Litter Robot is here!

Having 2 cats requires cleaning out the litterbox. A lot. And when you have a finicky cat who pees on your bathroom mat if the litterbox isn't just how she likes it, it's a bit frustrating. So lately, I've been researching automatic self-cleaning litterboxes for the cats. I was sad to find that the majority of them have bad reviews, primarily because they break down after a short while or the "raking action" just doesn't quite work. Then I discovered Litter Robot! I know it looks crazy and huge. Even a bit over the top. But after reading rave reviews of people that have had it for years, I was convinced. There are also some fabulous videos of people who have video recorded their Litter Robots in action--one of my favorites is entitled Darth Kenny since the litterbox looks so much like Kenny from South Park. Anyhow, we broke it out tonight and now just hope the cats get used to it! Below is a picture of Misha staring quizzically at it.

Guess it's good that our toilet overflowed...

I met up with the flooring contractor yesterday so he could assess the damage, make measurements and put together an estimate for the insurance company. After 5 minutes of looking at my current hardwood floors, he noted that the style of wood flooring that I have--which is 2 panels of wood glued together--is an old style that's difficult to find and he would have to replace with wood that would, regardless of staining, look obviously different. So he is telling the insurance guy that they need to rip up the entire wood floor and replace ALL of it as a result. I flipped out at first...but then realized "hey, that means I'm getting brand new hardwood floors for free!" (minus my deductible). Furthermore, since the baseboards were removed from the bathroom, they will need to re-paint it (also care of insurance)---replacing the pretty horrific paint job that I did 2 years ago! Woo hoo!

Matt and I went to the showroom of the flooring company today and it was so much fun...like kids in a candy store. You want walnut floors? bamboo? brazilian cherry? Doesn't matter--cuz insurance is paying for it! Seriously, when does insurance work in your advantage? So we took a few samples home and are likely going to replace the floors with some nice bamboo flooring. Also, as a side suggestion, we're going to put tile in the bathroom--the materials would be a wash with the wood so we would only need to cover the extra labor for the tiling. And since we're at it, we're going to get an estimate to tile the upstairs bathroom which is something I've been wanting to do forever anyway. It will help save money to have the tiling guy do this at the same time for labor costs. At the end of the day, the total estimated cost of replacing all the wood floors in my entire lower floor is approimately $12,000! Freakin' eh! But a ha---the lovely folks at State Farm are paying for it. Love it!