The refrigerator shuffle

By Katie Tamony Courtesy Sunset.com

(http://www.findarticles.com/cf_0/m1216/2_208/82334084/p1/article.jhtml)

Last year, my husband and I decided to install hardwood floors in the kitchen and family room.

Not quite a remodel, but definitely an upgrade that required us to move the refrigerator into the laundry room for at least a week. It didn't seem a major inconvenience to walk a few extra steps for a glass of milk, but this was before we decided to paint and before I knew that there were so many shades of yellow to choose from. I'm ashamed to admit that six months later, the refrigerator is still in the laundry room.

It's not that I can't make up my mind. It's that before we could paint, we had to install the recessed lights and put up the crown molding, which, of course, meant about 20 trips to home improvement land. As every friend who had ever done any fixing up had warned us, once you start, it's hard to stop. This is why our simple kitchen updating has inspired us to retile our fireplace in the family room and tear out the master bathroom cabinetry.

One smart piece of advice we've followed is to collect design inspiration before committing to colors, finishes, and major changes. The file folder marked "Kitchen" is bulging with articles and pictures from catalogs--fragments of the dream taking shape in our minds. Whatever improvements you plan on making, I have my own advice: If you have to wedge the refrigerator into the laundry room, make sure at least one member of your family can shuffle it away from the dryer door as needed.