Pinch_Me--love your thread! Westsider40--love your post. I'm 38 this year and thinking about baby no. 2, so perhaps I shouldn't worry so much about being an older mom! First partial kitchen remodel, not our first or last house. TKO, but not loving the indecision I experience with choosing my countertop material!

" I don't even cook that much anymore."

lol! I hardly cook at all anymore - haven't for the past 15 yrs! but i don't keep it a secret... I guess I need a nice place to make a sandwich, micro a frozen dinner or reheat leftovers from my sister!
oh, and walk thru on the way to the laundry room!

Desertsteph, shhhh, keep this a secret but cooking is all about chopping vegetables. Now how cool/romantic/terrific is that? Oh please, is it really necessary to use that swirly thing, what's it called, to scramble an egg? Get real! I bet a really good cook in Europe has two good knives and a fork. Period.

OTOH.....And I cannot resist buying all that other stuff. I love kitchen stuff. Twelve steps for kitchen junkies.

I'm a few years under 40, but I know this won't be my last kitchen. This will likely be the last kitchen for the house in which I currently live, but there will be other houses and kitchen adventures. I started doing kitchens when I was 13. I did a lot of the design for my mom's kitchen. We argued a lot. In the end she wound up using most of my design and still loves her kitchen to this day. I've built a new house in my early 20s and designed that kitchen then moved a few more times to my current houses. Each kitchen means new challenges and new opportunities.

On my NEXT kitchen, I'd like to hire more out and have it be a lot less DIY.

Hi, I'm 49, closing in on 50, which I still can't believe, and this is my first kitchen renovation. We'll probably be in this house until we retire and then who knows where I'll be. Maybe Tuscany? Wouldn't that be nice!

After rjr's post at 21:50 Sunday I had to come back and repost my age:

Cost of kitchen reno - $$
Age - $$
Being part of this forum - Priceless

Westsider, so glad you did tell! Now we can admire you all the more. You are also now my inspiration for being an older mom of a baby. (But I think rosie does win -- I read it as "sixty eleven".)

[I"m amazed at how much more energy I seem to have this time around than with my first two, but then, I went from zero to two in 11 days and don't remember the first three years at all with them! (Whole story... adopted boy and girl, two different birthmothers, two different states at the same time; 10 years later, DD's birthmother had another baby and wanted us to take her as well, so now we have 3.)]

poppy, I can't tell you the number of friends having baby #2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9 over age 40.

This is such a fun thread...I have loved reading everyones stories!

I am 46 ($^), my dh is 56 (%^) and this is the 7th home we have owned in our 21 years of marriage.

We were in the first one long enough to complete major renovations but we never got to the kitchen. We then participated in a 12 year long 'corporate-tour of America', moving every couple of years while hubby climbed the ladder.

Two years ago we decided to come home to Indiana and purchased our 'do-over' house in the country. We are wrapping up a whole-house renovation with additions and topping it off with a revitalized and updated kitchen.

Our plan is to stay in this place until our girls are out of high-school...6 more years. Then I could see us downsizing both in sq. footage and in acreage, passing this home on to another family to enjoy.

I'm 35, it's my first kitchen renovation. I'm not sure if it will be my last, but I hope this house is my last! We gutted our kitchen really out of necessity. There was mold in the walls, and the cabinets from the early 60's weren't in great shape. When we decided our kitchen design, we based it on built ins from the rest of the house with some flexibility so if we wanted a change in look, we could paint and tweak things but wouldn't need to do a total gut in the future. So, we're hoping this is it, but I've lived enough life to not make any sweeping pronouncements- I always seem to be proven wrong when I do that!

Fun thread, thanks!

I am almost 52 and this is my forever home. I designed and built this one (98% DIY) as I did the last two houses before this one. But this one is perfect. It's on 25 acres and both of my adut kids (and their spouses) and my grandson live on this property. I will never leave it. I have a large plant collection that I maintained in pots for years while waiting for my forever home and they are being planted in the ground on this land. The house will have only 2 bedrooms (the master BR and bath are not done yet) and it has a huge sunroom that provides me with plenty of space for large family get-togethers. I am building a huge covered deck on the back now so I can overlook the koi ponds in my back yard. It's paradise! How could I ever leave here? And as icing on the cake, my kitchen is a dream. I have NEVER had a kitchen that functions as well or looks as fantastic as this one does. Life is good!

48 yrs young here...And I love this forum..It's so much fun interacting with people who share my interest in kitchens!

This is my first major remodel. 11 yrs ago we re-faced this kitchen. It was nice, but still small. So this time we are doing it right and enlarging it.

I think this will be my last remodel, unless we move when we retire and have to do it to the next house....as long as this forum is still around, I can do it again!

I am 36. Husband is 39. We have a six year old and about to turn five year old.

Our first house we bought was in NC and we put Brazilian Koa floors in that kitchen. Then, after 18 months in that house, we skipped up to PA, buying a 180 year old house in the middle of nowhere. We prematurely remodeled that kitchen in 2007, sinking what we thought was a ridiculous amount of money into it. We were in that house for 2 years on the dot.

Almost 2 years ago we moved to North Florida and are about to blow double what we spent last time around on the remodel. You can bet I am saying this is our "forever" kitchen! Granted, this remodel is of the kitchen/dining area, is twice the physical space and requires moving a supporting wall.

I am hoping one of my kids (my son) will continue to be a mama's boy and live in this house once he is grown and married. Respecting my kitchen choices, of course, and not changing a thing! ;)

I'm 45. This is the fourth home we've owned. We're renovating this time because we want to be ready in case we have to sell our house in a hurry. We believe the kitchen sells the house. So unfortunately, many of my decisions have to be made considering what local buyers want. I'm sure gonna enjoy it while I can.

We have the smallest house in the neighborhood so we're hoping a younger couple looking for their move-up house will see our house as a great opportunity to get in a nicer subdivision.

Okay, when you say "How old?" do you mean in the mirror and on paper or in our heads. 'Cause in my head I am about 32, but apparantly if you are couting it the other way I am 52!

When we move (i.e. downsize), any kitchen remodel will be done before we move in.

I'm 42, kids are 12 and 15. We've been in this house for 10 years. It's the second that we've owned ... the first was new build in No. Virginia. We picked out our kitchen from the builder. I remember beautiful cherry cabinets, but that's it! I think maybe we had white laminate counters and a beige vinyl floor.

We moved temporarily to Southern California, and rented. (that kitchen! brown wood-grain formica cabinets and white tile everywhere else! ouch!) We rented out our house in Virginia, which after 6 months burned down due to the renters leaving a pot on the stove when they went to Target. When it was rebuilt, I picked white cabinets, black faux-stone laminate counters, and wood floors. That was 1998. When I was designing this kitchen, 11 years later, I still wanted white cabinets, black counters, and wood floors, so I'm pretty sure it's a consistent theme in my brain.

Hope this is the forever home, except I wouldn't mind another second home some time. We have a mountain condo, which we redid 4 years ago, maple cabinets/granite/wood floors/copper accents. That was fun, a much smaller project than this one. I wouldn't mind doing another kitchen ... maybe in a desert MCM somewhere ...

35, and I don't think this will be our last kiechen only cause this one is already spoiling me and I've only had it for about 4 days. But I cannot imagine going back to a dysfunctional one.

And one day, someday, who knows when we will end up moving. But it likely won't be for at least 5 or more years.

OK, I'll admit it...I'm 53 (I have a hard time admitting I'm that old...I still think of myself as 28!). DH is 46. This is the second home I've owned (townhouse b/f I got married) and the first kitchen I've renovated. I love this kitchen and I tell my DH that if we ever move the kitchen goes with us!

The plan is for this to be our "forever" home b/c it's on 3 acres in a rural area that's supposed to stay rural in the Baltimore/DC area...and land like this is hard to come by now for a reasonable price. However, if both our children move out of the area when they're adults, we'll probably follow (I just hope they move to the same general area!!!)

I'm 48 and hope that I'll be in this new house by the time I'm 50. I'm already disappointed that my daughter will already be away at school by the time we move. DH laughs if I dare say it's our forever house cause I said that about the last (fully custom) house we built 12 years ago. Now we can't seem to sell it because it's so tailored to us.

Oh my...I have never written it down....I am 68.. but have also never felt old in my head...that is what other people are who talk about it all the time!... I have always said age is in your mind! We have moved 13 times, have been married for 48 years and live on the North Shore of Boston. We have done a recent galley kitchen in a summer cottage on an island where everything cost 3x as much as in "America" (the mainland) as the islanders say. (However, that was before I discovered gardenweb) After restoring most of our 330 year old saltbox, over almost 30 years (in between college tuitions, life, etc.), we are finally hoping to do a remodel of the kitchen - c. 1950 +/-. I am so grateful I found this forum before we got totally committed to this project. However, with every great new idea I hear about here ..from all of you...the price goes up... causing my DH, who hates change..., to say things like- "You know, I love the kitchen the way it is....why do we have to spend the $$" I know some of you get the drift! You all inspire me and you give me the courage to go for it...and for this I thank you!!!

I am 39 and dh is 40. We've lived in 7 different apartments/homes since we've been married, owned 5 of them. We are now renovating and adding on to our 6th home. We bought a 1500 sf home from the people who lived in it since 1950. We are renovating what's there and adding on almost 2000 square feet.

In our first house in Atlanta, we refreshed our kitchen by replacing the vinyl floors with tile, new hardware on the cabinets, and new counter tops. As this was before kids and we had time on our hands over the weekends, we did the floors ourselves.

In our 3rd home, we gutted and remodeled the kitchen and lived through it with our then 2 and 1 year old boys. We were very limited on space, but I was pretty happy with how it came out.

This time, we are starting from scratch. I am so excited for the new kitchen, but it does has some flaws. Our home is in a historical district in a town with small lots and strict codes. Yesterday, they poured the walls of our new basement, so I still have a lot of time before I get to see my kitchen built!

Will this be my last kitchen? I would say yes, at least for the next 15 years or so. Once the kids are in college, who knows? We would love to escape the Michigan winters, so maybe a vacation home kitchen will be in my future!

I'm 63.
This may be the reason why I am a GW curmudgeon. I've had tiny kitchens all my life and I really can live without a lot of the stuff that others crave. Am more worried about costs than about resale and I know that overbuilding for the neighborhood is not wise. Have lived here since 1972. I have 4 project goals, which have been the touchstones for an addition to the house, begun last fall.

1) entry and halls must allow guests to come and go without walking single file or taking turns putting on coats.

2) entry and halls and kitchen must allow an 85-year-old humped over woman using a walker to retain her independence and her dignity

3) kitchen must allow two cooks and other helpers to work without needing to say "excuse me" yet be of a suitable scale for a single person.

4) must have a designated storage space for a vacuum cleaner

In addition, I would like the kitchen to connect to the decorating muse and the usage patterns in the rest of the house. It must have efficient connections to a dining room where we eat daily meals and hold formal dinner parties and to a deck on which many summer meals are served semi-formally. I want to display some antique pieces and wall art in the kitchen. I want it to be highly efficient in usage of energy and in retaining heat in winter and repelling it in summer. I want as little resource waste as possible and want to compost, recycle, and preserve and prepare local foods. I want it to interact with the theater of seasons that is Minnesota.

I am still dithering as to the amount of red color the kitchen will have.

I just turned 29. DH is 39. Our baby is 20 months and we have just found out we are expecting our second!! This is our first house and it feels like we will be here awhile but who knows.

The kitchen has been trial and error. Testing everything about ourselves and that's why we love it all the more. The planning phase was very short (DH was pretty impulsive but it's great). I am so fortunate to have found GW though. The help has been priceless.

Never know when the best time to tackle these things are with young kids around. Family is in the area so we were able to stay with "Meme" and "Grumpa" for a bit which was amazing.

We love everything about our kitchen now (though not finished, but we will share eventually). Step 1 in a string of remodels...

I'm 43. This is my second home. We did a low budget IKEA remodel in our first home and loved it. It was ever so much easier making decisions for that one, not sure if it's because the cash outlay was smaller or because we'd never done it before and didn't know any better. I expect to have one more major kitchen build/remodel at some point in the next 10 years or so... it's won't be as fancy as this one so I am trying to enjoy my more luxurious details for the time being :)

I'm 37 and DH is 48. This is our first home and we plan to be here for at least the next 13-20 years. We have 2 kids who are 6 and 7. We love our neighborhood of older homes, with single and multifamily homes. The elementary school is a 2 minute walk and our jobs are a 4 minute drive, we love it! Our current layout doesn't allow us to see the backyard where we spend a lot of time, so that is what started us on the renovation road, that and a falling apart kitchen and bath. So, in one week we start demo and in 5-6 months we should be able to sit in the new kitchen/family room and watch the leaves change color, next to out new fireplace (I've always wanted a fp!). I don't post a lot, but I learn so much here and there is so much more to learn!Thanks goodness for GW and all of you.

I am 35 and DH is 36. This is our second kitchen remodel. I certainly hope that this will be it for a long time. I can't imagine saying that I never remodel another kitchen but I am hopeful that I will love this one for a long time. We hope to be in this house for a long time. Our kids are 8, 5 and 4.

I'm %( - 59 and my wife is %&. I will not print her age - she'd shoot me! We're on our third house and did a total remodel of a kitchen on the second house which is about 15 years ago. It only took a week to rip out, reinstall and have the new appliances delivered. Myself and a friend did all the installation ourselves. Saved me well over a grand!

We moved 5 years ago and are now empty nesters. But the grandson does visit - all 20 months of him! Since our present kitchen is about 3 times the size of our former one, we are doing just fine with the cabinet space and layout. We did have the countertops and island redone when we moved in - installed quartz and lovin' it. We also installed all new appliances. The old ones were disgusting and that's putting it mildly. We may in the future have a face lift done. If we choose to go that route, I'll do the face lift myself. I'm also considering installing pull out draws on some of the cabinets. I hate having to unload a cabinet to find what I need.

Enjoy the journey.
eal51 in western CT

This thread has been so much fun to read!

I'm very close to 48 (I typed it, I didn't say it out loud!;^) ) and Hubby-man just turned 43. As my "darling" 13-year-old said to me the other day, "Soooo, you are five years older than Dad?" I answered, "Mmmhmmm" he then retorted, "What did you do--hang around the playground and say, 'hey, little boy, wanna go to Chuck-e-Cheese?'". Little comedian, that one!

When we bought our first (and *only* as it stands now) house, I was CLUELESS on what to look for in a home. I knew I wanted at least three bedrooms and two bathrooms. It had to have lots of storage, and a fireplace was high on the list. So I got 4 bedrooms, one full bath, and a toilet. Heh heh. At least I did get my fireplace and lots of storage. The extra bathroom would have to come later. We looked at 32 homes to find ours. If it was halfway decent, we were jumping on it.

When it came time to unpack my boxes in the kitchen, I went to put some dishes in the dishwasher. I looked to the left, I looked to the right. I looked behind me. Are you kidding me?? There was NO dishwasher. (See what I mean about being rather clueless?) This was in the fall of 1996. I was due to give birth to our first baby in another month. In other words, I was seriously "nesting".

By the time I had a toddler and another baby, we had done a kitchen refresh. We added a dishwasher (Hallelujah!), replaced our ridiculously (to us) small range with a "normal" one, new fridge, countertops, sink, faucet, floor, and hardware for the cabinets. I was soooo happy.

Until I got the remodeling bug.

This is our first and, likely, only home, so we have been doing a LOT to it. We have added two bathrooms and done other remodeling projects. The kitchen was a natural progression. As DIYers, it has been an ongoing process since we moved moved here. The kitchen has been the most challenging, frustrating, and enjoyable of our undertakings. Last night Hubs said to me, "You do realize, don't you, that I am never doing this again..."

I said nothing, but smiled. Never say "never".;^)

I am 42 years old. Bought my house when I got married almost 17 years ago. This is my first kitchen demolition and it's a long time comin' girls! Hooray!

Let's just say that our kitchen was built in 1959 and I was born in 1951. I humbly say that I look better than it does considering our ages. (Think amber color birch flat slab cabinets with black wrought iron pointed handles. The cabinets, that is...not me!) We put new vinyl down in 1979 and took down wallpaper and painted in 1991. We did a major addition and remodel to 90% of the rest of the house 8 years ago, so now we are ready to do the kitchen. In two weeks we start to gut it. We are putting in maple cabinets with a cherry stain and are getting rid of 2 blind corners by using lazy susans. We are also adding counter and storage space with lots of drawers. At age 58, it has taken a lot of energy and several years to plan all this. I have learned so much here that we hope this will be our last kitchen and that it will be everything I've dreamed of, within our meager budget, of course.

I'm 47. This is my second full-blown kitchen remodel in 5-6 years. We did a beautiful kitchen in our previous home, surviving one cabinet company that went out of business right after we ordered our cabs and one tile retailer who took our money and ran. I loved that tile so much I paid for it twice! I never really wanted to leave that house!

But the hubby kept looking at the real estate ads, driving around on Sundays during the open house hours, and ended up finding one that met all the requirements I had set (thinking there'd never be a house that would have everything so I'd never have to move!). So, in 2007 we moved away from my dream kitchen into a house with a 20 yr old kitchen -- and original appliances that had to go immediatedly! We replaced the dishwasher, range, fridge, sink, faucet, hot water disp, and took the frilly curliques off the cabinets (knobs were separate, thank goodness) and made it a kitchen we could live with for a while.
The "while" ended last week when they took out the cabinets, countertops, etc. in one fell swoop. Now we're living with the dust and eating out a lot again and looking forward to a finished kitchen sometime in May. While we didn't try to make over the other kitchen, we did go back to the same kitchen dealer and contractor, and some of the same materials in different colors. The end result will be much more neutral, but I hope to live with it for 20+ years because I have made it very clear to DH I am NOT moving again until it's time for the old folks home!

Add me to the fifty something crowd. This is my second kitchen in 2 years. Hopefully not my last. This second one has been easier and less stressful. Maybe the next won't have stress or mistakes?? Ya think? lol

I was 54 when the kitchen was demo'd 3 1/2 weeks ago... this morning when I look in the mirror I see an extra 10-15 years..!!! Who knows what I will look like by the time we are finished. A friend told me last week I looked really really tired... This is my first time doing a total kitchen (and I am thinking my last). Hopefully I will forget all the stress, mess, etc when everything is finished and I lock the door behind these guys!!

I'm 60 and have been in my 83 year old house for 33 years. My little tudor revival house has gone from being merely old to nearly antique! When we first moved in (1977) we did a bit of an update on the kitchen but kept the original gumwood cabinets. Now all these years later we are starting a remodel, but once again keeping the cabinets (moving them around and making new insides but restoring and keeping the faces). New floors, counters, appliances, minor layout tweaks. After 33 years, I'd say we're due! Hope to stay another 15 or 20 years, but definitely no more major remodeling (we did the bathrooms two years ago).

Thanks all for sharing -- great thread!

Pinch-me, you started us off by saying that you'd read "someone's post today who is older than I am."

I suspect it might have been my confession that my last true compost pile was during the year of the FIRST Earth Day.

When I wrote that, I was sure someone was going to think, wait a sec, that was back in cave times -- when fire came from campfires and not sealed burners . . . .How old IS she anyway?

At 66 I think I'm still near the top of the heap here. I totally understand why those of you in your 50s (and some in your 40s!) find it hard to admit your age -- been there, done that, hated the sense that birthday numbers meant a loss, not a gain.

In fact my college friends and I decided (at the ripe old age of 18) that when we turned 40 and our husbands were all dead and we no longer had any reason to care about how we looked, we'd all live together in this huge beach house with refrigerators on ALL the walls and we'd eat anything we wanted to and play bridge all day long.

Guess that was my first dream kitchen, come to think of it.

And yet 66 is so much fun, in every way. And who knows if this is my last kitchen fixup?

I'm doing a modest overhaul (keeping floor, plywood cabinets, layout) of a 1939 Florida house we've been in since 1972. (We spend our summers in Vermont, which makes Florida bearable.) As we head the corner toward 70, we realize that our next move could come any day, though we hope not. It makes me feel young to be thinking of how to fix the kitchen, partly because I'm enjoying every little change I've made, partly because it's fun to think about, and partly -- this is going to sound a little strange -- because I'm getting a kick out of thinking about how the next person who works in this kitchen will feel about the soapstone. We've got family antiques here, and when I sit in a chair or touch a table I sense the spirits of all those earlier generations, and even though it's not my daughters who will be here next, whoever it is will be, in some way, my kitchen descendents. And I like that.

What a great thread! Been away for a few days....for my dh's 50th birthday--went to Florida, visiting family, including those at The Villages to be exact!

Let's say we will NOT renovate this kitchen ever again. However, I might be renovating a kitchen in the Villages at some point in the future. We looked at houses while we were there, possibly just for investment purposes at first. The builder will not vary from the plan you pick, so if I choose the model with the great bedrooms, then my kitchen is not exactly like I would want, but, there is a wall that I have my eye on that can be torn down...uh oh--here we go again!

I have a few years to go to the big five-oh.

LOL, marytw! I have a group of 21 friends from college who get together every year at the beach, and I imagine that what you describe would generally be met with cheers (except the 40/husbands dead part). One of these friends sent this the other day... hilarious and ?true?.

A group of 40 year old girlfriends discussed where they should meet for dinner. Finally, it was agreed upon that they should meet at the Ocean View restaurant because the waiters there had tight pants ....

10 years later at 50 years of age, the group once again discussed where they should meet for dinner. Finally it was agreed that they should meet at the Ocean View restaurant because the food there was very good and the wine selection was good also.
10 years later at 60 years of age, the group once again discussed where they should meet for dinner. Finally it was agreed that they should meet at the Ocean View restaurant because they could eat there in peace and quiet and the restaurant had a beautiful view of the ocean.

10 years later, at 70 years of age, the group once again discussed where they should meet for dinner. Finally it was agreed that they meet at the Ocean View restaurant because the restaurant was wheel chair accessible and they even had an elevator. 10 years later.

At 80 years of age, the group once again discussed where they should meet for dinner. Finally it was agreed that they should meet at the Ocean View restaurant because they had never been there before.

Oh, jsweenc, that just NAILS it!

Now . . . what we talking about again?

M

51 here and I truly hope I will not have to plan another kitchen. This has been extremely exhausting and stressful. My next home is being prepared for me. :)

52 and this is my first and my last kitchen reno.

MadamG2U

When I started this thread it was inspired by the "girl" who wrote the essay referred to WAY up toward the top. I thought our attitudes were likely shaped by our age. So many of us felt that if we didn't do it NOW we never would/could; a feeling of desperation. That was part of my motivation. I'm 63 now and I intend to get some enjoyment out of this kitchen! I couldn't wait any longer. I doubt I will do another kitchen of mine. There just isn't enough time left. Well, and there was the kitchen I'd been blessed with. It HAD to go! A 1950 DIY kitchen is not quaint. It's awful. It surprises me that about half of every age won't willingly do this again. There are a few of us who would do another one tomorrow. And then those who are glad they're done, have no deep scars and have not closed the book on another remodel someday. The age groups didn't follow like I thought they would.
My next "I wonder" is if it made a difference in your attitude if you had a GC or if it was mostly DIY. And once again, could you trust the people you were paying. I know I'm the luckiest person on this forum because I had a carpenter who could fix anything and he does nice work. I could do the things I had to do at night or weekends. One afternoon a week we were both there. Four weeks later I was back in. I can't imagine what some of you have gone through after reading your stories here. I'd be curled up in a fetal position whimpering.

Bwahahahahaha, jsweennc, I just got that same email from my mom! It's a keeper! :^D

I'm 34. We're in our second house. We built our first house in the city, a small starter but I still yearn for cupboard doors that actually CLOSE! We've been in this house for 6 years (and 2 babies) and it's time to renovate!!! I'm nervous as it's a major reno, pushing out the entire back of our house. We'll be living in our holiday trailer in the back yard! We plan on being here at least 8-10 years. I own the tiny pre-war house next door, it's my pottery studio so that made the decision to renovate or buy a new house pretty easy. Nothing like a one minute commute.

My story sounds very similar to donnakay2009's. I am also 57 and a teacher. We have lived in our house (our 2nd) for almost 19 years. We couldn't afford to remodel the kitchen until after the kids (2) finished college and graduate school, and I also wish that we could have had this new, wonderful space when they were stilll living with us. It is so much better for entertaining, and there were always more people coming in and out of our house when they were still here. Now, it is just the two of us most of the time. Perhaps there will be grandchildren someday in the near future, as our son is married and our daughter is engaged.

We remodeled the kitchen last summer, and now my DH is pushing for remodeling the master bath and our bedroom. He really got into the process and the planning, even though he was never interested before. We plan to live here for many more years. When we bought the house I was a bit disappointed that it wasn't a 2-story house (visions of our lovely daughter coming down the stairs for the prom), but NOW, I love the fact that there are no stairs. We COULD live here forever!

I turn the big 5 0 in less than two weeks - our kitchen reno was completed 18 months ago and I never want to do it again. We've been in this house 14 years, but before that it had been my parents home - I'd seen it go from the original teak cabinets, to the white melamine my parents re-did in the 80's to our Ikea cabs. It was mostly DIY - except the electrical and granite install. We took the kitchen and family room and opened them up into one fantastic space. I love my new rooms and hope to never leave - they can take me out in a pine box. The kitchen is functional, easily accommodates two+ cooks and is gorgeous IMHO.

I am 39 today. :) And forever. he he.

This is our second home and we completed our first major renovation last year. We did a ton of work on our first house, but only replaced some trim, counters and backsplash in the kitchen which had already been done by the previous owners.

We bought our current home as our "forever" house, but I'll never say never about doing it again...ya just never know. :)

I am and "older" mom with a 4-year old daughter. We wouldn't mind adding another member to our family as well.

Still lots of renovations planned for our home that will happen as the funds become available. I just can't help myself. ;)

shelayne, I laughed at this! "I looked to the left, I looked to the right. I looked behind me. Are you kidding me?? There was NO dishwasher. " I walked into my farm house and there it was! Wall to Wall - EVERY wall! Green shag carpet! I was very careful about looking at the barns and other outbuildings and I know I walked through the house. I have a few pictues of it so it must have been me there. I ripped it up and lived with ugly painted board floors while I got the barns and fence horse safe.

I'm 36 and my DH is 10 years older than me. This is our second house and first kitchen remodel. My father was a carpenter and I've always loved the thought of DIY. He's in his eighties now and would be game for a remodel, but we really try to keep him off ladders and away from power tools. Doesn't seem to stop him though because last year we came over and found him in the backyard tied to a tree 30 feet up with a chainsaw in his hand. My mother is no help in this department because she was videoing him sawing the tree down instead of telling him he needed to get down! hehe.

Due to personal circumstances, we are hiring out most of the work although we did do the electrical ourselves but that's only bc the one we hired mucked things up so bad that my DH couldn't stand it and rewired EVERYTHING.

This is not our forever house but we've learned the hard way that thing don't always come out as planned so I have no idea how long we'll stay in this house. Due to that, I'm trying (emphasis on the *trying*) to not be overly obsessive compulsive about every decision - so now I'm just super indecisive instead.:-) Resale is a huge factor in many of our decisions, so I'm stuck with the same layout and couldn't move plumbing or appliances, but I did get a new island that is about 40% bigger than my old one and so much more usable!

I sure would hope to one day have my ultimate dream kitchen, but this one won't be it. This is gonna be the 'compromise' kitchen as it's still better than the one I had before! When that day comes, I sure hope all of ya'll and this site will still be around because where else am I going to find all this wonderful advice and folks who are as OCD as I am?

It's not the years, it's the miles. I was 46 when I was disabled by a back injury a few years ago, but most days I now feel like I'm 86. So I'm ripping out a 3-year-old perfectly nice kitchen to fit it with taller counters, more upper cabinets, drawers, pullouts, and other handy things. Fortunately, I've found people who want the things I'm getting rid of, so they won't end up in a landfill. Two years ago, I did the bathroom for the same reasons. This will certainly be my last remodel of any kind.

57....

And while I've been a kitchen junkie for decades, I have never done a kitchen from scratch for myself. For others, yes. Once I did design one for a house we chose not to build, and I have radically transformed a few, four I'd say. But all while I cooked in them daily. I cannot fathom being without a kitchen for months.

Hmmmm, unless I figure out how to have two houses, I believe I will never do a forever kitchen.

I do plan to have a blast in whatever kitchen I am in.

I'm 45. Husband is 46, and we have three teenage daughters (your sympathy is appreciated.) Second house, first real kitchen remodel. We've been in this 120 year old house 11 years, and have landscaped and done the upper floors...and finally prioritized the kitchen. Between the teeny tiny tile on the counters, the 30-40 year old wallpaper and the repeated fires in the broiler, it's about time! I forced the issue when I realized if it didn't happen before the first daughter went off to college (2011), it would be unlikely to happen before the third one gets OUT of college (2019, fingers crossed.) I love this house and have no plans to leave...but know life has a way of surprising you! At any rate, resale be damned. I'm doing this for me and my family...the next people can have their own remodel adventure! Can't imagine another kitchen in my future, but it's probably there...but not until I have a good long time to enjoy my new space!

Hey there all you youngsters. Thought I'd give this a bump so others can enjoy also. I certainly have.

Rosie