We discovered early yesterday that scrubbing the grout with abrasive pads does not actually change the color of the grout. It is quite seriously beige all the way through. After mulling over countless articles on the internet - we have come to the conclusion that too much water was used in one or all of the application procedures when grouting. (See this article http://www.askthebuilder.com/616_How_to_Grout_Tile.shtml and read the builder's answer about what NOT to do when grouting to get a step-by-step account of exactly what our installer DID do while grouting.)
Would it do any good to argue about the methods used? No. The expected response would be a rather gruff: "That's a bunch of bull.. I've been doing this for(insert fabricated number here)years and I've never had this problem before."
The plan is to wait however many days we are supposed to wait and then apply grout stain ourselves. Since we had already agreed to seal the grout ourselves -- and the stain is also a sealer -- it's not really any extra step for us...
I heard from Dean just a few minutes ago who called to tell me that two guys that he brought by yesterday will be acting as new painters on our kitchen project. They have instructions to call ahead to let me know when they will be arriving this week to paint the cabinets. The trim should be installed at the end of the week.
In the meantime - we have not heard from our countertop people yet. I expect to hear from them this week. And I mean that in a rather demanding school-marm tone: I EXPECT to hear from them THIS WEEK. Like that.
Have I mentioned just how difficult it really is to feed and entertain four kids all day long with no kitchen? We keep running out of plastic cups because the boys truly believe that 'disposable' means they should be disposed of after every sip of water. We have the microwave set up in the laundry room and the refrigerator in the dining room. There are food items scattered around the house -- on the mantel.. the sidebar... the entertainment center.. the pool table...
And finding a fork in this house is a monumental task. We're using the guest bathroom as the kitchen sink... and it's difficult. Does anyone else have a weird feeling about rinsing out dishes in a bathroom sink? I need to add that to my quirks list.
But through it all -- everybody is handling it rather well. I just don't think we're going to be able to handle a Christmas like this. Last year -- all we had was a functional (but not exactly aesthetically pleasing) kitchen.. This year -- we don't even have that.
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