..........a blog about food, travel, gardening, and living the good life in Arizona.

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

The renovation slog

Here we are now 3 months into possession of our new "old" house with not a lot of "before" and "after" photos to share... but these things take time, I'm told; this is our first experience hiring a contractor. In the past we just managed everything ourselves, but this reno is pretty big and there are lots of "issues". Decisions about tile, paint, cabinetry, and many unexpected problems: electrical, plumbing, pool equipment and other hidden issues that need attention and cost $$$$ we weren't planning to spend.

We've painted several rooms already but now the floor tile is going in which means we will be able to start moving some of our things from the garage into the house and from the rental house into our new home: soon. Until the tile is finished we are prevented from doing any other work inside the house. I spend my days tending the garden and foundation plants and researching interior design ideas while Jack handles the heavy lifting: painting exterior trim, building a door for the garden tools and handling all the pool "issues".

Meanwhile, I've turned to cooking to take my mind off the slow moving renovation process. What's for dinner tonight? I've been exploring Ottolenghi's Jerusalem cookbook and enjoying it immensely. I checked out a copy from the local library but now may have to buy my own... it's that good! The first thing I made was the butternut squash and onions with tahini and za'atar -- wonderful! Tonight I made basmati and wild rice with chickpeas, currants and herbs. So good and comforting! Hopefully I won't make it through the entire cookbook before I can turn my energy back toward moving into our new home!


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