I'm I'm Pst! Psssttt! Oh Hey! Hey, you're still here?! Me too! Only I've been a bad blogger and haven't been giving you new reading material. How about I catch you up with the latest in my whirlwind world?
Well let's start with early December. I spent the last few days of November and the first few days of December packing up our giant 3 bedroom house in preparation for our move into a 420 square foot studio apartment in Waikiki. Not only was I packing for our apartment move, I was packing for our move back to the mainland in the upcoming months, and packing the things that are supposed to be held in storage for the next year. I was a basket case. We're talking preparation for three moves in three different states in less than 6 months. Who wouldn't be? After all that planning, Brady and I did all of the moving ourselves. Brady did the majority of the moving (apartment and storage unit) and I did a majority of the packing, cleaning, and unpacking in the new apartment. (Along with the help of a few special ladies. Thank you!!) Let me just say that the beginning of the month was pretty productive and pretty miserable!
After we got settled in our new place we started exploring the new city right away. I'll be the first to tell you that I really disliked Waikiki shortly after moving to the island. My reason were just. Every time we went out to play in the city it would be an hour's drive from home, $30 plus for parking, a check point on the way home, and a sleepy hour and a half drive back to the house. A $100-$150 night out. Lame right? Living in town has been a game changer.
Brady nor myself has ever lived in a big city before. Much less in a tiny studio with a large size dog and our significant other. You'd think we would be going crazy but in all honesty, I think it's been an awesome adventure together.
Every chance we get, either together or apart, we are out exploring and learning new things to do here.
You cut out my city driving anxiety, loathe for traffic, and my car all together, I'm obsessed with this new side of island living. We have this cozy little love nest with... Wait... Wait for it... AIR CONDITIONING!! For the first time while living in Hawaii we have air conditioning. We also have a pretty awesome morning coffee view of the Ala Wai.
Another new adventure for both of us is the city commuting on 'Da Bus.' It's actually 'The Bus' but with Hawaiian pigeon slang it's pronounced Da Bus. Growing up Brady was all about commuting by bus in Michigan. I on the other hand had never experienced the city bus transit system. We pretty much know our routes to work and out to play. We also both bike a handful of miles a day to get to the bus stops. Brady more than I. I even bought a new bike for my city cruising.
You see some characters on the bus, let me tell you. It makes for amazing people watching. Just last night we saw a man with his pet bird in a gym bag riding the bus.
Since we lost about a million square feet of living space I had to decide which crafty items and fabric choices were a must have. Going through my fabric collection was extremely tough. I had to make some hard choices for which prints were to stay with me, which were to be shipped back home, and which were staying in storage for over a year. You can't take a crafty girl's fabric, man! Literal craftygirlproblems. If you frequent my Etsy page, this is the reason behind my bare store shelves. I foresee a huge boom in the next 4 months though so stay tuned!
With everything going on this month I decided to not be my usual Christmas Elf. It was pretty tough but I just didn't have the time or the funds to dedicate to ornaments or wreaths this year. Next year I'll be the biggest elf you ever did see! Check out this blog [ http://www.craftygirlproblems.com/2013/12/holiday-crafting.html?m=1 ] post to see lasts year's Christmas crafts.
In other news, I am still working at my little coffee shop in Waipahu. A whopping 19 miles from my house and a 1.5-2 hour one way bus and bike commute time. I've been working so much at our little coffee shop lately. We got the tragic news that the new owners are shutting the doors on the 31st due to economic reasons. As one of the 3rd cup staff/ family members I am super sad to say goodbye to the shop and to my awesome coworkers. Everyone on this team has such a unique gift and just the best group of characters ever.
It will be sad to see the doors shut for good.
Christmas was pretty awesome this year. We got to wake up and make breakfast and we exchanged gifts. There isn't an oven in the new apartment so we made crock pot pork tenderloin, stuffing, yams, and mashed potatoes. We prepped our dinner and set off for a day around the pool at the Hale Koa. We have been frequenting the Hale Koa pool quite often these days due to how close it is and the military 'membership' perks.
After our sunbathing we did a little beach walking.
Once we got a little sun kissed we headed back for our delicious meal. After dinner we went out to see The Lights of Honolulu.
It was a pleasant little stroll past the lantern filled I'olani Palace and the few lit up blocks down King Street.
So now it's the 26th of December and we have only five days left until the new year. It's just about that time to sit and reflect on the last 12 months and to dream about goals and hopes for the upcoming year. What dreams do you have for the new year? I'll make a special post dedicated to my hopes for this upcoming year. That will hold me accountable to all of my dreams!
This post makes 99 blog posts! Don't forget to send me your 'Ask Me Anything' questions for my big 100th post! You can contact me through any form of social media, by email, or even by phone.
As always I thank you for reading about my life and encouraging me to blog about it. I can't wait to see what 2015 brings us!
-Erin
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