When I took my parents to the Lowe’s by their house to show them our potential refrigerator and gas range, I noticed that the range we’d been eyeing had been marked down. AJM wanted a standalone range and given that he does almost all the cooking I felt he should choose what he liked. We looked at the high-end pseudo professional ranges and decided to save our money. So we agreed on a Kitchen-Aid gas range with a convection oven.
On returning to Austin, I found out that Kitchen Aid was coming out with new model and Lowe’s was clearing out the one we wanted. Lowe’s had been selling it for $1499 and I snagged it for $1349. So I ordered it on Tuesday and they delivered it on Wednesday and took away our old, chipped “Magic Chef” range.
We didn’t get to installing the new range (or “cooker” as my Englishman terms it) until Sunday. We were hoping that the vent we’ve had on order for a month would come in first as it would be easier to install the vent without having to work around the range. However, unpacking it carefully took longer than hooking it up.
The weather was suddenly chilly Sunday morning (in the 40s!) so we decided to cook a real meal: AJM’s pot roast via “Cook’s Illustrated”. So far, so good. We haven’t smelled gas or blown ourselves up, yet.
The new oven is rather loud, even when the convection fan isn’t running. However, it must be incredibly well-insulated as you can put your hand on the sides or the door and not feel any heat at all. The upside to that is we can do more cooking in the summer when we don’t usually cook at all. The downside is that I’ve often relied on the oven to keep the kitchen toasty while doing my Christmas baking.
AJM is ecstatic. I never realized how much he hated our old range.
These last three entries have been great fun to read. For you the remodeling process may have been incredibly long, but by posting the accounts just a few days apart, you’ve upped the excitement for your readers.
I’ve seen people standing in line with cans of Venetian plaster on carts, and liked the sound of the name but had no idea of the work involved. Your lights sound beautiful, and congratulations on getting the new stand alone range in time for the cooler days of autumn. We’ve been roasting vegetables again, ourselves.
Thanks for letting us hear the story as you celebrate the new heart of your home.
Now that the floor is done things seem to be moving along faster. We still have to get the kitchen counters and install the new sink and dishwasher and vent. And buy our refrigerator. Will an entire year elapse before the project is complete? It’s beginning to look that way. I hope to have it done by Christmas so we can have a big celebration. — mss