A renovation let’s you experience to the core what the meaning of Murphy’s Law means. 

If anything can go wrong, it will.

I was naive and optimistic when we started. But I’m not being pessimistic when I say it’s better to anticipate things to go wrong than to be slapped in the face with surprise by it. 

Last Saturday was Moving House Day. So when I opened the door of our new house, of course our Serbian builders were still sitting there with their stuff as if it was their workplace instead of my home. And of course we had two of them camping in our basement for  the next few days.

And on Sunday when they wanted to install our free-standing soaker tub and pulled off the plastic, of course only then we would find out the tub had been broken. 

But the best day was Monday. The Monday when the only thing that had to be installed was the ventilation hood. I asked the plumber how much time he’d need so I’d know what to do with dinner. ’30 minutes,’ he said. I don’t know if I rushed him, but sudddenly we heard a loud bang and screaming from the kitchen. The hood had fallen on the cooker. The glass induction cooker. 

And as icing on the cake, he’d pulled it of the cooker, against the fridge. Dent. 

‘Are you okay?’ Was the first thing the husband said, looking if the plumber had been hurt. I was speechless. I just stood there, with Mini on my hip. There went my week old dream kitchen. 

So as a coping mechanism, I went down to do the laundry, only to find out the dryer had died on us. So now I had wet laundry in a cold house on top of everything else.

If it’s not right, it’s not the end.

So we have moved. But it isn’t right. Yet. And so this is not the end. And what this renovation has taught us is endurance, patience and flexibility. 

So I called our new neighbours to ask if we could use their dryer (how’s that for getting to know each other), went to MacD for dinner (the kids couldn’t have been happier), and the husband ordered a new cooker and fridge door while sorting insurance stuff out with the contractor. 

It doesn’t matter how many problems there are, as long as you find a way to solve them. 

Happy Friday,

Xoxo – Irene