Our Bohemian Love Nest

When we moved into our cramped little apartment in downtown Riverside over two years ago, it wasn't under the best of circumstances. I had just started a new job and bought a new car, so our income wasn't exactly stable. Still, we really loved the apartment's historic charm and decided to take it.

It was never the perfect place. We had issues with the landlord not fixing the heat in a timely manner; we had no central air (or heat); the bedroom walls made good use of wood paneling. There were many things wrong with the place.



But it was our place. It was the place where we collected and stored everything for our wedding, the place where we feverishly worked on grad school papers, the place we came home to after our honeymoon, the place where we made the decision to expand our family. It was our bohemian love nest.

One week ago, Roy and I finished cleaning the apartment and closed the door behind us for the last time. The place we're now in is much better for us, but I can't help but feel a little bittersweet about moving on.



So many good memories...

...like the time when Roy and I shared earphones and sang "American Pie" while lying in bed in the dark.

...and all those months when the bathroom door wouldn't latch, and I tied my bathrobe belt to the faucet and the doorknob to keep Kerwin from nosing his way in while I was using the bathroom.

...the day my wedding dress came in, and I traipsed around the place with it on.

...and the multiple times we'd blow a fuse when we ran the space heater and the hair dryer at the same time.



I'll miss our bohemian love nest. I'll probably miss this lovely stray girl most of all. We only got to know her in our last month living there, but she had no qualms with coming right up to either one of us and climbing into our laps. She's one of the sweetest cats I've ever met, and my heart absolutely hurts when I think of our having to leave her behind.



To celebrate our place, I took photos of what I loved most about it. In addition to the ones included in this post, you can see the rest here.