And...We Have Kitchen Chairs

Slowly but surely I am furnishing my apartment. The one big piece of furniture I am still missing is a kitchen table and chairs. Recently I found some great kitchen chairs for sale on Craigslist. After I talked the seller down $15, i met her to pick up the chairs (with a friend and in a public place of course). I'm pretty excited about the chairs for several reasons...

1. The interesting style of them. They are definitely not your traditional chair, but that's what I like most about them. White rod iron with fabric covered seats.
2. The fabric that came on the seats actually goes with my decor very well. 
3. I got 6 chairs...for only $45!
4. All of them are the same except for one. One has arms which means I can easily use it elsewhere if I decide it doesn't fit with the table I get.

Now all I need is a table. I have my heart set on a cheap table that I can paint yellow!

An up close of the chair.

All 6 of the chairs.

A Sweet Reminder

I was recently rummaging around my apartment and found some birthday cards from 2 years ago. I have saved my birthday cards since I was a little girl.

The cards I found recently were extra special and just the reminder I needed. You see, these birthday cards were from when I turned 23 and lived in New York City. I was missing my family and apparently, as the cards read, they were missing me too.

The card below struck me though. Sometimes it's just nice to know someone loves you that much..."a heap". 

I wouldn't take back the time I had in NYC for anything. I grew up a lot and got to know more of my family that lives there, but I also know that I'm exactly where I'm suppose to be right now. Close to my siblings and their families. A short drive from home. Near all of my friends that I've had for years. It's a sweet reminder to remember why you are where you are. Sometimes we just need a reminder.

My 23rd birthday card from my Grandma.

Lego Land Florida

This past weekend I went with my brother, sister-in-law, and two nephews to Lego Land Florida where we spent two full days at the amusement park. We had a great time! Just imagine a theme and water park where everything looks like legos...and you have Lego Land.

We rode roller coasters, let the boys drive us around in lego boats, and enjoyed cooling off on the water park's slides. Remember those water slides that you go down without a tube and they literally just drop you down the slide? I remember them being fun. Not anymore. I went down one where you are in an enclosed slide for the first 30 seconds and then it drops you out. Needless to say I was slightly freaking out the entire time I was going down the enclosed part. Okay, I was completely freaking out.

Besides the scary slides, we had such a good time. It was so much fun getting to see the boys take it all in. Here are some pictures from our trip...now I'm in desperate need of a beach vacation with a drink in my hand.

 

 

A Patio...Finally

When I moved in to my apartment a couple months ago I instantly set up my patio, as I have been anxiously awaiting the day when I would have one again. When I lived in NYC I barely had an apartment, so a patio was just not happening. Not to mention that outdoor space in Manhattan is not something that people have, unless they are super rich...which I unfortunately am not.

I purchased a few plants, my mom gave me a few plants, and I put together the patio set I bought over a year ago (when I didn't even have a patio). The patio set had been hanging out in storage, but I just knew that one day I would have a place for it! Then a couple of weeks ago, my mom helped me plant tons of herbs in pots she had lying around. I now have a patio complete with:

• Rosemary
• Thyme
• Basil
• Cilantro
• Garlic Chives
• Oregano
• Spider Plant
• Gerber Daisy (my favorite!)
• Flower Basket - flowers, ivy, sweet potato plant, etc.
• Lights

I just love outdoor spaces and am so happy with how mine turned out. Now I just have to keep everything alive...the thyme is already fading on me!

My patio.

Updates with herbs, lights, ribbon.

Apartment Updates

I've been thrift shopping the past couple of weekends...purchasing, painting, and recovering old furniture for my apartment. I am determined not to spend a lot of money on the furniture I need. Recently I have purchased:

• an end table for my guestroom - $10

• a chair for my guestroom desk - $10

• an end table for my living room - $10

• 2 nightstands for my bedroom - $25/each

Check out the before and afters of these projects...

Chair.

Nightstand.

End table.

In total since I started buying furniture for my place, I have purchased 7 pieces of furniture for a total of $120!

Also, here is a chair my friend Megan sanded, stained and recovered...doesn't it look awesome!