LIFE AS YOU LIVE IT: January 2014

Utility Drawer Revamp

18 January 2014

Living in a 350 square foot apartment in Boston leaves you with little to no room to store your belongings :( The space is VERY limited, and I'm always trying to think up new ideas to organize everything without it looking cluttered and messy.

The kitchen alone only has 2 drawers and 4 cabinets (including the one that holds the sink). Where am I  supposed to put all my stuff?!

We use one of the drawers as a "throw all" that houses everything from tape measures, screw drivers and hammers to scissors, notepads and pens. We don't have a garage or a coat closet to store these necessary tools, so we just toss them in this drawer in the kitchen.

Let me tell you what, if I would have taken a before picture, you would have been disgusted! We had everything shoved into that drawer! Napkins, trash bags, tools… EVERYTHING!

SO! I emptied all of the contents out of this tiny 12"x19"x2" drawer and started fresh.

...boring…

Lined it with some cute, bright and happy craft paper…

Filled the drawer with acrylic containers to use as organizing dividers.

…and then filled them! 
The best part!

I did what I could to keep it as neat and orderly as possible without it looking too cluttered, and I am loving the splash of red from underneath.

I was able to fit everything that I wanted to into this drawer and am pleased with the outcome!
I used other smaller containers to help corral flashlights, batteries, nails, hooks and other randoms, and was able to perfectly slide the paint stirrers and hammer right on the side. 

Score!

FIVE ON FRIDAY

02 January 2014

How is everyone's first Friday of the year?

Linking up with these 4 ladies again to share with you my Friday thoughts!


-ONE-
Has everyone made their New Years resolutions?
If not, or if you're looking to add another one, be sure to try the 52 week money savings challenge!


Each week of the year, you save that much in dollars, so that you have a total of $1,378 saved by the end of the year!
Find all the templates and instructions here.

-TWO-
I have officially made and posted my 30 BY 30 list!
Join in and make a list of goals for yourself!
So far I have already completed one! My polar plunge!

-THREE-
You can't beat this walk to work!

I am loving this snowy weather!
I woke up yesterday morning around 6am to find a fresh coat of powdery snow! 
Absolutely beautiful!
Definitely makes the walk to work (and everywhere else) 10x better!

-FOUR-
New Years was great!
My Dad picked me up in Boston and we drove over to the Atlantic City area to be with family!
Nothing beats our Dutch traditions!
Oliebollen (fried dough with apples and raisins served with powdered sugar), Pannenkoeken (Dutch pancakes with bacon, cinnamon apples, and raisons cooked in)
cards, and family!




-FIVE-
I don't know if this is something that goes any farther than the East Coast, but has anyone else heard of Alex and Ani bracelets? It is especially popular in the Boston area, and I only just learned about them when I moved here in August.

Everyone I work with wears them, my roommate wears them, everyone I see in the city has them.
Basically, they are like charms to a bracelet, except you collect the bangles and wear them altogether. You can wear just one, you can wear a couple at a time, or you can wear 10 to 15, or as many as you can run up your arm. 

I think they're really fun, and are a great way to accessorize your outfits, as well as collect charms that you like!

Thanks to my roommate my one and only sponsor I am quickly adding to my Alex and Ani collection!
She bought me the Boston skyline charm for my birthday, and then she bought me my birthstone charm and a compass charm for Christmas! It's so fun to add to the collection!

I think I'm going to run on over to the Garden and snatch up the Celtics and Bruins charms since they are only sold there! FUN FUN!


Have a great weekend!

Polar Plunge

A couple days ago I shared with you my 30 BY 30 list that I put together!

Well folks, I think it's safe to say that I can cross one of those bad boys off of my list!

For New Years this year, I was talked into a polar plunge! 

Every year, some of my family members dare to take the jump into the river (close to Atlantic/Ocean city) and frantically swim back to the ladder. This year, my younger cousins wanted to give it a whirl! They are much braver than me. Once I mentally built up enough confidence, and dragged my butt outside we all plunged into a freezing bath.

Thankfully, we were lucky enough to score a sunny thirty degree day!




It felt so good when I got back out of the water.
Who would think 30 degrees would be warm?

Quite a day to go swimming on January 1st in Jersey.


Hello 2014!

01 January 2014

HELLO 2014!


I guess it would only be right if I would list off to you my New Years resolutions.
Half of them are the same from last year since I never actually did them.

Find a gym, get a membership, and get toned!
(I haven't seen the inside of a gym since forever)

Organize and keep better track of every single receipt

Sleep! Get more of it! Aim for 9 hours, get 8 hours… every night!

Increase my GPA by maintaining at least a 3.5 each semester

Complete another year of the "52 Week Money Challenge"

$ave, $ave, $ave!

Try to meet some of my 30 BY 30 goals!

What are your 2014 goals?
 
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