Tough Decisions: Housing

This past year has been pretty tough in terms of living situation. Don't get me wrong! I love my roommate Annie, but she had to move to a different city for her job at the end of April, and while I've been very happy with the person I had living with me for the summer, she has to go back to school in a different city at the end of August. Since there has always been a third room open, I've been searching for a third roommate since October, and for two since Annie left and I just haven't had anything work out. I considered only renting out one room and keeping the other for an office for myself, but it just wasn't financially prudent. I finally realized that I had to look at the reality of the situation and start thinking of other ways to deal with it. Even though I love the place I'm renting, even though my landlord is fantastic, even though I live right across the street from my boyfriend, even though my drive to work is quick and simple, and even though I really enjoy the neighbourhood that I'm in, I realized it was time for me to move on.

I considered finding other women that were looking for a roommate to move in with them, and I came across a few good options, but they just didn't sit well with me. I was kind of at a point that if I was renting I really only wanted to rent from my landlord (he really is that great!) and I also have my whole living room, kitchen, and dining room set up that I'd have to figure something out for. After much praying, thinking, deliberating, procrastinating, and pro/con lists, I have decided to move back in with my parents to be able to save and hopefully purchase my own home much sooner. If I moved in with other roommates somewhere else, it was very likely I would have to store most of my stuff at my parents' place anyway, and I'm just at a very transitional point in my life where I feel great peace about being able to rest in the safety and love that my parents, and their home, provide.

I have a little less than a month left in my home, and it is definitely sad, but I plan on taking advantage of having my own space as much as possible while I still can. :)

And now, some photos of my home for the past year!

The Living Room/Dining Room

 The Kitchen

 The Guest Room/Storage Room

 My Room

My room has gone through the most transformation over the past year. I had a desk and bookshelf in there at different points, but the bookshelf was moved to the guest room and then to the living room when I had my summer roommate move in and choose that as her room. My desk moved in to Annie's old room when I made it a bit of an office... I was covering rent for both rooms for a couple months, so I figured I would at least make use of the space!

Prior to me moving in to the suite, my landlord painted all the walls and trim, replaced the bathroom tub and tile surround, and installed great window coverings that let the light in a bit in the kitchen and living room, but were almost blackout in the bedrooms. Also, I love how much sunlight this property gets! My bedroom and the guest room are east facing, and waking up to natural light is one of my favourite things. Annie's old room and the kitchen face south, and the living room gets to experience the sunset to the west. All so great!

All in all, for my first rental, this place has absolutely been a gem and I am so pleased with how much and how fast this felt like home.

Moving Update

Hey everyone! I've been pretty busy moving these past few weeks. It seems like I chose my most busy time to move - thankfully I've been able to do it slowly and in pieces or else I would probably be going crazy right now.

I am moved in as much as I need to be, but I have a lot more things that I need to sort through at my parents house and in the extra room here before my roomies move in at the end of the summer (and before my parents go crazy with my stuff scattered all around the basement).

Here are some photos from my move. I didn't really take that many, to tell you the truth, but these are the ones I was snapping over many days.

Our living room, prior to pretty much anything being moved in.

Our dining room. Our kitchen is the doorway to the right, just behind my suitcases. I didn't get a photo of it for some reason.

My bedroom after having lived here for a few weeks. I was sleeping on a futon mattress on the floor and had just cleared it out, getting ready for the delivery of my bed, before I took this photo.

Building #likeagirl.

Aaaand the product of my building! One of two pantries for our kitchen. We don't have a huge amount of storage space and once there are three of us women living here, we'll need the extra space.

 (Almost) All of my books. I didn't have my bookshelf brought over yet (it didn't fit in my car and my dad was out of town), so I stacked them in the third room while I waited to bring it over. Thank goodness we're moving in at different times and I can use this space for now, or the living room would be even more of a disaster.

 Makeup can be fragile and my dad and boyfriend just don't quite understand how delicate it really is. The only solution was to be absolutely certain that I was the only person handling it! 

Yes, that is a big box of makeup. I still haven't unpacked it because I have nowhere to put it. The whole "less space than I am used to" is really affecting my love of makeup.

And finally, some of my dresses riding shotgun on one of the trips over. I packed a lot of my clothes in suitcases long before I actually moved, but I just couldn't be bothered to do that with my dresses and I didn't want them to wrinkle either.

Have you moved recently? What is your strategy for actually getting things put away? I am going at it so slowly! Even if I set aside time to get things done, I get so distracted by the minor details and leave large boxes sitting in the living room for weeks without being touched. Help!

Preparing to Move

I am in the middle of getting ready for my first, real, not-coming-back, move out of my parents house. It's been a long time coming, but I still don't seem to be very prepared for it, practically speaking. Thankfully it is within the same city, so I have the ability to move slowly, which needs to happen because of the time frames I have for myself. I should be getting the keys on Wednesday and can start moving my things in then, but I head out of town for a long weekend on Friday until Monday and hope to be fully living in my new place on July 1 - the original date that my landlord and I had agreed upon (he's being nice and letting me move in a little early, because it's empty anyway).

Some things that I have been doing slowly over the last week or so to get ready for the move:

1. Collecting boxes and bins - I am moving within the same city that I already live in, so I am not using a mover and am also hoping to not have to purchase any moving boxes. I have some storage bins that I have purchased for the move, but they will be useful for after the move as well. Aside from that, I have been trying to get boxes wherever I can; the majority have come from work, actually - printer paper boxes with their lids are fantastic and we would just be recycling them at work anyway! (Make sure you have permission to take boxes from work, you never know if there is already a designated use for them).

2. Packing the majority of my clothing into suitcases - Since I am moving within the same city and will just be making multiple trips with the help of some family and friends (and their vehicles), I have decided to just pack my clothing in suitcases; my suitcases need to move too and I figured this would be easier than trying to find even more boxes to put it all in.

3. Organizing and packing kitchen supplies - I have been collecting a lot of kitchen supplies over the last 5ish years, and up until now they were all living in our laundry room closet where I had no clue what I actually owned anymore. A couple weeks ago I started going through everything and packing what I could into storage bins while creating an inventory on my computer of what is within each bin. I pretty much have my entire kitchen ready to go, minus a few pots and pans.

4. Brainstorming (and sometimes purchasing) odds and ends - For over a month I have been adding to a running list that I keep on my phone of different things that I will need for my new place that aren't exactly big ticket items that are easy to think of. As I get closer and closer to my move I try to be conscious of items that I use within a day and if something isn't on the list and will definitely be needed once I move, I add it on. I have purchased some of these things and have set them aside for the move - these are things like dish soap and dish cloths (to wash all of the new kitchen stuff before putting it all away),  cleaning supplies (the place should be clean before I move in, but you never know), hand soap, and toilet paper. These are just a few of the things that I don't want to be caught in my new place without and having to run out right then to go and find before continuing on with my unpacking.

Since I'm in the same city as my parents, I am purposely leaving things like setting up internet and change of address until I am settled, since I can have my mail delivered to their house a little longer and if I desperately need internet I can pay them a visit too.

Other than that, I really haven't been doing much to get ready, just lots and lots of thinking and planning, but I haven't been actively, physically been doing much else. As I mentioned, this is my first big move out, so I am starting up a new place, not just moving a whole house to a new one. I still think this moving prep could be helpful if you are already established in your own place and are planning a move to somewhere new, you just might not need to stock up on as many "essentials" as I need to - you just might need to corral them into one bin or box and make sure it gets to the new place first.

Any tips on more things I can do to prepare for my move? They would be much appreciated!

Downsizing

I have come to realize that I have too much stuff.  This has been a pretty slow realization, and even once I began to realize it a little over a year ago, I still kept on accumulating more and more stuff - I just felt better about it because I was getting rid of so much too (does not make sense, but that psychology worked for me for a bit).  

Being in the preparation stage of my first big move has made me realize it now more than ever. I am seriously a consumer and, for a very long time, I was an advertiser’s dream.  But not anymore!  I have cut back on my accumulation of stuff substantially and I have been trying to be extremely real with myself when evaluating the place of each of my belongings in my current lifestyle. 

I have had it pretty great at my parents’ house; I have a large room with a large closet completely to myself, but I have also been able to spread out all over the house. The laundry room, which is neighbouring my own room, has a full closet that has housed all of my “future home” items (the things my mother and father purchased for and gifted to me, starting with Christmas in Grade Twelve, for when I move out - talk about hinting! ;) ) and the rest of the room houses much of my office-type furniture and belongings alongside the washer and dryer. The space outside my bathroom has a whole dresser full of my makeup, towels, hair products, and hair tools, and I even have a closet in the front entryway that is filled with my coats and shoes.  It never seemed like much over the years, but listing it here, I realize I have been completely spoiled with space. I certainly cannot fit all of this in my small room once I move.

So, I am still downsizing. Thankfully I have a month before I need to actually move the items that make the cut.  I do have the added benefit of living in the same city as my parents, so I do have the option of storing a few things with them. Out of season clothing, extra luggage, and not-frequently-used household items will probably make a home in the laundry room closet as we have pretty much no storage space in our place. 

Any tips on how to be brutally honest with yourself when downsizing? I am trying, but I think I need to be a little more tough!