Teeth... again, again

So, my new crown is in, and has been for about 4 weeks now. I'm getting used to it more and more.  That might seem funny for someone who's never had "different teeth" in their mouth, but pretty much since I was a kid, I've had evolving front teeth in there.  From original short, to "capped", then broken, then capped again, to dentures, then crowns on the original teeth, back to dentures after those broke off not once but twice, and finally crowns again on implants x2.  Yah, that's a lot and it's been a bit pain in the ass my whole life.
So because of the bone damage (degradation over the years from dead teeth and damage), the implants/crowns could never be "perfect". I actually really, really liked them the first time before my wedding, but it wasn't to be...  So now I have a lisp.  yep.  Trying to "not give a shit" about it, but it really irks me, especially since all of the time, pain, and money involved to get me here. The other thing that irks me even more is that I don't love to look of it. I feel it's too long. It clangs on my bottom teeth when I talk and I'm always cognizant of it.
Perhaps I'm being overly picky, but I think I should be. They are/were not cheap. I think some of the problem is that the tooth beside the new crown is also very short making the crown seem that much longer.  Anyway, I *am* happy that they're in and hopefully done with for a long time.  I'm just not 100% thrilled with the results.  But 100% better than toothless....

All good

Met with the Dental Surgeon yesterday afternoon to check out the implant. Got an x-ray and came back good.  He did a torque test (to see if the implant moves or unscrews at all), not very fun, but didn't hurt too much and passed that - a little bit of gum tissue in the way, but not like the last tooth. So, next step is to get cast for a crown back at my regular dentist and off we go! I should try and call this week to set up an appointment.  I'm really looking forward to ditching this denture.....  =D

Toothy Assessment

Today I meet up with the dental surgeon for a (hopefully) final assessment of how the implant looks and how well it has taken.  Hopefully all good. I don't expect anything wrong with it. I haven't noticed anything "wrong" with it, and I haven't had any infections in it since it went in. Assuming that it's all good, I'll make an appointment with my dentist and get the permanent crown installed within the next month.  It would be great if I can get that installed before Florida in April.
SO looking forward to putting this behind me for now, and hopefully for good.  It's been such a LONG and EXPENSIVE process between both teeth.  Can you believe that the first one broke off almost exactly 4 years ago?  I was vacationing in BC visiting the Asbury's with Marn and Violet in March 2009.  Violet "broke" her first tooth on that trip too....

Anyway, if today is anything like the last time, I'm in for a very painful afternoon... (they told me it shouldn't have hurt, but the gums were falling back into the hole when they put the healing cap back on, pinching them)  :(  Trying not to think about it.

Kitchen Inspiration

Here's another/newer picture of the inspiration that we're going for.  Thinking 2-tone greys. dark below and light/white above... still mulling it over.

I sort of like the darker grey of the previous picture, but this one's really nice too.  We would also have hardwood instead of travertine tile like this pic.

kitchen design

This is what we're thinking about for the kitchen reno now.  Since the last post we were undecided about taking the wall down between the kitchen and dining room, but I think we've pretty much decided that we want an island.  So that means, this minor kitchen refresh has turned into a complete gut and redo, including removing that wall and making it completely open.  Something we hadn't planned on doing, but I think it's for the best long-term. We're already spending a decent amount of money, and we plan on being here for a long time, so better to do something we're completely happy with. No regrets.

3D Views with the wall down looking in from the dining room. Basic design is the same as with the wall up, but we lose some upper cabinet space.

View from inside the kitchen looking out, thinking about a wall cabinet on the other side of the dining room to make up for some of the lost cabinets in the kitchen. I'm not sure if it will make the dining room too small, though?

Marn is meeting with the cabinet maker and a friend to this morning to discuss if the wall can actually come down without problems. I believe that it can as there's nothing under the wall and it runs parallel to the floor joists.  A load bearing wall wouldn't be like that.

New Windows Are In!

Well, the Windows are in, for the most part. They still have to come back and complete some of the finishing touches, like trim and casings and a little bit of the metal flashing and caulking to complete the outsides.  Then we'll have to paint to really finish it.

THEY LOOK SOOOO GOOD!!

We're really, really thrilled with them so far.  Still not thrilled at the price of them.  It's amazing what new windows do to the look of the house, though.  They totally clean up and freshen the whole surroundings! It's actually brighter in the house too. The old windows were so dingy. We actually ended up with slightly larger windows because the frames of the new ones are thinner resulting in larger glass.  Anyway I'm so thankful that we were able to do this to the house.

It's funny, I initially didn't think that the windows did too much as far as how warm it felt in the house until last night. They replaced the 2 monster windows in the living room/dining room, which likely was the cause for most of the heat loss/drafts. Well, I felt hot all night in bed. To the point of being uncomfortable. Then this morning  while playing in the kids rooms with them, I was sweating thinking why is it so hot in here?! (I wasn't doing anything that should be making me sweat!)  The thermostat was at the same temp it's been all winter on weekends, which admittedly, is a little higher than the weekdays.  So I turned it down 2 degrees (to 19) and so far haven't felt cold at all.  As a reference, it's -9 outside right now.  And the windows are not even completely sealed up outside yet! They'll probably get even better.
I'm sold so far. It's a painful price to pay for windows, but so worth it for the long-run.