We've seen a lot of great changes during the 3 years we've been here. Our best friends moved in next door right after they were married and now have two kids. My starry-eyed brother stayed with us straight out of the nest when he moved from California, and now he lives just a flight of stairs away with his wife and child.

For my own sentimental benefit, and because I love the clean version of my home immortalized, I've been trying to put together a tour of our apartment since we moved in! Every time I've been able to clean and style my house (or even a room) to the point of being picture perfect, by the time I've got a camera it's been destroyed... Now you get real photos because that's all I have!

We switched out our free TV with an even better free TV! We inherited it after babysitting it for my brother-in-law. The shelf was my birthday present last year, and serves as a happy ever-changing place for Jeremy's books to live.

Before we moved in, our landlord (a very sweet old man set in his ways) touched up the paint on the walls with a gloss finish instead of the original matte finish. It used to bother me every time I looked at this wall, so I tried to cover it up with some larger frames. Now that I look at this picture, it doesn't bother me at all, and in fact I love that it reminds me of that sweet old man.

The most challenging area in our apartment for me to overhaul was our entry. Our internet was at crawling-baby level ready to be slathered on.

It was a magnet for clutter and toys since the kids played in the living room and I hadn't committed to an entire room for our little girl. And of course what to do with the 70's spindly room divider?
There was this unusable space with an entire wall of doored closets with a narrow strip between them that Jeremy just propped random stuff up against. 

The kid stuff went to a kid room! I decluttered and organized the closets so that Jeremy had room inside them so things didn't end up leaning outside them. 

We were pregnant with our second child and I was nesting when I forced myself to figure out where to put an office. This combined entry/office was the perfect solution and looks so inviting when I walk through the door! I don't mind doing bills or spending late nights working here. I've also grown to love that 70's spindly mess, as it's provided a ledge for me to display and change my featured artwork for parties or seasons (much like a mantle).

Most of the transformation in the kitchen was inside the cupboards and on top of the counters. This was in the middle of my purge, but the counter pretty much looked like that normally!

Kitchen After

The toaster and all other appliances that weren't used on a daily basis went into a cabinet. The soap went into pretty dispensers, and I loved the addition of a mirror at the sink to make it feel brighter and bigger since it caught the light. If we had stayed longer, I would have just had Jeremy remove the cabinet doors so I could try open shelving for our pretty dishes and glassware.

I blame all of my lack of time to work on projects on this—dishes. A dishwasher? Yeah, don't have one of those, so every dish is washed by hand, which takes up all of those precious nap times, but I certainly have an appreciation for all the time I've spent at the sink jamming out at 11:30pm (because you need motivation to do dishes that late). 

Dining Room Before

One of our most evolving rooms! You should see the photos of this room from when we first moved in. We often dressed this casual space up for celebrations and even just dinner. The dresser by the window became a funky do-it-all piece of furniture. Lily's clothes were in there, and on top were all the plants because that's the only place they had enough sunlight to grow, and I also had random non-working lights. I had all these extra decorations I wanted to use but didn't have a specific place for them yet. Rather than put them away, I thought that leaving them out would motivate me to get it done. Yeah, never happened and instead it just became a clutter corner. Our cottage chairs were difficult with little kids, and felt super formal. Switching them out morphed the style of our home more than I thought it would!

Dining Room After

Master Bedroom After

It's amazing how curtains can add a finishing touch! When I mentioned that I wanted to get velvet curtains, Jeremy couldn't see it. However, these navy blackout curtains have saved us a many bedtime and given us the gift of sleep! We had to make room for another baby on the way, and I loved that this mobile really added a sweet touch to his presence with the a big impact and minimal stuff. 

2nd Bedroom Before

This bedroom started out as a storage room, became an office/storage room, and when baby was coming and our little girl was ready to graduate to a big girl bed we decided it was destined to become a kid room! These before photos are from when we first moved in, but other than the crib moving a little bit it didn't change for a long time.

2nd Bedroom After

Welcome to the big girl bed! It still needs an actual bed with railings, but this is a good start. The corner now holds a play kitchen instead of a printer. We invested in some great cubby shelves and storage bins for toys and books. Her main wall has a shelf with stuff she needs adult supervision for, like paint and sharp scissors. We also started an alphabet with all the crafts she's been making in preschool. It helps her remember her letters, and she gets so excited about learning new ones so she can show it to Daddy! The closet now is as organized as it can be before we move, and has a dresser with clothes she can dress herself in, as well as hanging dresses and make-believe stuff. I also fit baby's hanging clothes that couldn't be folded.




We will miss this place! I had a lot of fun making this apartment over time and again to fit our changing needs. I hope you had fun touring! On to new adventures :)

Family photos—I have a love-hate relationship with taking them. There's so much time and preparation that goes into it, and all these details must come together somehow with all the right timing, or you end up with editing nightmares or cranky babies and hungry children… In our case, everything kind of came together perfectly as our best friend Victoria offered to take our photos at the last minute. The weather happened to be perfect during a forecasted snowy week, and even though the rule of thumb is you never take photos in harsh light they came out perfect. Absolutely perfect. I feel like it made up for the fact that we did not get baby photos in the hospital, except whatever candid shot we were able to sneak into the NICU on our phones. It's really the last thing you think about when your infant is hooked up with wires on every limb and IV's on their head, struggling to breathe or gain weight, among other things. And so this was the first time we ever went out as a family, all dressed up, feeling the sunshine and smiling together in months. I'm his mother and of course feel like he's the cutest thing ever, but add a bow tie? My heart melts. And I just want to note that we have never taught our daughter to pose or smile. She is just pure princess and does it all on her own. I don't know whether to be proud or frightened at the teenage years that lie ahead.

This will always be a special year for me. It's the year our son was born and our little girl became a big sister. The year my husband accomplished his cherished college degree and teaching credential, and by a miracle a place in school opened up for him to have a full time job there. The year I went from being a marketing professional and working mom to a homemaker and freelance designer. I really appreciate the skills and sacrifice that Moms make, no matter what their phase in life. Being at home has made me so proud of my own mother and grandmother, and humbled me at the sheer and paramount responsibility placed before me of forming these little people into good people—even great people. It certainly can be a lonely road if you're trying to do it all by yourself, and so I have all of our friends and family to thank for being there for us, praying for us, and helping to bring about miracles.

I could never thank God enough for how we've grown this year. The hard times have tested every part of me I thought was strong, broken that strength down with just enough time to catch a breath, and have left me even more resilient. The struggling has helped me to truly appreciate my children that I put so much time and love and energy and me into. I prayed to have these children. I rejoiced at being able to carry a child. I carefully took care of my body (which I normally couldn't be bothered to take the time to), relished the little kicks and the turns and the changing. I tried to be prepared and plan, and yet for all my preparedness I was thrown from my carefully laid plans to see the hand of God putting everything back to the way it was meant to be. I have felt His love for me when I didn't think I could go on another day because there was not an ounce of energy left. We have truly felt the windows of heaven pouring down blessings on us to have our baby and joyfully bring him home from the hospital. Thank you, 2015; I can't wait to see what next year has in store for us.