early retirement, new apartment, north carolina

I should probably update my blog and explain why I have not been blogging as of late. Ben finished his third semester at MIT in the middle of May and then we moved to North Carolina for a 7-month internship as part of his master's program. This meant that I had to quit my job (hence, the early retirement) and we got to pack up the house, fit all of our belongings into 5 linear feet in a moving truck, and move to North Carolina for the rest of the year. Let me just say that it is a very good thing that most of our furniture breaks down, otherwise we would have never have fit it on the truck. We are excited about this change and a chance for a new adventure.

We have been here almost two weeks and are already loving it. Our apartment is really coming together, and we love that our rent is 1/5 our rent in Boston. Despite the large quantities of bugs that make their way into our apartment, I love it here. We live on a quiet street with lots of natural shade, which allows me to keep the windows open during the day and the AC off. We hope to spend the summer relaxing, going to the beach, avoiding all future run ins with fire ants, and making lots of friends in our new city. We have been to church twice and were completely shocked by how friendly they were (probably a result of not having new people move in in over three years).

Since my web cam tour with my mom was shaky at best, I thought I would give a little house tour. As much as I hate packing, I have loved putting our new apartment together and getting another chance to decorate. The walls are white and the carpet is off-white, so it is a good thing we have lots of colored furniture.

Our dinning room. This is the first thing you see when you walk in past our TINY kitchen. Sorry, there are no pictures of our kitchen. Just imagine a tiny room filled with panelled wood cupboards and an ancient stove.

Living room, complete with our "new" modern chairs and my wool rug that I found at a garage sale for $50.

The buffet under the window in our main room. Before I left Boston I bought a set of Anthropology bowls, which were on clearance, and let me tell you, I love them.

Some of the only books we brought with us to NC. And what is that awesome clock you ask? Just my Christmas present from my brother; a vintage edition of The Bridge of San Luis Rey made into a clock.

Since we have lived in only small kitchens since we've been married, we own a beautiful baking rack. I actually love having all of the pots and pans, bowls, and small appliances so handy. And yes, that is my disco ball on the ground. I still haven't decided where to hang it.....

The apartment also has two bedrooms and 1.5 baths. We love having more office space and a place for all of my crafts. I feel spoiled by all of the closet space and the fact that we bought our first washer and dryer.