Picture wall in Noah's room.

I finally got to put up Noah's picture wall earlier this week. I painted the N today and added it and the clock this afternoon. After Noah watched me hammer in the nails, he went and got his own nail and tried to place it gently on the wall. It was so cute and fun to see him learning and trying new things.

I hope he likes his little gallery as much as I do!

Stuffed logs.

Now that we've decided to stay in our townhouse*, I'm really wanting to get it to where I like it. This also means making it a baby-friendly place for Noah to grow for the next couple of years. Our decorative fireplace has candles in it now. Noah is crawling like a monster. These two things don't go together. I think these stuffed birch logs would be very cute in the fireplace. Baby-safe, and easy on the eyes. Win-win.

Except they're out of stock, so there's that.


*My husband is working on his PhD, and just passed a big test which allows him to go on with the program. Which means we'll be staying in Columbus for at least 3 more years. I'm really not happy with our neighbor situation right now.While I like the people we share walls with, there are 5 yapping dogs there at any given time, and they smoke in their bedroom and basement which leaks into our place. Not to mention that they stay up till past 3am most nights. They are completely not compatible with our lifestyle.
After weeks of killing myself to find a nice single family house for us to live in for the rest of Rudy's time, I finally gave up. We just can't afford it. I know this may sound weird, but I got the sense that God was telling me, just be still. Stop worrying!
A week ago we found out that our neighbors move out June 1st! While it would still be nice to not share walls on both sides, this is what we can afford. It's the right price in the right location, and the right size. Patience isn't my strong suit. I'm tired of only being able to afford apartments. But it's not forever. It may feel like we're poor, poor, poor, but we can afford a really nice place. We can afford great food. We've got each other, a healthy baby, and love to spare. So I'm deciding to quit complaining and making our house a place I love to be. I'll keep you updated for the ride.

Ice Storm 2011.

Two nights ago our world turned into a giant ice skating rink. The side walks and roads all have almost an inch of ice covering them. Bushes, trees and sign posts are all frozen over in a display like I've never seen before.

I borrowed these photos from my friend Becky's blog, found here. I took a couple of the ice, but she captured it so beautifully.

Last night we foolishly drove out of town to some friend's house for dinner. We slid around a bit on the ice, but made it safely. We thought we might have to stay the night there because of the ice, but because Gatsby was stuck at home alone, we decided to travel back, very very slowly. Luckily by the time we left all of the roads had been salted heavily and we made it home more easily than we had even hoped.

We didn't know, however, if we would have power when we got home. Just before we left our friend's, their power had gone out. All of the ice on the lines do not make for a good thing. When we got home, our lights were still on and our house was nice and warm. It stayed on for the rest of the night and is still working. I'm thanking God for that, and sending out the message to all our friends in Columbus that we've got a warm place for them to come should they need it.

In other news, Noah slept the best he's ever slept last night. He was down from 11:30pm-5:15am then again from 5:30am-9:50am. Holy cow, I feel like a new woman and am jetting around the house being more productive than I have been in weeks.

The sideboard.

Here are a couple snap shots of the sideboard in our dining room. The cubies have been perfect for storing my art supplies and some of Rudy's math papers. Hooray for getting organized!

The painting on the left is by the ever-wonderful Kelly Tunstall, and the print on the right is by our incredibly talented friend Jeremy Slagle, (you should definitely check out his site).

...and a silly picture of me for my Grandma Dee :)

I'll do it soon.

First of all, I love this photo by Pia Ulin.

Secondly, yes, Rudy and I have moved into our new home. But no, I'm not ready to put up any pictures. In a new place, I tend to have grand intentions but no means to actually make them real. I've been saving my tips from the coffee shop for the last few months, trying to come up with some sort of a decorating budget. I've got a bit saved up, and as long as I'm (very) savvy, I think I can make some things happen with this new place.

I'll try to document the process as I go so you can follow along. I just wish the closest Ikea wasn't in Cincinnati!

All of our stuff...

...in one room.

This is what all of our belongings look like when they are consolidated into the dining room of our old house. I may have mentioned before that Rudy and I had to be out of our old place on the first, but can't get into our new place until the thirteenth. Our landlords (and their son who moved in) let us keep all this in the dining room for a couple of weeks. Rudy, Gatsby, and I are staying with my Grandparents right now, which seems like a mini-vacation while we wait for our new home.

While it has been sad to move on from our first place here in Columbus, I am also excited to start fresh in a new, more updated, home. We should be moving in this Sunday!

Christmas with the Perkins.

After getting home from the festivities with my family here in Columbus, I decided we should take some pictures of our little family so we could remember Christmas 09 forever. Or just for fun.

Here is our tree with all the presents that my family sent from California (thanks everyone!!) on Christmas Eve. I don't want to take the tree down anytime soon...it feels like it just got here!

Viewfinder pictures around the house.

Friday afternoon I decided to take some pictures through my twin lense camera around the house. Here are some of the results.

On Thanksgiving, I came across this assortment of threads in one of my grandma Tissy's drawers. She doesn't sew as much as she used to, and said I could have them! They look so pretty, I almost feel bad using them.

Safari chairs.

{One of our safari chairs}

A couple of weeks ago, I was telling my grandma my plans for our living room, and that I would like to get two chairs to flank the fireplace. She said she had some old ones that were too low for her to get out of, and she brought them over.

Well it turns out these chairs she gave us are pretty important pieces! They are safari chairs designed by mid-century Swedish designer Arne Norell. I feel very design savvy having a pair of these beauties.

Soon after getting the chairs, I noticed them at the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs, (pictured below), and in this loft I posted about earlier.

Next time I'm in Palm Springs, I know where I'm staying!

Poster poster where are you?

I have decided that I need this poster for our guest room.
Can I have some help with that Santa?

I've got a thing for cardboard deer.

I've wanted one of these things for so long! I want to put a giganto one over our fireplace and hang Christmas paraphernalia on it for the holidays. You can get them at Pop Delux online, as well as many other places...

...such as Tiger Tree in the Short North area of Columbus, (see it in the background?)

I also found a tutorial to make this one online at Chronicle Books, but I think I like the ones made out of recycled cardboard better. Usually I am a big do-it-yourselfer, but I think when it comes to cardboard deer heads, I'm going to leave it to the laser cutting professionals.

The best fall weekend.

This weekend we went apple picking.

Made a pile of leaves.

And carved pumpkins on the porch with the neighbors.

Life is good.

Love, Chelsea

Oh how I love my skeletons.

Last week I unpacked the rest of my knick-knacks, most of which consisted of little Dia de los Muertos figurines. What a perfect time to get them out and display them. Here is a shot of our mantel, all ready for November 2nd.

Today I made some little cut out skulls and decorated them like calaveras and hung them from this branch I found while walking. It is now sitting outside our front door.

More Day of the Dead art and more to come later!

Judy Ross Textiles.

Just days after my post about throw pillows, I received one of my daily emails from Maxwell of Apartment Therapy. The email was entitled "Best Throw Pillows of 2009"! Perfect timing Max, it's as if you knew just what I was asking for!
One of the companies listed was Judy Ross Textiles. I have fallen in love once again. The pillows and rugs the company makes have an amazing textural quality that complements the organic shapes in their designs.

While there are many more color choices than displayed here, I have compiled this visual list of items that would look great in our home. Our dining room, (which is visible from the living room), is a sea foam green color, and the living room is a soft gray. I love sea foam green with orange, and I think that having a bit of both on the sofa would be very lovely.

Sadly, each of these pillows is $190 bucks a pop. I don't think I'll ever be spending that much on a throw pillow in my lifetime...but a girl can dream can't she?

For some more drool worthy products, check out the whole line here.

The sofa has arrived! (and more)...

After nine weeks of waiting, our sofa has finally arrived!

{Our empty living room}

It's even better than I had hoped for. Now we just need a coffee table and we'll be in business. I might bring this one from the bedroom to use in the mean time. I would also love this rug for the room.

The only thing that Gatsby gets to be on the sofa for is taking pictures. Since then, it's on the floor for him! (Don't worry, I made him a very comfy bed in the corner).

Also! I put some candles and old mason jars in the fireplace. The thing can't have real fires in it, (sad). I plan on getting lots more candles to put in it, (happy).

Here is a picture of our fridge for good measure. The drawing of Frida on a tortilla is from one of my most favorite people, Jessi Walters.

Throw pillows.

{Anthropology and Alexander Girard at Urban Outfitters}

I just got word today that our sofa will FINALLY be here on Thursday. This has got me thinking about what I will put on it! Throw pillows. I need throw pillows! I love all of these. Too bad they are way out of my price range at the moment.

{Jonathan Adler}

Ninainvorm

I'm in love.

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