What is the meaning of "get as far as doing something"?
Solution 1:
It means they have not finished some larger task (such as remodeling the entire house), but only reached the milestone of painting the kitchen
Solution 2:
Its use depends on the mood.
hyper
Our journey had been unbelievable. We had never expected to collect any gold medals, but we got as far as collecting 5 gold medals and a couple of bronzes.
hypo
It was somewhat embarrassing. Even the ride-the-bus-half-price veterans had made it all the way to mile 10, but we did get as far as mile 7. Rather, we only managed to go as far as mile 7.
expected
It was a case of dishonest misrepresentation. We were told that we only had to carry the mattress two blocks to have it exchanged in their nearest other outlet. But, we had to go as far as five blocks.