riannagalvez

Hello, dolls!! Hello, June <3 Wheeew! May was something else!! My body is sore and my mind is still on cloud 9. The last time I felt like this was when we were moving into our home. There were countless things to do! I felt like once I finished one task, five more things get added to my list. It’s really nice to FINALLY relax now (at least for the next two hours until baby A wakes up from his nap). Speaking of baby A … I think most Moms will agree with me when I say I felt guilty for being THAT busy.  I wasn’t able to spend much time with my little one since I had “goals” to finish every day. Two nights before the event, I told A I can’t wait to just be in bed with our boy and read to him! Aaah the night has finally come and once we recuperate from our busy month, I plan to take baby A to an awesome adventure that he’s been asking for…like literally every day!

So.. to continue with my previous post, here’s our journey of finding our home….food breaks included! lol

The first time I felt at “home” was when I hung this painting in our hallway. I love how this makes me feel like we are driving to Manhattan whenever I walk into our hallway.

A snowstorm hit Baltimore the weekend we planned to move into our new home. It sucked big time because we were cooped in our apartment for 3 days instead of being busy painting the basement or unpacking!

A and I were so lucky because my sister was here in Baltimore to help us whenever we needed her…well also, my parents forced her to help A with everything since I was pregnant and they were afraid something bad might happen to me.

Snow looks pretty, yes! The aftermath especially shoveling at least 9 inches of snow? Not fun at all!

Perfect snow day dinner!! 

A and I probably saw at least 60 houses before we found ours. We were very meticulous and as much as we wanted to have a house right away, we knew it’s something that we can’t rush. We took our time and made sure that when we found the right one, there wouldn’t be a lot of “baggage” that will come with it.

The main things that we considered while “shopping” for a house were:

1. The Kitchen — Since A and I are both passionate about cooking, having an amazing kitchen at home is the main requirement!

2. Closet Space – It was hard to look for a house with a spacious walk-in closet like the one that we had in the apartment. A and his best friend P ended up doing a closet project in our new home — that made me the happiest wife of course!

3. Backyard – I told our agent that I plan to throw a lot of parties in the future. I’ve always envisioned summer backyard parties or spring afternoon tea with my girls without worrying about space and privacy.

4. Rooms – A and I wanted at least 4 bedrooms and definitely at least 2 bathrooms. We want to make sure we will have enough room for everyone who will visit us and for futures babies!! 😛

Signing day!! 

Opening the door to our first house as homeowners. This moment felt surreal!!! We left our house that day wishing we could spend the night there… who knew it would take us a month to get settled!

My favorite spot in our house <3

We spent most of our free time getting the house in order. A and my sister painted the walls while I unpacked. We wanted to do as much as we could before my due date so we could just enjoy being parents to baby A and not worry about home improvement.

Pho for the preggers! 😉

This poor man had to spend his days off painting. We couldn’t finish all of our “projects” quickly since A and I had crazy hours at work. He would sometimes only have 1 day off or none at all so it was challenging to finish ANYTHING. As my due date drew closer, my in-laws gave us an amazing first-anniversary present — they hired a professional painter to finish all of the rooms that we could not!!! *still crying right now*

The rooms were coming along, so it’s time to shop! I became obsessed with anything that would help us stay organized. Lucky for me, our new house is 15 min. away from IKEA!!!

Can’t go to IKEA without getting a plate of Swedish meatballs!

Leap day project with my sissy!

My Kate Spade china’s new home <3 Can you believe this glass case is from IKEA??

My new found love: buying furniture. I especially love anything that is multipurpose or has great storage abilities.

Stocking up for our three bathrooms and kitchen.

I told A I miss Mister Kebab (a famous Persian restaurant in the Philippines). He surprised me by taking me to House of Kabob. I was the happiest that night!!! I felt like I was in Manila again.

Never thought I would be excited to come home to a new vacuum!!!

We were so happy to finally cook in our new kitchen! <3

I may or may have not eaten at least a dozen bags of nagaraya during my third trimester 😛 *oops*

My husband’s chicken tocino is the bomb!!! After almost 7 years, I started eating rice again.

 

Back at our favorite dim sum restaurant in Baltimore County.

Taking a break from cleaning……

I started to contemplate about the blessings that we received during our first year of marriage. New home, baby on the way, and stable jobs. 2016 was definitely all about being grateful.

Pasta for Sunday dinner. Having an Italian husband means eating pasta at least twice a week!

xx

R <3