Apartment - Living Room

Probably the best thing about the apartment is the living room.  it's huge and spacious.  7 windows, that were replaced before we moved in, so we know they are nice and new.  It gives Dillan a ton of space to run around and spread his toys all over the place.  We are really lucky in that aspect.  Even gabby our bird has her own corner to be part of the social-ness but without being in the way.

In addition to replacing the windows they kept the cool original stained-glass windows that were put in about 100 years ago when the building was built.  there is also a nice built in curtain rod that I use to hang pictures.

The windows were really nice at Christmas.  I could put lights and ornaments in the windows.  With the long radiator with wooden cover, Dillan was kept a safe distance from the decorations.

We also had more than enough room for a large Christmas tree... and the gate to keep dillan from pulling all the ornaments off, without comprising too much of the play space.  so nice.  :)

There's also this awesome fake fireplace for our stockings and some fun decorations.  there is a plus in it if we had wanted to purchase an electrical wooden log set-up for the "real" fireplace affect. 

We would be so lucky if our next place could have such a large and spacious living room.  Fortunately we spend most of our time there so we are getting great use of it.  
I won"t mention how the new windows seal up the place so well there is constant dew on the windows so we need to run a dehumidifier to keep the windows water free.  it's not perfect but it's still the best place in the apartment.

Apartment - Kitchen

Normally the kitchen is a place I try to keep an open mind.  I want a huge kitchen with lots of work space but that's rarely available.  Our current kitchen is a decent size, however it's not laid out very well.  There's only 2 1/2 feet of counter space.  room for very little.  The appliances are old, the burners on the stove are crooked, the refrigerator makes a ton of noise when it runs.  We have our microwave on a butchers block table.  we bought additional counter space with shelves for additional storage.  My Kitchen Aid resides on that.  however there is no outlet near it so I have to move the Kitchen Aid to use it.  

Fortunately we do have this fun shelf over the sink.  I store some of my fun daily use stuff.

 

Another super duper fortunately, is the pantry.  We are so happy to have a pantry.  We were afraid we were going to have to use the closed in pack porch for food storage.

Outside the kitchen is a closed in back porch that acts as storage right now.  A lot so empty boxes as we wait for our next move.  the empty boxes from the wonderful baby things we have gotten since Dillan was born.  Plus several wedding gifts that we don't use on a daily basis and don't have room for in the pantry. 

What kitchen isn't complete without a wooden ironing board that folds out of the wall but not completely when it's too humid.

The small kitchen was one of the things that I thought I could deal with for 6-9 months, i was wrong.  but I'm still trying to work with it.  I do a lot of preparing on the dining room table.  When Dillan is sleeping, I take my Kitchen Aid into the living room and plug it into the wall and sit on the floor.  yup!  it is so time to move.

Apartment - Lights...

I've done my sharing of moving over the years.  As a child I was lucky and didn't move at all.  My parents still live in the same house that I was raised in.  How special! :)

After college I lived with my parents for a while until I had a job and could afford to move out.  Since then i have lived in 5 different places.  As i prepared to moved and looked at places, the amount of time I planned on living there definitely had an impact on some things that i wasn't fond of but could live with for a while.  I always have a list of "must haves", "don't want", and "could live with".  

In our most recent place, we thought we would be here 6-9 months, a year tops... well this week is 16 months at this apartment.  way longer and the "could live with" things are driving me crazy.  Yes there are some wonderful aspects to the apartment, however the things i thought I would only have to deal with for 6-9 months have worn out their welcome.

A few more charms aspects of the place are the wonderful light fixtures...
we have sconces all over the place.  
  This one is over the brick (non-working) fireplace

 

There are fives of theses around the living room.  It can be flooded with light...

This is the light in the dinning room, not exactly centered over our dining room table...

sitting under it, you could have a nice view looking up...

There are two matching sconces to the dining room light. 

Most of these we hardly use.  We brought a couple lamps with us with softer more inviting light.  In each bedroom there are lights and ceiling fans.  A definitely plus especially living on the second floor in the summer.

After the weekend...

Mondays are never good even when a weekend was less than stellar.  But it's always better than any week day.
Four out of the last five days I've had broccoli as part of a meal.  I don't like broccoli but as part of a decision my husband and I made before we were married, we decided to eat better, it's starting to become part of our diet.   I'm not just talking about eating out less, or skipping take-out, or eliminating fried foods.  Neither of us did much of that.  It's more about learning to eat new and healthier foods.  Brown or wild rice.  Quinoa.  Salmon, talipot, mahi mahi.  Vegetables.  Things like that.  Over the years we have added all of that to our diets, vegetables including bell peppers and asparagus.  With our baby son, we are adding even more as he tries new foods too.  Avocados, sweet potatoes, butter nut squash.  My husband and son have taken a quicker liking to these foods than me.  I've also added broccoli, which Steve's already likes, to my list of foods to work on.  It's amazing how my taste buds have changed over the years.   Things I eat now I wouldn't touch with a ten-foot pole when I was younger and vice verses.  I guess you are always changing and growing, even if you don't realize it.

February 7

As I sit here listening to my son talk over the monitor, I am praying that he is not phasing out morning naps.  He's only been in a good morning/afternoon napping schedule for a few months.  I'm not ready to give it up yet.  I am learning how hard he can sleep.  He loves to sleep on his stomach with butt up in the air.  sometimes under the blanket, sometimes on top of the blanket, and sometimes the opposite end of the crib of his blanket.  If he is sound out, I can go into his room and put away clothes with a small light on.  Or rummage through one of the two storage closets in his room.  This is very helpful information, however I am still nervous to do dishes in the kitchen (right off his bedroom) while he sleeps.  one wrong move and... CRASH!   

February 5

I've decided as part of the "things I want to do more this year", I want to post more to my blog.  Not that I have a lot to say or that I say such great things but I just want the freedom to share, maybe brag a bit, or just have a place to vent.  Some days I'm sure I'll have nothing to say, other days I might solve the world's problems.  who knows?   I'm going to aim to post between 5-7 times a week.  

Yesterday Dillan and I played out in the snow.  It was his first "real" Chicago snow.  He's played in the snow several times in Wisconsin but Chicago hasn't had much measurable snow since he was born.  So I thought it would be a significant thing to spend some time in the snow.  With the way the weather can go in Chicago, it might be 60 degrees tomorrow.  He mostly likes the snow.  As long as he's not too deep so he can crawl and move around without too much of a problem.  Maybe we'll go out again today too, since the snow is still around.

party fun

Saturday was party day. my nephew's three year old birthday party followed by a church friend's two year old party. So much fun and very busy morning.  One party was breakfast and cars... the other was dalahast. 

Friday

I know I posts early for February 1 by writing yesterday... oops! Oh well.  I guess I just had to say something.
Today was Target Friday.  Such a fun time.  It started months ago I met my sister and nephew for an hour at target.  Shopping and having fun.  A friend and her daughter started joining us on and off.  It was fun to see the interaction of the three kids as they grew older.  Soon nap times and preschool got in the way and we stopped meeting.  Sad.  So often it was the highlight of my week and got us out of the house.  Today it was back, a fun reminiscent of a good time.
Now I'm starting to wonder if Dillan is phasing out morning naps.  I don't like the idea but it might be happening.  He was so active and happy the last two days without one....

I'm posting from my iPad for the first time.  I wanted to add a picture but couldn't, hmm?  Lots to learn with a new toy.