Feeling Much More Like Home

Now that we're moved in to our new place, we first wonder how we ever lived in a place less than this.  It is AWESOME...wicked awesome at that.  When we first got the keys we were surprised with a goody bag! A goody bag?! Why Thank YOU!

We got a koozie, snacks, shampoo, water, take out menus and a VIP card to a local Mexican restaurant.  We get 15% off every time we go! Hellloooooo perks :)

And now for a trip around our new place... we like to call it...Home :)

The first stop is not actually in our apartment... it's the Trash Room, yes we have a Trash Room and it's right next door to our apartment.  You can never smell it and it is SUPER convenient.  

Down the shoot it goes!  Another great thing our complex has is recycling, which we learned it rare for Houston.  We're really glad they have it because it cuts down our trash bag usage by a lot!

Next you arrive at our front door...#4349

Step inside and our kitchen is on the right.  It's not huge, but it's got plenty of cupboards so we're not complaining.

Across from the kitchen is a hallway that has a huge closet for a washer and dryer.  We chose not to rent them and so we have a great space for the dog's crate.  We also have shelves in there for all the pet stuff, tools and reusable shopping bags we can fit in there.  Trust me, there are a lot of them!  At the end of the short hallway is a door to our bathroom.  In here we decided to go with a chemistry theme. I like it because it's different... Jarrod likes it because... well he's my mad scientist/engineer :)

As you can see there is plenty of counter space...

I didn't want to spend a lot of money on a shower curtain with the actual periodic table on it, so we found this one with squares and added a bunch of elements ourselves.  It's much more artsy this way.

We found chemistry sets online and so we're using test tubes to hold our toothbrushes, a beaker to hold toothpaste and flossers and a special beaker (can't remember the name) for our mouth wash.  So fun!

Now on to the bedroom.  As I mentioned in my other post, it's not huge, but with such a big closet in the bathroom we actually don't need that much space.

Love this bed spread :) It's kinda girly but my wonderful husband said he didn't mind.  It works really well with the grey we ended up going with on the wall and the curtains.  I feel so grown up with a real bed set.  Matching pillows, sheets and even a bed skirt which Portland has deemed the best hiding space in the house!

We decided to go with a sort of outside/far east/mediation theme in here.  We love buddha statues and trees and all things foreign so we found several fun pieces when we go our new couch and at Pier 1.

This photo will hang over our bed eventually.  At least as soon as we are certain it will stay, don't need it crashing on our heads!

Now onto the living room, my favorite place :) We have a much better couch now and many shelving units for all our books.  Even with all the furniture we got it still does not feel crowded.  Thank you ultra high ceilings.

And here is Roosevelt's favorite place in the apartment....

Lounging in the sun on the window sill of course!

And last but not least the loft.  These pictures make it look clean even though for awhile it was our dumping ground for things we didn't know the home of.  It will be great for guests one day and for me to get some work done if needed.

And more shelves! Built in ones at that!

OOoooo and last but not least our new spice rack!  haha I forgot this when I wrote about the kitchen...oops!!  

Very handy I must say :)

Well I hope you have enjoyed the tour and you get to see our new place in person sometime soon!

  

Good Day M'Lady!

Towards the end of October Jarrod and I went to the very famous Texas Renaissance Fair.  We did not dress up, not really our thing, but there were plenty of people who were.  It seriously was like going back in time!  There were shows, food, goods to buy and many, many fairy wings :) 

Mmmm Turkey leg!  Sadly we didn't have one, they're just too much, but I don't think you could have a Renaissance fair without them.

 These guys were AWESOME! They were like the a Renaissance Rock band :) Really the only time bagpipes have sounded good to me.












Mmmm meat on a stick!  Not sure Miller Lite was around back then but it was good on a warm day.

Over looking the entrance.  It was a permanent set up that is used for the months of October and November and then not again until the next year.  And note the fairy wings... it was Fairy weekend.  Each weekend the fair is open there is a theme :)










Overall a good time.  We'll probably go again next year just to see what there is to see.  It will definitely be more fun with kids some day.

New (Empty) Apartment

Still playing catch up here so bare with me...

So here are the photos of our new place before we filled it to the ceiling with all of our stuff.  The location is much better even though it is a little further from school, mostly because we can walk to so much stuff.  Almost anything we could possibly need we can find within walking distance.  The only time we really need to drive is when we need a lot of things at a cheaper right (read: Target) or specialty things for the apartment (read: IKEA).  There are lots of restaurants, bars, and stores.  It has the best downtown feel we could ask for in this still up and coming city.

And so the photos begin...

 Jarrod was clearly excited about riding an elevator to our new place.  While we are only 4 flights up, and the stairs are just fine, it is nice to have the elevator as an option.  Especially late at night when the dog has decided once again that he hates stairs...

Ensuring that all the drawers work.  Our kitchen is small but it's open to the living room so it doesn't feel too tiny.  And we can both be in there at the same time which is a change from the last place.  We have a dishwasher, a full fridge, a fully working oven, a microwave over the oven and best thing ever.... A GARBAGE DISPOSAL!!! Yeah, it's the little things :)

This is looking into our living room from the front door.  The metal staircase curls up to our loft and yes we have two HUGE windows.  We have yet to put curtains up.  I am afraid that putting curtains on the bottom window will look strange because the wall will be chopped up.  So for now, it's just the plastic blinds that were already here.

Ah yes, the ever important bathroom.  We have one sink but the counter is very long with plenty of space and drawers!  That open door leads into the hallway that is across from the kitchen.  It was really important to us that we could get into the bathroom from a way other than the bedroom.  We didn't want guests to have to go through the bedroom every time they needed the restroom.  And the pressure in the shower....AMAZING!!  Also our closet is in the bathroom which is pretty awesome for Jarrod's new schedule.  I can get ready for the most part without going back into the bedroom.

This is our bedroom.  We have a sliding door with a tiny Juliet balcony which we can't really sit on, but it's good for fresh air and the dog really likes it out there :)  The room it's self is not huge... and with the slider and two other doors it's hard to use all the walls but for now it's good and everything we need in there, fits.

And last but not least, the loft!  It's quite a good size space with a huge closet.  We were able to take the doors off and put a desk inside the closet so it didn't take up extra space.  There is also a built-in-bookcase which is AWWWWESOME! Jarrod and I could never have enough bookcases :)









Well stay tuned for the photos of the apartment all filled up!  Soon, I promise.  Winter break is quickly approaching so I should have a few hours here and there to catch up with this ole blog!

Artsy Fartsy

I apologize that the next few posts will be from happenings in the past few months.  I am attempting to catch up and record major things that have happen here in good ole Texas without getting too far behind from the present.

So one Saturday in October Jarrod and I had a decision to make.  Go to the Greek festival and do nothing but eat and people watch, or head downtown and go to a huge art festival and still be able to people watch. After weighing out options for a few minutes (and yes we were on the fence for a good minute or two) we decided to head downtown for some art.  I am very glad our decision went that way because the photographs, sculptures, pottery pieces and other medias we saw were AMAZING!  We wished we could have purchased so much more than we did, perhaps one day when we're both rich and famous... We did end up buying three photographs of trees taken mostly in Georgia and North Carolina.  They're all in black and white and we have plans of hanging them in our bedroom.  We also met a jewelry maker named Matt Smith who's jewelry was really awesome as well as totally affordable.  I really wanted a specific color and so Matt Smith offered to make it custom and get it to me within a few weeks.  It came out awesome!

Enough talking...show us the photos!

 Glad to be at the Art Show...clearly

This is done with chalk... right on the sidewalk!

 Bronze Humpy Dumpy Eggs... They came in all sizes and attitudes :)

Buddha Egg

This was the pond in the park the art show surrounded. It had all sorts of floating pieces of art in it.

Still can't figure out how to rotate... Downtown Houston at dusk :)

After the Art Show we ventured further into downtown and enjoyed some AWESOME mexican food at Cielo's.  The chips and dip alone would have sufficed.  

 This is my dinner.  Enchiladas... that's Spanish for Holy Moly Guacamole!!

This was dessert.... You can gather your own fabulous description from the picture alone.

This was the random chicken we encountered on our way into the city that afternoon.  Was there a farm nearby?  No, a law firm... so Im not totally sure what that says about that law firm :)

Back from the Dead on the Dead of the Dead

TA DA (which is short for Da Dada Daaaaaaaaa) We're alive!!!  Shout out to my Nana for being concerned over my lack of blogging, everything is ok, Jarrod and I are doing well, we just can't seem to find time left in the day any more.  Even as I sit here now I am torn between blogging and relaxing on the couch with Jarrod and the pup.  So to ensure people know we are alive and well and still fit in a few minutes of cuddle time with my husband (: I will give you a preview of what blog posts are to come!

 Jarrod Comes Home!

 We Go To An Amazing Art Festival

 New (Empty) Apartment!

 Texas Renaissance Fair

Not So Empty Apartment

Happy Halloween














Stay tuned for the details! :)

Home is Where The Heart is?

I feel like I have blogged or facebooked about this topic before.  Apparently I (and Jarrod) are not very good at selecting apartments.  When we realized we were moving to Houston we decided it was best to have a semi permanent place to land.  We didn't want to explode all of our stuff at Jarrod's uncle's house and so we enlisted the help of Jarrod's cousin to check out places for us while we were still finishing up in Maine.  We found the apartments on craigslist ourselves and asked her to check them out.  Out of the 2 she looked at, she said this one was the best since the other one had a "home made AC unit". We agreed and were so happy to find something that appeared to all of us as a good place and so we contacted them and put down a deposit.  We had a place to land, it was 2 bedrooms and it was in an area we thought would be great...

It's amazing the situations that make you realize it's time to grow up.  One would think getting married would help with that realization, but honestly it was more excitement and fun, than maturity enhancing.  But living in an apartment that makes me dread coming home, has made me realize that sometime it does not make sense to save.  Sometimes the money you put in, really equals the quality you get out.

We are definitely getting what we pay for here in our current apartment.  I would dare argue that we are actually paying too much.  Though I am not going to list the various areas of frustration with our current place (this is the internet, this is a public blog and I don't want to hurt our chance of leaving...) I will say that the only good thing that has come from this apartment is the realization that it is indeed time to grow up and part of growing up is not jumping into decisions.  That part of growing up is parting with the hard yearned money we make to ensure that their is a happy, healthy environment to come HOME to.

I will say that luckily enough our landlords have agreed to release us from our current lease if we can find someone else to take it.  Unfortunately there is not much we can do to make that happen.  We do not know many people here in Houston (at least not people looking for an apartment) and craigslist has become so secure that they will not allow us to post our own apartment because our post appears too similar to the one we responded to 2 months ago. We can not hang a "For Rent" sign on the complex gate and if we use a finder site, we have to pay an extra month's rent to leave.  So in reality, our landlords are being helpful because they know it will be impossible.

You live, you learn, you grow up.  Hopefully Jarrod and I will grow from this decision and we will find ways to ignore the physical home we are stuck with for the time being and realize that our home is in our puppy's panting tongue, or in our cat's whine.  Home is going for a 3 mile walk only to return and realize your keys are at the park you just left and having to do those 3 miles again.  Home is planning for the future and realizing it's ok to say you've made a bad decision and you're happy you can learn from it. Growing up is not always easy to do.... Maybe we'll do it eventually :)

All In One Place Now

Finally after a month and a half (or so) Jarrod is here in Houston.  He and his mom drove here 2 Thursdays ago and made it down in time for Saturday morning.  There was much unloading of extra stuff we couldn't take the first trip and then it was sprucing up for Houston's first Wine Festival!

The wine festival was not the most amazing festival ever, but in fairness it was the city's first.  They had vineyards mostly from Texas, which was nice, and we were able to taste almost all of them.  It was quite hot out and not much cover so I think for next year we will go once the sun has gone down.  Hard to enjoy a sip of wine when all you want to do is chug some water.

The rest of the weekend was a whirlwind of visiting with Jarrod's mom and family and getting ready for school.  Hard to go back on Monday when Jarrod had the whole week off.  Good part was he got to spend much missed quality time with Portland.  They even found a new dog park with a pond in the middle.  Portland still refuses to go in the water.  He even hates to go in if his ball has landed in the water.  Apparently the well being of his toy matters not.

Back to the original idea of this post... It's good to have Jarrod home, now to just find us a decent home.

My Hubby Got Skillssss

While Jarrod was here he had an interview with the company Praxair.  They run a hydrogen pipe line (yeah I didn't know we had pipelines for Hydrogen either) here in Houston and while it didn't seem like the best job at first, it was a chance to practice his interview skills and learn more.  Since I was at school the day of his interview I ask Jarrod to take some photos of himself all gussied up :)  Here's what I got...

Full view...

Close up... Not bad aye? :)














Maybe it was his suit, maybe it was his charm, but whatever it was the interview went extremely well and Jarrod was offered a job this past Thursday!  Can you hear the choir singing HALLELUJAH?! The job turned out to be pretty good and a great place to start here in Houston.  The hours will be a little funny, but we'll make it work since after all it gets us in the same place.

Thanks to everyone who sent all the positive thoughts our way, it has been a long tough month and we're glad the search is over.  Jarrod and his mom will be driving down in 2 weeks with the last bit of our stuff and then Ellen will fly home on the following Tuesday.  Hope these 2 weeks fly by so I can see my hubby again :)  Can't wait for him to finally be home!

Here Comes the Fried Asparagus Part...

Sorry, I got a little ahead of myself with the title of the last post.  While Jarrod was in town we were lucky that Houston extended their restaurant week and we got to try two really awesome restaurants for only $35 bucks per person for 4 courses!  AMAZING!

Saturday night was the Hearsay Gastro Lounge.  Americana type food, very yummy, and a really cool location and atmosphere.  Jarrod began with a crab dip and I had... FRIED asparagus!  It was really good, though a little strange when you got to the end of each grit.  Here is Jarrod after the first course... 

Of course one good photo deserves another...

2nd course was a salad for me and a tortilla soup for Jarrod.  He then had the fish and I had the lamb chops.  Each of our dishes came with risotto...MMMmmm Risotto!  We both love it so much!  Last but not least was dessert.  Jarrod had his favorite Creme Broulee

And I had a frozen soufflé... divine! 

The next night we went to a restaurant called the Melting Pot.  They have them all over the place and it's basically a fondue party for two..or three...or.. well you get the picture :)  Quite amazing food followed by probably the best dessert I have ever had in my life.  The atmosphere was quite romantic with low lighting and small private booths and the wine we had was wonderful.  Probably one of the best meals we have had in some time!

 the pot

 Thanks Waitress!  

 Always like taking our own though...

 artsy fartsy while we wait...

 Mmm Wisconsin Cheddar!

 Fonduing...

 In heaven with the dark chocolate fondue 

 hahahaha