Our kitchen renovation officially has hit the seven-week mark. Seven. Long. Weeks. While we still have a few more weeks to go, here’s where we are at with our kitchen renovation seven weeks in.

I definitely didn’t bother to clean things up too much before I took these photos – when you’re living in a construction zone, clutter is simply the name of the game. #truth

I haven’t posted progress photos since demo day, so unless you follow me on Snapchat (msinthemidwest), then this is your first look at our new cabinets! What a difference, right?! I occasionally still have to remind myself where we started – it’s hard to even imagine those bulky 90s-style oak cabinets in the space.

If any of you have lived through a major home renovation, then you know and can understand the frustration when things don’t go according to plan or the timeline. I’ve had to continually remind myself of that fact throughout the past few weeks. See, we could be a lot further, but one of the cabinets arrived damaged and had to be replaced. And, it wasn’t just any cabinet – it had to be the corner cabinet on the other side of the fridge, which meant that none of the crown molding, under-cabinet lighting, etc., could go up or be installed until the new cabinet arrived. That process ultimately took another four weeks, and the cabinet finally went in last week.

On the bright side, the space is at last usable! The appliances are up and running, our beautiful quartz counter tops were installed last week, and we finally have running water. While we’re still eating off paper plates and using plastic utensils – we were told not to put all our stuff away in the cabinets quite yet – it’s basically a luxury to eat in our own home again. Granted, we’ve only made bread sticks and a frozen pizza, but hey – it beats take out.

The last “big” part that we’re still waiting on is the installation of our back splash. We were hoping that that was going to occur this week, but again, nothing ever seems to go according to plan with these projects. So, we’re currently on the schedule for next week, and I’m going to cheer when the last person walks out of the house and I don’t have to revolve my schedule around workers anymore!

Otherwise, our contractor is back from vacation this week and will get back to work on all the details – crown molding, toe kicks, touch up paint, etc. I have drafted quite the list for him, so I’m sure he will be just thrilled with me. I’m definitely not going to apologize for that, though – the details are what finish a space and make it feel complete.

Thanks for hanging in there with me through all of this – I cannot wait for the final reveal!

Have you lived through a kitchen renovation? Any tips on how to survive the final few weeks?