Apartment #2 Tour

Entryway

When you walk into our apartment, you step into a narrow hallway, which opens up into a much wider foyer in the center of the apartment. We added our card catalog-inspired console to the hallway for some much needed storage and personality when you first enter.

In the foyer, we centered a small round table below the pendent light and grounded the space with a seagrass rug. I have been on the look out for a round rug, but haven't found the perfect one yet. We also hung our homemade city print in the foyer and love the big art in a small space look (although, have plans to make a frame for it- someday!)

Kitchen

The kitchen isn't too exciting, although it offers a lot more space than our old kitchen did. We haven't done much with this room, other than switch out all the hardware for some oil-rubbed bronze knobs. We love how bright this room is and the amount of storage space it offers.

Breakfast Nook

The breakfast nook is just between the kitchen and the living room. I painted the shelf nook dark blue and made bold flowered curtains to give this room a little more color than the rest of the house. The blues, pinks, and turquoise work well with the neutral pallet and keep things interesting. 

We created a little feeding station for Henry out of Lucy's reach, in this room. As you can see, I started a picture collage on the wall and didn't get very far... We ran out of picture-hanging-steam in the last month, but hopefully will complete this project (and others!) this summer. 

Living Room

Just like in our old apartment, we combined this large living room area into a living room and dining room. This room is definitely smaller than the previous apartment but we like the cozy feel of the space. Our couch is a slipcovered hand-me-down from my parents that we are hoping to (a) replace or (b) get professionally slipcovered, so it doesn't look so frumpy. Just beyond the living room, we have the "dining room."

 We added a globe-shaped lantern above the table to anchor the space and give it a "dining-room-ish" feel. We also added our drop-cloth-turned-drapes around the balcony windows and my favorite piece of furniture ever. I love this little area of our home and it's a great space for entertaining.

Master Bedroom

Sadly this room has received the very least of our attention. I think that it's because we're still not sure what we want it to look like. We added our frame collage and chandelier and then... left it at that for 3 months. Hopefully our next project will be a DIY headboard of some sort!

Bathroom

Not much to see here, other than my favorite shower curtain! I do love the vintage tile in here, although I'm not crazy about anything else....

Upstairs

This is our favorite room in the apartment, the octagonal tower room, which we use for an office/extra bedroom. From our homemade pallet bed to our custom-built desk; our refinished dresser and lantern light fixture, everything in this room has evolved over the last several months. We love the room and end up spending a lot of time up here, enjoying the view! 

Balcony

We are lucky enough to have a little outdoor space to call our own. We personalized this tiny space by adding wood flooring, a homemade bench and bright cheerful accents. 

Click here to see how everything looked when we moved in. Also, if you're interested in our first apartment, you can check out this old post.

17

I'm so excited to become a mom, but I'm even more excited to see Nick become a father. When I pictured pregnancy in the abstract, I always thought that I would be the one that pushed for us to start a family and then did the shopping, researching, etc. on all things baby. Not actually the case. How do I know that my hubby is going to be a great dad? The fact that I catch him reading the baby app on my phone all the time; or the fact that he reads me chapters of "What to Expect When You're Expecting"  in bed at night when I can't sleep could have something to do with it. Maybe it's because he greets me everyday after work with big grin and says, "Look at that tum, I think it got bigger while I was at work!" He likes to show off my growing bump to everyone too. The way he gets excited over teeny-tiny baby shoes and clothes makes my heart melt. Every time we say grace, he adds a special prayer for our little baby. He can't wait to become a father and I just know he's going to be an amazing one. 

the difference between ants and aunts

is apparently a point that I did not communicate clearly enough to my students... While talking about families, I asked my students which family members were living in their homes. Moms? Dads? Brothers and sisters? Grandparents? Uncles and aunts? When I got to aunts, my kids giggled.  I explained what an aunt was, showed a picture, and told my students that aunts were members of our families, just like uncles. One of my students got a very worried look on his face and told me, " I have ants in my house. I no kill the ants. I give them water and be nice. They my family."  

a rug mistake

 Back in the fall when I purchased my round entry hall rug, I also bought a second rug the same day. This one was definitely an impulse purchase.  I saw this pretty rug at World Market and it was on sale for $50. So for around $100, I got two lovely rugs for the home. (Note: Nick was out of town for these purchases). Unfortunately, I didn't think through the second rug purchase as thoroughly as the first. I was blinded by the price and the pretty colors. 

 However, this rug was a. clearly too small for the space and b. made of felt. A felt rug is not the best for furry animals. It's like its very own lint trap collecting dust and pet fur like a magnet.  So it only looks good for the 15 minutes after it has been vacuumed.  Unless Henry decides to lay on it- then it's only 5 minutes. (Which is why I can't show you a close up picture of the rug.) Also, it's obviously too small to sit under our round table. It probably needs to be at least a foot wider. 

I still love the rug and hope to find a more appropriate place for it some day... Nick (who does most of the vacuuming) is not a fan. Anyone else out there made a decor mistake? 

how did i ever live without you?

It's been awhile since I've proclaimed my love for Pinterest. I still love the site, even more than ever! There are so many great inspirational pictures and great ideas. What did I do before this website?! How would I know:

How I plan to decorate my future dream home?

How to dress cutely with a baby bump?

via The Daybook

What decor project to try next? 

What adorable learning activity I can do in my class next week?

What to make for dinner tonight?

How to dress my future son or daughter?

 Oh, Pinterest, you are an endless source of inspiration. : ) 

{all images via pinterest. (obviously)}

16

Pregnancy has made me awkward... or perhaps just more awkward than I already am! Sometimes I feel like my brain is shrinking with each passing month of pregnancy. Here are some recent "moments" that I've had:

1. Walking out the door to church yesterday morning, I realized my sweater was on inside-out. Luckily, I realized before anyone else did! 

 2.  While making sea-salt rice crispy treats with a friend, I misread the recipe and put in 1/4 cup of sea salt, rather than 1/4 teaspoon. Then we both choked them down,  pretending to like the salty treats for 10 minutes, until I rechecked the recipe.

3. Church in general has become awkward. For the last two months, I haven't made it through a whole service. About 45 minutes in, I either have to rush out because I think I'm about to pass out or throw up. Nobody wants to sit in the pew next to the pale, clammy pregnant girl at mass.

4.  At Target last week, the greeter asked me if I'd like a cart. Rather than a simple, "No thank you," I responded with, "Oh, not yet. I need to go to the bathroom first." I'm sure she wanted to know that...

5.  After spending 5 minutes attempting to button up a flannel shirt that used to fit, Nick said, "Love, I think it's time for you to go shopping."  He never says that!

6. I've had paper towels written on the shopping list for 5 weeks. Last week was the first time I actually purchased any. Somehow, I never  forget the jar of pickles...

Luckily, even with all these ditzy instances, I have no shame. In fact, I usually find the whole thing quite humorous! Oh, pregnancy... 

 

 

 

 

happy valentine's day!

Happy Valentine's Day, friends! Valentine's Day is one of my favorite holidays- it's the perfect pick-me-up in the middle of winter. And love + candy + pink = the perfect combination. I wanted to share what little Valentine's day decorations that I actually put up this year. Here's our front entry table, complete with a little love + candy + pink. Everything on the table was borrowed from somewhere else in our house and the entire arrangement was free. (We love free!) 

Whatever you're doing today, whether it's a date with the ladies, a romantic dinner, or exchanging Valentine's cards with a bunch of 5 year olds, I wish you a very lovely Valentine's day.