Thursday, June 30, 2016

Genius Toy Storage

When we lived in our large, newer development house in Indiana, storage was never an issue. We had this huge walk-in storage area off of our living room (that was underneath the stairs), and stored the majority of Reese's toys under there. Her play-kitchen even fit in there and I simply pulled it out any time she wanted to play with it. While I knew we had a good storage situation there, I think part of me was patting myself on the back for not accumulating too many toys. And while I do tend to lean towards minimal side of things when it comes to the amount of toys/things we own (that term feels really subjective and overused these days-sorry!), I gave myself way too much credit. Flash forward to us moving into our Boston house with it's adorable tiny closets and suddenly I had no ideas. Nothing. Even with Connor's mad army organizational skills, it was overwhelming. I stared at the playroom for a few months and scoured the web searching for a solution. I found a lot of bins and baskets that worked nicely if you didn't mind seeing the toys but not if you really wanted them to be out of sight. I also was looking for something that would be able to stand alone without looking like it needed a bookcase or shelf. I had near given up the cause before I stumbled across these simple yet genius bags. You can wash them, you can stuff in them those unsightly dress-ups that your kid adores and then pull the strings tight. It's a total game changer. 
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Thursday, June 16, 2016

House Update- Master Bedroom

I realized the other day that we have lived in our house for four months. Four Months! It's always interesting to me how time can hold still and just fly by at other points. For us, our time here in Boston has flown by. We have visited family in the midwest, friends in upstate NY, and my cousin and his wife in Connecticut. We've hosted three rounds of guests and explored the area.
And then, there's the unpacking and moving furniture….can I just say that we have probably moved furniture more than anyone ever should in a year? We've moved chairs and bookcases from room to room, upstairs to downstairs, trying to figure what works/looks best. In a lot of ways, I am still not feeling settled and am aware of all the areas that still need help- but my parents visited recently and kept commenting on how our home looks like we have been here for a long time, so that's worth something. The areas I'm mostly happy with are- the dining room, kitchen, balcony, and living room…..the areas that could use most help are the bedrooms and playroom. Our master bedroom is probably the better out of the bunch. I thought I would share some progress shots and what I hope to accomplish.
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My Fiddle Leaf has gotten huge! So much that when we moved to Boston we couldn't fit it in our car and had to leave it with my parents. My in-laws recently brought it up,(in their prius no less!), and it makes our bedroom come to life. This painting- I don't think I'm finished with it yet, so that's on the list. 
This mirror was backordered, then arrived broken, and then was backordered again. Today I'm very happy to have a mirror in our bedroom. I've realized over the past few months how important it is after having a few rounds of company and only a bathroom mirror. Here you can also see that my dresser and the wall are the exact same color- that has to change. 
My nightstand. I'm not super satisfied with what I have going on right here- I would love to get some lighting, switch out that fan, and the styling needs help. 

What you aren't seeing is my built-in bookcase (above the radiator) that has become a catch-all for anything and everything I don't want the girls getting into. That needs help. Also- Connor's dresser is looking a little sad and neglected next to the doorway. So that's it! More later.


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Monday, June 6, 2016

A Simple Ice Cream Birthday Party and DIY Garland

My parents were in town this past weekend so we threw an early (simple) ice cream birthday party for Reese. Knowing we were going to spend the majority of the day touring Boston, I wanted to keep it pretty low key this year. I found some old plywood (the day before!) and sprayed it with chalkboard paint, dug out this striped table cloth,  and made a simple ice cream garland to add a personal touch. Reese has always been extremely observant, so she's one to notice and appreciate these little things. 
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My sweet soon-to-be four year old:
For those opting for a more simple birthday celebration for your little one this year- this ice cream garland was both easy and whimsical.  I bought this lantern garland (yay amazon prime!), and then glued sugar cones to the lanterns with a glue gun. I tied fishing line to them to make a garland, that's it. So easy.


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