July 18, 2018: our temporary kitchen is setup for the first time. We lived with Eric’s parents for 2 weeks while the house was progressing to a point where we could cook, wash dishes, and bath Phillip. Delays on multiple projects and materials pushed this date back from when we had to move out of our other property. We were in this configuration from July 18 through October 7; 81 days. Our actual kitchen wouldn’t be completed until December 21.
What does one do when they have zero kitchen to work with? You improvise. Camp stove, small appliances and temporary accommodations were set up.
Our hall bath was another work area, with our sous vide setup. Not much counter space to work with :/
Our mop sink was one of the last pieces of this puzzle. Juggling dishes over the washing machine became very tedious, very quickly. But it worked.
Our BBQ was another great player here, with it’s large side burner. The camp stove just can’t produce that many BTU of heat. We seared protein and boiled pasta outside.
We found ways to get creative cooking, but the dish load was punishing to wash. Uber Eats launched in our area early in the year, and was a huge help in keeping us fed. We didn’t want to eat carry out for nearly a year once our kitchen was completed.
We tried to celebrate wins as much as we could, and this tomahawk steak paired with wine brings back fond memories!
Phillip playing in our makeshift pantry. 95% of our kitchen and dry goods were still in boxes. We had to dig through to find spices and canned goods for some time.
Our little pantry corner came together as we found more items.
This was a nice T-bone from Tip-Top Meats, another celebratory meal on paper plates.
The existing fridge moved around the house as work progressed. It lived next to the great wall of sheathing for some time.
We moved to our smaller container for sous vide once we found it. We do not miss these days!