The kitchen space is the most anticipated area of the home, and a lot has happened since way back in June when Maddy met with Donna Venagas at Kitchen Living.

From the concepts of developing unfitted, stand-alone workstations, to selection of cabinetry, appliances and fittings, the pieces slowly came together. So to see the new floor go down and cabinets come in within a week really began to bring that area to life.

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The wallpaper had just been removed from the existing walls and blueboard for the new walls had hardly been attached to the studs when we started to see the plaster materialize.

"What's the big deal about plaster, anyway?" I thought. I, myself had framed a basement in my youth, screwed in wallboard, taped, and painted. On the other hand, I know there's something to doing a good job—I've seen homes with visible tape lines or board popping out around the screws. At our house, anyway, this has turned out to be a story with two tales.

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Now that the first two shows have aired, we only appreciate more how working with TOH has been a great once-in-a-lifetime experience. We continue to be impressed by the guys and their ability to help develop and guide us and other "guests" through the various scenes. Not to mention the quality work they are doing, and the things that we are learning about as we watch each episode. Such as where do those dumsters go, anyway?

We realized there were pros and cons with jumping into the public domain, but on balance we've enjoyed sharing our home and renovation process. Prior to the show, publicity was limited to features in the TOH magazine and local newspapers, so it's been mostly family, friends and neighbors (bloggers too) who have been closest to the progress and experience on a weekly basis. Some questions and themes keep surfacing, though. Here's a few:

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Painting the outside of home was always an afterthought. But one thing led to another. First, we had to paint much of the back of the home, where most of the new building activity was taking place. Second, after we decided to replace our windows and storms with Andersen windows, we knew we had to touch the trim on each window. Finally, the additional cost for painting the body compared to the trim was relatively low.

So after the dominoes fell and we settled on a color scheme, I figured we would be waiting a while until the work started. However, much to my surprise, Jim Clark (Clark Painting) and his painters decended upon the house almost immediately. But it was a while until the first coat of primer was applied.

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With the completion of insulation and beginning of wallboarding, the balance has palpably shifted from framing and infrastructure to closing, installing and finishing. And, with just 10 weeks left (!!!), I sense that the pace will pick up rapidly as we see more trades come to the table.

With most of the major decisions behind us, we feel slightly less pressure to stay ahead of Tommy, Roger, Richard and Allen. It's funny, though, how the small things, like doorbells, can become all consuming. However, as we've gone along, the decision process has been easier, and we've learned how to prioritize better.

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Along with gas pipes, we found old knob and tube wiring throughout the house. While none was operational at the time we bought the home, it was in common use from the 1880s to 1930s. We also found two more types of wiring, probably installed at the time of other renovations over the years.

Such was the state of the home when Tom brought in Allen Gallant (Gallant Electric) to take out the old and bring in the new.

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Fast forward a few weeks to the first day of filming. With the wit and humor still firmly intact, I found Rich in the basement, sweating away as he was digging up the sewer line to check for obstructions.

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Well before we got involved with TOH, we asked our architect (Treff LaFleche) to recommend a landscape designer. At the top of his list was Stephanie Hubbard, and when we met her and saw her work, we were convinced she was the right choice for us.

Little did we know that she and Roger Cook had worked together on several TOH projects, including the 25th Anniversary Project in Carlisle, Mass. So when we started talking to TOH about becoming their project, we probably already had a lot going for us.

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Of all our choices, one of the most difficult has been paint colors for the exterior of the house. After Paul and I painstakingly went through our budget, we had to decide whether to make the hefty investment to paint the house.

We did not like the dark green color and its stark white trim, but could live with it. However, about a third of the body of the house would have to be painted anyway due to the construction of the deck and rear of the home.

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The kitchen, under construction…

My husband Paul has been eagerly blogging for weeks and strongly suggested I give it a try, perhaps to give him a break, perhaps to give a female point of view of our TOH project.

Working with the TOH construction and production teams has been an unbelievable experience. I never thought we'd be doing half of all of the things we are doing, in such a short time and at such a high level of quality. It's all been possible with the help and assistance we've gotten every step of the way, from Tom Silva; our architect, Treff LaFleche; our designer, Abbey Koplovitz; and many, many others.

But I thought I'd also talk about the realities of renovation, when excitement gives way to late nights, difficult choices, financial anxiety and deadlines.

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