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Stuff I bought today:

Kitchen Stuff

• a spatula/lifter thing to replace the one that died of old age
• a gadget for squeezing toothpaste tubes

HMV

• the new Jarvis Church CD
• Laundry Service by Shakira (the special CD with a DVD and bonus tracks)
• Pies Descalzos by Shakira
• Blake got the Season 1 and Season 3 Buffy CDs

Indigo

• a photo album, into which I will put a bunch of old family pictures, for the baby
• an illustrated, laminated first aid reference card, including descriptions of first aid for infants
• a pop-up birthday card for my little cousin
• Blake got Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn

Metro Toronto Reference Library

No, I didn't actually buy anything, but I did pick up:

• a book with the music to "Salamander" by Brahms
• a book with the music to "A Brisk Young Sailor Courted Me" by George Butterworth

Remenyi Music

• Another copy of the Brisk Young Sailor book
• 24 Italian Songs and Arias, for "Nel cor piu non mi sento" by Giovanni Paisello

And in between all that we had a sit-down lunch out. With dessert! It was a day for spending money, and I'm not sure why. It reminded me of the old days when we never cooked at home and we bought new CDs or clothes every weekend, when money flowed freely and we didn't really save anything. It was fun, in an unsustainable kind of way.

The day started with a meeting with our interior designer. She gave us the quote for the kitchen reno we're planning. It was a bit higher than I had optimistically hoped; on the basis of an article in the latest Canadian House and Home I was thinking it would be around $5000 or $6000, but the total came closer to $10 000. We selectively eliminated a few things and brought it down to around $8000, which is more manageable, although we're still waiting on a quote for the demolition of one wall.

Blake thinks we should install the tile backsplash ourselves. I am skeptical. It won't be technically difficult, but we will have to make sure all the tiles are level and lined-up properly, which will be tedious and prone to error. We'll also have to purchase tile cutters and things, which will not only be expensive but will result in us owning tile cutters and things, which we may never use again. The charge for the installation of the tile is around $650, but of course that includes the cost of the tools, as well as the adhesive and grout.

(Blake has just informed me that he doesn't think it's a good idea any more, because of all the specialized tools we would have to buy. So scratch that last paragraph.)

The kitchen is going to be gorgeous when it's done. We're having flat panel maple doors on the cabinets (this colour, although in real wood, not Formica), and matching drawer fronts. The countertop will be green, either in this cool leafy pattern that looks kind of like tinted cement which has had leaves pressed into it, or a "granite" in a similar palette. We're going to have plain white subway tiles on the backsplash, and we're painting the bits of exposed wall in a green similar to that in the Formica. Our cabinet hardware is brushed stainless steel. It's going to be clean and modern with an organic palette.

Or maybe we'll choose a different countertop, and if I see something really spectacular at the tile place, maybe a glass mosaic tile, maybe we'll do that instead of the white subway tile. The jury is still out.