Unpacking and Interviews, Take Two

Hey everyone,

Since we are now staying put, I set out this week to get a job for the fall. I was a little worried, since it's kind of late in the hiring season but I had some interviews earlier in the week. Here's how I dressed:

Banana Republic black wool skirt and blazer with a new satin black and red patterned top with a drapey neckline and my trusty Banana Republic pumps. I actually pulled off the skirt and jacket after this picture and ironed them since they were pretty wrinkled from being packed. 

Dressing up must have worked since I now have a job for the fall!  I'm going to be one of two eighth grade science teachers at a large public magnet school close to the house. I actually worked there years ago, so it feels like a bit of a homecoming. I'll also be glad to take my incredible amount of classroom stuff there. Right now it's taking over my study!

Even the filing cabinet in the picture is jammed with classroom stuff!  

Other than that, the house is mostly unpacked. It feels like we did a super thorough spring cleaning because of all the editing we'd done. Here are a few changes that I've made:

I'd bought this rug at IKEA planning to use it after we moved but went ahead and rolled it out in the dining room. It's super soft. 

I hung up this photo frame in the dining room. It was a gift from my mom and looks much better here than it's former place in the hall. 

I found this great multiple picture frame at Ross and put a set of postcards in it. The coffee cup ones were previously hung in the kitchen in very cheap frames that I've never liked and the rest came out of my card box. I tend to save things!

It's now hung in the kitchen. I've since him my grandpa's weather kit next to it. (Thermometer, hygrometer, and barometer all together). 

I hung up a bunch of pictures in the hallway. A lot of the smaller ones were just clutter in boxes and closets, so it was nice to make use of them and also free up some storage space. There are currently two pics of Big Boy and none of Trouble, but only because I couldn't find the envelope of pictures I had printed at Target!  So either I need to find it or got get some more prints so it's fair!  

I also rediscovered this cube system at the bottom of a box. I'd wondered what had happened to them!  They're a big pain to assemble, but they helped me store a lot of things and clear up storage space in closets for other things. I also moved all my workout stuff into this extra room to make the living room seem less cluttered. If I'm doing a workout DVD then I can always bring whatever I need out in front of the tv in the living room. 

I also found a way to make better us of our coffee table. These two baskets from IKEA used to hold junk in my study. But I threw out the stuff I didn't need and filled them with books to create some extra storage. The tray hold photos and had been sitting in a closet as a someday project for YEARS. I filled it with pictures I already had for free and cleaned the glass. 

Since we were anticipating renting out our house, we FINALLY replaced our "temporary" tension rods that we put up five years ago. 

My study. 

Extra room. The curtain rod, brackets, and finials on the ends used to hang in my grandparents' house. Finally using them freed up some space and makes both this room and Hubby's study look much more finished. 

Big Boy also got a new travel crate to use on the road trip that now he can use when we visit my parents. 

What do you think?  I'm very proud of myself for finding new ways to organize and use our limited closet space more wisely. 

Stay cool!

Amy