Ugh

Our stove is beeping again.

When I got home on Sunday night, I settled in and watched some TV. And then I heard it. And I saw the F1 flashing on the display. We just had the keypad replaced six months ago (this is where I want to go on a rant about the LIES and COVER-UPS of our previous owners but I won't, maybe), and when the repairman came out again yesterday, he told us he could replace it, but it would keep happening with increasing frequency until we got a new range.

So now we have two choices, thanks to our homeowner's warranty. We can either have them replace the keypad again at no cost (other than the $60 service fee we've already paid) and have them replace it again in a few months when it goes out. Or we can take the cost of the repairs ($257.25) and put it towards a new range.

I'm heavily leaning toward the second option. Brett is unsure.

Our stove is 20 years old. It cooks unevenly. I just want a new one. We planned on replacing it at some point anyway, so why not now, when we can get a check for $250?

But there are some issues here. We had plans for a kitchen makeover in a year or two. Now we're pushing those plans up and will be forced to make some decisions we weren't ready for yet.

Our current range is a drop in. Drop-ins are not longer very popular, and they're MUCH more expensive than slide in ranges. As in, a difference of $800 for similar features (We're looking at smooth-top, self cleaning). But our (hated) countertops are cut specifically for this drop in stove. So we may have to make a decision on countertops right now, this minute too.

I'm thinking laminate countertops in our limited counter space kitchen + a slide in range may end up less expensive than a drop in range. Which would be awesome because we could get NON WHITE COUNTERTOPS! (Just FYI, I would love granite and swoon over soapstone but that's just not in our budget, plus we would definitely price ourselves out of the neighborhood).

Now for the color choice. Our current appliances are white (yes, we have white cabinets, countertops, and appliances. Our kitchen is a bland sea of white, with an accent of parrots. Blargh). Our fridge is brand new (very cheap though) and our dishwasher is just fine. We EVENTUALLY want to get stainless steel appliances. To us eventually meant a few years down the road and maybe not ever in this house. So should we get a stainless range right now and replace the others down the road? Get all new stainless appliances right now (this is not really an option, more of a dream)? Or should we just come to terms with white and suck it up?

A trip to the ding and dent appliance store this evening may help me with some answers. What do you think?