Life on Elm Street - Getting Situated

Whew! I’m totally crazy getting situated in my new home on Elm Street. I thought the end of the school year was nuts. I wasn’t thinking about the fact that I’d be moving to a new house the first week after school let out. I must blank out the pain of all those boxes every time I move, because I seem to forget exactly how painful it is until I’m unpacking again.

But I’m not going to show you all the messiness. I know there’s a lot of talk in the blog-o’sphere about being real. And, I AM telling you like it is – there are parts of this house that are a total disaster. Still, I don’t feel I need to photograph them to be authentic. I don’t like to look at the destruction zones myself. They depress me. All that’s left in those piles are the boxes that scream, “Hello!! I’m full of junky little stuff and where the hell are you going to put me?” I hate these boxes, but I’ve been picking through slowly but surely, getting situated.

When I get down and out about the boxes and the mess, I look around for the things that bring me joy. The way the light comes in the window, or the way old things look new again.

I take my camera around and try to get little snippets and pieces of things I think are beautiful and I feel better. I look to the places that are organized beautifully.

Though I loved our rental house, we never got truly settled there. Most of my work yarn and craft tools etc stayed in boxes in the garage which progressively got messier as I looked for things. Now, I have a dedicated studio in which to store all my things – and it is all getting situated nicely!

I also have a great corner to take photos. I don’t have to clear the dining room table just to take an instagram (or more realistically, clear the dining table of all my schrapnel in order to have a place to eat!)

I am determined to get all the little things organized in this house as I think we’ll be here for a while (at least I’m hoping so). I know myself well enough to get all the little things done before I get working.

Once I start working, I am lost. I get so focused on getting work finished, I barely get the laundry done, let alone organize my craft tools, or the linen closet, or the camping stuff – ha!

I love watching my things disperse around a new house. Things that I didn’t really think of before, shine in this new place.

I love seeing the new light patterns and new little glory spots at different times of the day. Our new kitchen makes me very happy, though I miss the open shelves I had at the rental house. I’ve got great news about the counter stools, which you all gave me great advice about. I look forward to sharing that with you soon!

In the mean time, this little bench from West Elm has been a favorite roosting spot.

We’ve got all the main furniture pieces and rooms in place, though there are always thing you want to update or change over time. We’re loving the garage door in the living room, which makes us feel like we live partially outside.

Well, back to getting situated, . . . must . . . .get . . . through . . . the . . . boxes! Doesn’t it always feel like you need more storage space? I’ll be back soon with some new projects. I look forward to getting back to some making days soon!