Bo and I are both highly motivated when there is an end goal in mind. Therefore, I knew that if every speaker was going to be mounted, every wire hid, box unpacked, and rug purchased, we needed to have a goal completion date. After debating back and forth we decided that having a housewarming party the first weekend of May would be a great opportunity for multiple reasons:

1) Celebrate our move into the city with friends

2) Get back to our Southern roots by giving it a Kentucky Derby theme and starting it before 5pm when the Derby takes place

3) Experiment with fun food ideas all relating to either the South or Bourbon in honor of the Derby. (Anyone have any recipe ideas?)

4) Have an opportunity to introduce all our amazing friends from different aspects of our lives.

5) A perfect address to don seersucker and a fun summer frock.

With only a week between our move in day and housewarming party, we knew that we had to make the most of every moment this weekend. Therefore, Friday evening until Saturday afternoon we lived and breathed the unpacking process. There were countless trips to The Container Store, Home Depot, Bed Bath and Beyond, and Pottery Barn. We were quite the site as we lugged our goods ten blocks having to stop every few minutes to rest our arms. Moving is hard work and lots of heavy lifting!  We made great progress on the apartment by the time we left for the first time around noon on Sunday for Lauren’s birthday brunch.

For your enjoyment, here are some pictures from our work in progress. We are very open to any design criticism or suggestion so please, feel free to provide! It’s scary how quickly we were able to fill this walk in closet. The next thing on my shopping list is a full length mirror for the side wall behind the door. I do love how I can get ready in one spot since i’ve made one shelf into a mini vanity.  It’s amazing how much one change can make to a room. Bo and I received this vibrant duvet cover as a wedding present and waited until our move to switch it with the old one. We went from navy and cream stripes to bright peacocks and florals. We both love the richness of this with the dark wood. Our amazing wedding party gave us the hutch you see in the background as their wedding gift. It has been the perfect place to store our china and crystal. It is also a gorgeous piece. I can’t wait to clear all the clutter off of it so it is only displaying our one large floral piece and our 8*10 wedding picture.  The new kitchen is definitely smaller than the last one but they made great use of the space. The biggest adjustment is the tiny dishwasher. I’m sorry Earth but I feel like we’re going to be running the dishes every other night. Oh, and our building is very strict about recycling. This is exciting except when you don’t know about it. Imagine my surprise and fear when I was throwing trash down the chute and heard “RECYCLE YOU NEW PEOPLE.” Evidently the maintenance staff wasn’t pleased with my empty milk jug going down the chute. Ooops! I’m currently in love with this pantry! Bo and I installed shelves on the right side wall this weekend which compliment the California Closet shelves perfectly. A pantry may seem like a given but after not having one for the last year you realize what a great asset it is! Our has been freshly stocked on the top 3 shelves with teas, oats, cereals, and other staples. We’ve also restocked our spices after throwing out any that didn’t pass Bo’s sniff test. I kid you not, I can’t make these things up. 🙂

This area isn’t complete as we are getting another component to our bar area via UPS tomorrow. The rug was one of my many stops today after work. I went from the UPS customer service area on the lower West side in search of a box, uptown to Pottery Barn where I lugged out this huge rug and two other bags, then over to Crate and Barrel! Phew.

Yesterday afternoon was filled with great food, friends, and laughter as we celebrated Lauren’s 26th birthday. It is amazing how convenient living in this area really is. Most of our friends live either in Union Square area or the Village. Therefore, our apartment is in between our offices in Midtown East and our friends. Leaving the apartment on Sunday and having the opportunity to walk from here to Lauren’s apartment in the village while making 3 stops along the way to pick up wine, gifts, and fruit was so refreshing. Even though LIC was only 1 stop on the 7 there is something to be said for not having to set foot on a subway. The afternoon included some spur of the moment blueberry margaritas made by Casey, Lauren’s boyfriend.

Strawberry Shortcake, the birthday girl’s favorite:

and lots of smiles!

The brunch birthday worked wonderfully as all 18 guests were able to socialize casually in Lauren and Casey’s apartment, everyone brought a dish, and there was no tipping or group difficulties to worry about. The hit of the afternoon was definitely Casey’s scrambled eggs. He made everything from plain jane, to cheese eggs, to finally bacon eggs! He went through 36 eggs in just a few minutes!

It’s off to bed for this tired gal! I’m looking forward to another morning of running at our new Equinox after having a great 5 miler this morning. I guess after almost a week break my legs were craving a run. This week I’m going to focus on running versus spinning as I’ve been a bit burnt out on spinning lately. Hopefully tomorrow morning I can beat today’s 5 miles in 47 minutes!

Please feel free to provide any Kentucky Derby/Southern recipe ideas, decorating ideas, or more! I value y’alls feedback and comments!