change in scenery

after a very fun year (our first in portland). we packed up our stuff and said so long to our teeny 2nd floor urban apartment…leaving behind the life of walking to the grocery store, hopping on the max, hearing soccer fans cheer in the stadium across the street, and a fabulous nighttime city view from our building rooftop. but we also said goodbye to the crazies who stand in the street and scream expletives at 4 am, the buses & skateboarders tumbling down the hill all day and night, the non-existent guest parking, and the shared laundry facilities. and no storage. no storage at all! (you’ve already heard me complain about it)

we’re nearing the feeling of “aahhhh, everything’s put away”…only a handful of boxes of old books to unload onto shelves, some garage organizing, and deciding on where to put art & pictures (we just moved stuff tuesday…with some amazing family and friends that bent over backwards for us). i’m the type of person who likes to have everything done and complete as soon as possible. i was always amazed at past design clients who’d be living in a house for a year or two and still have half empty rooms or things still not hung on the wall.

i’m eager to make an actual meal in our kitchen that is ten times bigger than our shoebox kitchen, besides frying an egg or pouring a bowl of cereal. today though, i’ve enjoyed the little projects that don’t happen in an apartment with no easy outdoor access…pruning bushes, spray painting a little accessory project, and potting a mint plant.

so i thought i’d share a few details around the house that make me happy. (pictures have captions if you hover your mouse over them)