Moving in Style

So the application for my new apartment is in; I should know sometime this week if it has been accepted. After researching, asking friends who live here, etc., I applied for an apartment at Cascades Overlook in the New Town section of Owings Mills. It is extremely close to Claire's daycare and had most, but not all, of the amenities I had wanted.

I originally wanted a ground floor apartment. Claire does go up and down the stairs usually, but it's still difficult when I have groceries and am trying to coax her up. At the last minute I opted for the second floor again, because a co-worker mentioned that she'd worry about someone breaking in since it's much more accessible. Yikes, sad to say, I do have to think of those things. So we are scheduled to be on the second floor of a building on the "pet friendly" side of the complex. I have no pets, but they don't bother me, and we have plenty in our current complex. And I've heard that this is the side that ends up being quieter anyway.

The one thing I noticed pretty fast was that the parking looks crappy. That is very disappointing, because that is one of the very main things I was looking for. Unfortunately, there aren't really any complexes with assigned parking. There were two who had individual garages, but I didn't like the one and the other I was advised by a former resident isn't great.

Other than that, it does have the other stuff I wanted. Two bedrooms, and they are right beside each other. I really wanted that because right now we're at opposite ends of the apartment, and I'm always nervous when I go to bed that I won't hear her if she calls.

Second, we now will have a full-sized side-by-side washer and dryer....oh thank goodness. I'm grateful for the stackable because at least I have something, but it doesn't hold much. This new set is actually in its own small closeted section and even has a shelf for laundry products.

Two bathrooms...woot woot! The master bath has a shower stall, and the main bathroom has the shower/tub. Two vanities, so two places to store stuff.

There is a full-sized living room and a small room right off the kitchen they call a family room. This will be used as Claire's playroom. Even better that it's close to the kitchen. The kitchen has a breakfast bar, and I just located some gently used counter stools on Craigslist...going to buy two of them from a couple in White Marsh.

And finally, I have a fireplace :-) I've really wanted one for a long time, and I decided that was an amenity I was going to treat myself with.

So to get the rent special, the lease will be starting around March 28. I'll have a nice two week overlap where I'll have the old and new apartment, so I'm hoping to get some smaller stuff moved during that time so I don't have to do it all in one day.

I've been driving myself crazy with my redecorating project. I DID find bedding...a really nice Pottery Barn duvet cover and shams I found on ebay. I had gotten myself so fixated on finding "the one" that I was actually making myself almost sick. I said enough for heaven's sake. That's when I decided to just pick something not too trendy and that I'd be happy with. And I did :-) The living room I've just accepted won't be my ultimate dream, because I can't bring myself to buy new chairs and tables when I have perfectly good ones here. I was going to cover my current wing chairs with slipcovers, but all the wing chair slipcovers I'm finding are made for T cushions, and mine are not. So for now, I'm just going to get my new sofa and keep the rest the same. I am still getting a slipcover for my current sofa, to be used in Claire's play room. I am hoping that by trying to confine Claire's stuff to that room, the apartment will stay a little neater, because right now my place is a disaster with all of her stuff all over the small living room.

I'm hoping this will be a good move. I will finally be in the area I want to be, and it will be a faster commute to the daycare in the morning. I'm excited to make the place our own.

On that note, anyone who likes to paint, I would love some help, because I plan on paiting a few rooms, hopefully before the furniture has to be moved in.

Looking forward to moving out and up!