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! 

Thrift Stores - Not Junk Stores

Growing up my Mama always LOVED to go into thrift stores and antique shops (I always called them "junk" stores). There were few things at that age I hated more in life than going to a "junk" store and looking at all the crap other people wanted to sell so they didn't have to look at it anymore. I just didn't understand the logic.

Now, at the age of 24, I can officially say - I get it Mama! The other weekend I went, what I now call "thrifting" with my friend Megan. I just moved into my apartment a couple of weeks ago and have no interest in spending tons of money on furniture. So, I went thrifting and found....

This coffee table that I use as my TV table. It was an ugly beat-up wood color. I spray painted it the teal color to match my decor and added the baskets underneath for functionality. 

TV table.

Close up of TV table.

This little table that I use as my entry table. It was also an ugly wood color. I spray painted it the same teal color and then painted the key/mail/organizer above it gray, something I had in my room growing up that is now useful once again! The table still needs some love in terms of decor on it, but we will get there.

Entry table.

All in all, I'm pretty proud of my finds. I forgot to take before pictures, so you will just have to imagine how ugly it was before the new paint. I learned from the best growing up and can't wait to find more treasures to add to my home!

Here's the breakdown of what I spent:

TV/Coffee Table = $25

Entry Table = $15

Spray Paint = $6

Meet Oliver

Ever since I was in college and had to give up my dog Boozer because my apartment wouldn't allow him, my life has been missing something. I then moved to New York and couldn't exactly fit a dog inside my tiny apartment with me. So, when I got my own place this time I decided that I absolutely had to get a dog. This week I went to an adoption center called Pets, Inc. and found the something I had been missing. He is a full blooded Lhasa Apso and he is 4 years old. Please meet Oliver.

Oliver.

Oliver sleeping at home.

Boozer.

I'm so excited to once again have a dog and a constant companion/friend, and I can't wait for Boozer to meet him. They HAVE to be best buddies.

As for Boozer, he now lives a very good life at my parent's house with several other doggie friends and lots of attention/love. We still have an unbreakable bond...we will love each other forever, no doubt.