602

Yesterday Ryan and I got up early, picked up a U-Haul, packed, unpacked, decorated then bought a real Christmas tree then decorated some more. It took us a long 12 hours, but we got there. Along the way we had some disasters, but we got through them.

Our new apartment is was only a 6.1 mile drive away from the old, but in a much nicer area (that was the main reason for the move, the area!) It's also 602 sq feet, almost 200 sq feet smaller than the old location. It's weird though after we got all of our stuff situated it doesn't feel small at all, more compact. We got creative with storage space, that's fore sure.

I had 2 days off and these were the only 2 days I had to get this move done. Monday we spent the day packing and throwing away crap, 4 bags to the garbage and 3 to donate. We got 90% of our apartment moved over which is awesome. Crunched on time, starting a new job and Christmas being less than 10 days away I didn't want to drag out the process like usual.

This was the first time we rented a truck you drive. It worked out perfect because we got a big one so we only had to take 1 load over! After getting to the new place one of the first things I did was start laundry, we now have a washer and dryer!!!! (Before we had to take it somewhere and use quarters which was awful.) About 20 minutes of moving and the laundry going Ryan called me over, the washer had overflowed. Half of our bedroom was soaked and the entire bathroom had an inch of water. This was not the best way to start out in a new place. Maintenance came and figured out this issue, we got a new washer and it's very high tech (and bigger.)

Even though we've been here a day I'm already loving it more than any other apartment we've been in. This is the longest lease we've ever had, 14 months so I'm curious to see if we'll renew or not. Only time will tell.

*I also lost my key to the old apartment after moving, later to find it at Starbucks.

Living room, faux dining room and kitchen

Wet bar

Fancy kitchen

Washer and dryer in our room!!!!!!! (only requirement of our new apartment)

Best decision to rent this

New washer

Didn't take too long to unpack 

Even Barney was exhausted from the move

Christmas time at the Ruddy's

Week recap

I actually had 2 whole real days off in a row! Since early November my days off have consisted of traveling to see family or working for a few hours at my other job. I'm not going to lie it was weird sleeping in and having a list of things that could wait until late afternoon to be completed. We get the keys to our new apartment next week, so all my spare time will be consumed moving before Christmas.

I'm excited for the move, we stopped by the office last week to drop off some final papers and I remember why we picked that location all over again! I'll share pictures soon.

Peppermint bark cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory was delish after accepting a new position at work!

DLT (Developing Leadership Talent) is over this week, I'm going to miss all the life long friends I've made in class

Warm Butterbeer is a thing and it's great on a chilly night in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter

Deal of the week: $12 at Platos Closet

Went to 2 Walmarts to get a real wreath. The house smells lovely right now

Holiday decor 2014

I've taken a little break from blogging, just over 2 months to be exact. Things have been super busy at work. Between the 2 jobs I've been working 6-7 days a week and 50+ hours, but I love them both!! I did happen to get 3 whole days off in a row for Thanksgiving which was awesome. Thursday after work we went to Daytona to spend Thanksgiving with Ryan's family, black Friday shopping and then setting up their Christmas tree.

Saturday and Sunday we were at my parents on the other coast setting up their tree, decor and wrapping a million presents. It was exhausting but I'm glad I got to help. Once we got home Sunday night I finished the Christmas decor around our place! We move in 15 days but if I didn't set up our tree now I wouldn't get to enjoy it for the full season :)

Photo booth at Franksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours

The parents trees

Cutest little pillow

New holiday fav: iced coffee with cream pumpkin and caramel 

All the presents are wrapped under my parents tree (it took hours)

Our little coffee table with an Iowa pine scent candle 

Presents are popping up under our tree too

Festive in the kitchen 

Pumpkin beer

This pumpkin post is about pumpkin flavored beer...tis the season!! One of my favorites is Southern Tier and Samuel Adams Octoberfest. Total Wine has a huge selection of fall favorites. They even have a "build your own 6 pack" which is perfect if you're not sure which brand you'd like to try. Buying beer by the bottle is nice too if you're on a budget.

Their selection of pumpkin beers is much better than Walmart or Target, so if you have one near you I'd suggest checking it out.

9-23-14

It's the first day of fall and our 3rd wedding anniversary! Here are some professional pictures that I shared on our first anniversary :)