Life Update: Settling in to Suburbia

Life updates are my favorite blog posts to write, I don’t know why I don’t do them more often! I sat down at my computer today wanting to write a blog post but I wasn’t feeling any particular spark of creativity, so I decided it would be best to just pour out some of the details on what we’ve been up to since we moved into our new house. Plus, I can tell by my analytics that you all love these posts best too!

It’s been about 3 months of living in suburbia in our new home. There are lots of things that I love about this place, we have a yard, more indoor space, a garage, no loud upstairs neighbors. There are also lots of things I miss about living in the city. We moved this direction for many reasons, a big one was that we wanted to be closer to family for Stella, we wanted a big yard, and we could get much more house for our money the further we moved from Portland. Although we do hope to own a home or condo downtown again in the future, it all weighs out in favor of our family living in this current setting during this season of our life.

If you’re following along on Instagram, you’ll have seen the home decor and updates we’ve been making on our new space! I’ve been having fun with paint, furniture and decor in pretty much every room of our home save for the kitchen. When we moved in we had the intention of tearing out the 80’s style kitchen and fully updating the space to our liking, check out my empty home tour to see what it looks like currently. Of course we have yet to touch the space besides removing a couple cabinets. BUT - we do have a structural engineer scheduled to come out next week to help us gauge where and how we can take down this massive wall dividing up our downstairs. Progress, am I right?! I feel excited to finally get the ball rolling on this huge project so we can start gaining momentum on the heart of our home. I need that wall out ASAP so I can see what my naughty toddler is up to while I’m cooking her meals. Who ever decided that a walled off room was a good idea for a kitchen?!

Other than the home stuff, my life has been pretty boring as of late. I feel like work has been picking up a ton and I’ve kept busy with the blog/Instagram. I even started working with an amazing local photographer lately to up my content game, and it has been a total game changer! Below is an outfit she shot for me last week, I can’t seem to stop wearing this lace cami from my friend’s boutique. I love this cardigan too, it’s a great Amazon find that could totally pass as Free People! The quality is amazing, and it’s under $30!

Hat // Tank Top // Cardigan // Jeans // Shoes //

I can’t get enough of this HAT! It is seriously so gorgeous and I have gotten countless compliments on it! It’s super affordable too, definitely a must have for fall!

These Target shoes look designer and I think everyone needs them! I have my eye on the cognac color since I wear them so much in the fall.

Thank you all for reading and following along with my life. I wish I had more to share today in this post, but for now my life has been pretty boring! Don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss any new home updates since there will be a lot happening in the near future (ie: kitchen remodel).

xo

We Bought a House!

I can’t even believe I’m saying this but we are officially home owners! Our story has been a long one, we’ve been renting for almost a decade and have moved even more times than that. Between school, jobs, having a baby, and everything else we’ve experienced as a family we’re finally settling into a permanent place and we are so excited, and honestly relieved. House hunting in the Portland, Oregon area is no joke! We started out looking at homes in a specific area that is notorious for being extremely competitive and was proving difficult to find what we needed within our budget. When we expanded out a few miles we found the perfect home for our family under budget that is still close enough to my parents as well as a quick drive to downtown.

Since we are saving some money on the house we have fun plans for the space! I’ve been pinning home decor inspo like CRAZY and I can’t wait to just get my hands on the space and get started. We’re going to re-do the entire kitchen and master bathroom and Stella will be getting her official “toddler room.” I’ll be sharing a whole series on the blog with before and after photos as well as the whole process of transformation! Home decor and design is a huge passion of mine, I used to draw and imagine home floor plans when I was little and constantly re-arranged the furniture in my bedroom. As a child I wanted to be an architect and then I got more into interior design as I got into High School and College age. Owning a home of my own has always been a dream of mine, to have my own space that I can mold into my own personal haven is a dream come true!

We won’t be moving in until the end of the month even though we’ve closed on the house and we are recorded as the owners, we’re actually renting the home back to the previous owners to give them time to complete the purchase on their new home, but I’m so excited to bring you all along on our moving journey in a few short weeks! get ready for all of the home decor posts over the next months!

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xo

My Riverfront Apartment Living Room Decor

It was definitely just as difficult to photograph my space as I thought it would be. A room never looks the same in a photograph as it does in real life and I struggled with that in these photos. I feel like it looks ten times better in real life, which is why I could only choose a few photos for this post. 

Since I'll be moving in just a couple weeks I figured its time to document this apartment before I pack everything up. This is by FAR my favorite place we've lived since Dustin and I have been together. We've moved a total of 6 times in the 6 years we've been together, we thought this would be our home base for at least two years but alas our yearly thanksgiving tradition has decided to continue with another move this year. See, we didn't know we were pregnant at the time when we moved into this apartment and now that Stella is here we've quickly outgrown our digs. Also now that we're down to just one income, we would like to decrease our cost of living to something a little more realistic for apartment living and continue saving for our dream home! Either way, I had fun buying all new furniture for this place when we moved in a year ago. I like to say I finally got my "grown up furniture". No more Ikea show room home for me! 

I bought all of this furniture to fit perfectly in this space and I'm hoping it translates as well in our new place, I can't wait to show you more decor posts after we move! I have plans to overhaul our master bedroom and of course Stella will eventually have her own room which will be a super fun project to document! 

LAMP // COUCH // CHAIR // MEDIA CONSOLE // COFFEE TABLE

This couch. I LOVE this couch so much! We originally left Crate and Barrel with a smaller more Mid Century Modern style, tufted couch originally. After sitting (uncomfortably) on it for a few months we decided it just wasn't going to work out for my pregnant self who needed something much more comfortable for lounging. Cue the Lounge II couch! It is soooo deep, perfect for prego naps, and also now for nursing comfortably and cuddling with my little babe. The fabric is super cleanable and durable for family wear and tear, and the neutral color goes with everything! We got the matching chair in a grey leather for a little textural contrast. The lamp we got for this room has got to be one of my favorite pieces that we own. We had some troubles with the first two that we got before we realized it was actually the electrical outlet that we we're plugging it into that was burning it out. Third time is the charm, and I'm so happy I didn't have to settle for a different lamp. This one has a dimmer and is on a beautiful marble base. 

Also I wish I could show you how small that Fiddle Leaf Fig tree was when we first moved in. I'm pretty sure it had two total leaves and didn't even come up to the windowsill. This apartment is like a greenhouse, it helps me pretend I have a green thumb, my plants thrive here! 

TABLE // CHAIRS // PLACE MATS (similar) // RUG (similar)

I got these chairs before I moved in. Another blogger I follow had the same style in barstool form and although they are not my usual style, something drew me to them and I couldn't get them off my mind. As soon as they went on sale I scooped them up, and I have to say it was the greatest decision I could have made for kitchen chairs... they are so comfortable! And they look so chic. I couldn't be happier! 

I wanted a round white marble table, but had to compromise with Dustin for this more traditional one, which I have grown to love and it does go really well with the bistro chairs! I will get my marble table someday, though!

This Orchid is another example of a flourishing plant that I somehow brought back from the dead. I don't even know how it happened, no one I've ever known has been able to re-grow an orchid and this one is blooming for the second time this year now... I can't complain!

VASE

Fun fact: my mom comes over a few times a week and brings me flowers! She brought over fresh hydrangeas a few weeks ago and I dried them so they'd last through fall and winter. They're so beautiful and the colors preserved perfectly! 

I hope you all enjoyed a sneak peek of my living room! I'm excited to post the progress on my new place when we move in and begin to decorate and get settled. Keep an eye out on Instagram stories for moving updates and decor progress!

xo