borrowed from my father, but it's definitely going on my list!

This is how I finished my day as a storm was quickly rolling in, and I wanted to get the kids back to the rental house for dinner and bath! I was also out of upper body strength...my biggest hindrance. And my Ryobi batteries were all in need of a recharge anyway. My father commented via text that HE would have just screwed the brace all across the top because of a concern for it bowing. I had not thought of that, and he has a point. But there's no way I could have managed that with only one set of hands. I might add more tomorrow.

So far, this is easier than I thought. But I haven't hung up the plywood yet. So, we shall see!