Low Class

Okay so here's something you need to know about me. In most categories, I have a "high class" and a "low class" favorite of most everything (and I bet, if you will be honest with yourself for a minute, you do too).

Don't know what I mean? Examples. 

1.  My "high class" favorite dessert: New York Cheesecake with fresh raspberries. My "low class" favorite dessert: Oatmeal Creme Pies
2. My "high class" favorite clothing store: J Crew or Banana Republic. My "low class" favorite clothing store: Ross.
3. My "high class" favorite TV show: Discovery channel's Planet Earth. My "low class" favorite TV show: Sister Wives. Yes, sister wives. I really can't explain that one.

You get the idea. 

So when it comes to home improvement or housewares stores, you better believe that I have high class and low class favorites. Maybe I'll focus on my high class favorite some other time, but my low class one is the subject of this post. 

My absolute favorite low class home goods store is....Ollie's Bargain Outlet. Never heard of it? Not surprising. Just imagine a store like Big Lots, and then bring it down about 12 notches. If it helps you get a visual, here's their logo and slogan: 

I LOVE this place. Love. It. It's like a treasure hunt. Most things are old, broken, smell weird, or just generally give you the heebie jeebies, but then, in the midst of the ickiness, you'll find gold. And it'll only cost you $3. 

Now, before you get all, "Kathleen, seriously? This sounds gross. Why in the world would you shop here?," I dare you to go there and see if you're not completely blown away by how cheap stuff is. I've found name brand house items 75% or 80% less than I saw them at other stores. I bought some wall hangings at Target for $25 a piece, and saw the SAME ONES at Ollies for $5. Think Walmart's $5 movie bin is a good deal? Ollies has $2 movies. Y'all. You gotta go check it out. 

I'll have to do another post and show some of the things in our house that we got from Ollies. It's incredible.

You might have to wash your hands afterwards, and you might end up in the shopping aisle next to someone in a dirty tank top talking to themselves (actually happened), but you can't beat the prices. 

Side note: Theoretically---if, while loading your trunk with your Ollies purchases in the parking lot, someone compliments you on your sandals, don't stop paying attention to what you're doing, put your keys and phone temporarily in the trunk so you can shake their hand, and then close the trunk because you're distracted by conversation. You'll then find yourself waiting, in Ollies, for 45 minutes while your husband comes to pick you up. And who knows what you might encounter while you're there.  

The Revolving Door

When we were looking for a house, folks kept asking us "Why do you want a house so badly? What's so bad about the apartment?" to which I would inevitably reply, "Dude...why are you so nosy? You don't know my life!" Okay, no, I didn't really say that.

I always said the main reason we wanted a house was so we could have space to let more people into our lives. Let them stay with us, eat with us, break things, see how messy our kitchen can get, be disgusted when they see a cockroach in our house, ya know...the usual.

Little did I know just how much we would use our house in this way. Since we've moved in, we've had about 2846234 overnight guests and 4123423 dinner parties.*

*Numbers are approximate.

No, but seriously, we've had a lot of things happen in our house since we bought it. Here's some highlights:

• 60 people coming over for our housewarming party (Our house has never seemed smaller than that day!)
• 10 teenage girls spending the night (complete with ding-dong-ditching done by 10 teenage boys at midnight)
• 6 foster kittens for 2 weeks
• 1 foster dog for 2 weeks (complete with accidents in 3 rooms of the house)
• 1 bachelorette party at our house
• 6 friends spend the weekend with us for a wedding 
• 1 sister stay with us for the weekend
• 1 family stay with us for vacation for a week
• 3 cockroaches and 1 large spider found (iiiiicccckkkkk!)
• 3 small group meetings (complete with kids/teenagers trying on my clothes and makeup) 
• 4 groups of friends over for dinner
• 1 life-size rastafarian banana stay with us for a week
• 2 grandmas over for dinner
• 1 guys' video game night
• countless hang out sesh's (sesh-es?) 
• 2 weeks of Insanity workouts in our empty living room

It has been 4 months (whoa, already?), but it feels like every day something new is happening at our place. And I gotta say, I love it.


If you're a "visual learner" (aka too lazy to read), here's some photo updates:

Girls at the wedding

So good to see friends from Illinois! 

Our foster puppy, comfortably sleeping on my previously perfectly folded clean laundry. "Why didn't you put it away the night before?" you ask? Because I'm not that smart, that's why. 

A photo from downtown Chicago, while I was on a business trip last month. It was HOT! 

Our first fig harvest is underway! So far, I've made 2 batches of jam...

Matt at a local festival. They had tons of cool cars. 

They even had a LOTUS! In Smithfield! 

I had the opportunity to participate in "Bright Beginnings" with Smithfield, where I went shopping with this cool 10 year old for new school clothes and supplies, which were free to her. Her name is Asia, and her favorite movie is Madea Goes to Jail. My kinda girl. 

I love my new(ish) breadmaker! It makes all kinds of yummy things. 

I finally got around to buying new shades for and spraypainting some old lamps my mom gave me multiple years ago. They look so much better! 

Because I know you were wondering what the "life-size Rastafarian banana" looked like...

Some of the girls and I hanging at the bachelorette party

The dessert table. The banner I made says "Miss to Mrs"

Matt and I hanging out at the rehearsal dinner

College Housemates reunited!

3 seconds before that group photo. 

More college housemates and close friends.