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When we decided to make pickles I thought it would be a big production involving canning and all of that. Turns out you can also make small batch refrigerator pickles and they are SO easy! I’m talking you can have them prepped in a matter of minutes. I made 8 jars in 30 mins the last time and then they only take a few days to be ready to eat! I told you guys…. easy peasy!

Below are 3 of the recipes we’ve used that I recommend! The fun thing about making pickles too is you can experiment and get a little creative on the spice side of things. Pickling cucumbers are preferred for these but honestly I’ve used just normal cucumbers too (because that’s what we grew in the garden this year) and they turned out great!

Sweet Pickles

This recipe fills about 3 pints jars of pickles

• Couple of pounds of cucumbers

• Yellow onion

• 3 cups of sugar

• 1/4 cup Kosher salt

• 2 cups white vinegar

• 2 teaspoons mustard seed

Make them sweet and spicy (my favorite)

• Add 1/4- 1/2 teaspoons of red pepper flakes to each jar (depending on how much spice you want)

Directions:

1. Wash jars and rinse cucumbers and onion. If they’re homegrown cucumbers be sure to rub off the spikes too.

2. Roughly chop onion and cut cucumbers how you’d like them — you can keep them whole if they’re pickling cucumbers or try quartering them or slicing for bread and butter pickles (my go-to)

3. Mix spices and vinegar mixture into bowl and stir well

4. Fill jars with cucumbers and a couple tablespoons of onion then top with pickling mixture

5. Put lids on jars and shake each a couple of times.

6. Put in refrigerator and shake each day for 2-3 days and then enjoy!

The pickles will be good in the fridge for about a month and I do want to note if you make spicy pickles they will get spicier the longer they’re in there so just keep that in mind.

Dill pickles

This recipe fills about 3 pints jars of pickles

• Couple of pounds of cucumbers

• 1.5 cups white vinegar or apple cider vinegar

• 2 cups water

• 1/8 cup of Kosher salt

• 2 tablespoons sugar (optional)

• 3 sprigs of fresh dill

• 6 garlic cloves

• 3 teaspoons dill seed

• 1.5 teaspoons black peppercorns

Make them spicy

• Add 1/4- 1/2 teaspoons of red pepper flakes to each jar (depending on how much spice you want)

• As an alternative, you can also add sliced jalapenos or serrano peppers to the jars

Directions:

1. Wash jars and rinse cucumbers. If they’re homegrown cucumbers be sure to rub off the spikes too.

2. Cut cucumbers how you’d like them — you can keep them whole if they’re pickling cucumbers or try quartering them or slicing for bread and butter pickles (my go-to)

3. Mix vinegar, water, salt, and sugar in a bowl until dissolved

4. Add a sprig of fresh dill, 2 garlic cloves, 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns and chili flakes (optional) to each jar. If you don’t have fresh dill you can double up on dill seed or if you’re in a pinch you can use dried dill it just makes the mix a little messier.

5. Fill jars with cucumbers and then top with pickling mixture

6. Put lids on jars and shake each a couple of times.

7. Put in refrigerator and shake each day for 2-3 days and then enjoy!

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience which means if you purchase something I recommend I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.

One of the reasons I fell in love with our townhouse when we first looked at it was the outdoor space! Boy have I been thankful we’ve had it during the pandemic too… Being able to eat dinner outside, read a book or get some fresh air while working… it’s been a blessing that’s for sure! Since we’ve been spending A LOT more time at home this summer than we had planned too I’ve been really focused… ahem, obsessed… with making the most of the space. All without spending an arm or a leg because ish is a little nuts right now and holy cow can outdoor furniture be expensive! 😳

So now that we’ve officially finished the space, you know I had to share how it turned out! Before we do that though, here’s a few before shots so you can see what we were working with. It’s definitely not a huge space so it was all about designing the space with function, making it fun and keeping that budget in check.

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There’s 3 main parts of our outdoor space, the patio, side yard and balcony — all of which needed some help! Throughout the winter and spring we started picking up a few things here or there, including our patio set that we got for a steal right after Christmas. I’m talking half the price! For the most part though, we needed to furnish all 3 areas.

The Patio

The one thing we had to start was our 4-piece conversation patio set! So we weren’t totally starting from scratch on this space. Evan also really had his heart set on getting a fire pit for the backyard. Our backyard is super tight so we definitely couldn’t have wood-burning ones but found a great propane option that was pretty affordable off of Amazon. Since we got that, we decided to use the table that came with the patio set more as a side table or bench if we need extra seating. If you get a fire pit, I highlight recommend one that has the metal cover too so it’s easy to cover for our many rainy Washington days.

Patio Set: Similar | Outdoor Pillows: Walmart | Outdoor Rug: Similar | Fire Pit: Amazon

Then for a few Costco buys! I had been looking for weeks for outdoor rugs that, again, weren’t ridiculously expensive and Evan found this one at Costco in the exact size we needed for $40 off! I wish I could link that for you guys but they’re out for the season. If you’re in the market for a new one next year though, definitely check them out because the quality is awesome! We had also got one of their outdoor light sets for Christmas that we hung from the fence. We just used little screw hooks on each fence post to keep things simple. The Costco light set is a great deal too because it’s 48-feet and they were less that $50. We ended up needing to get a smaller set to finish off the side yard and even on sale those were $30 and they were only 24-feet. So another thing to add to your Costco list!

BBQ: Lowe’s | Patio Lighting: Similar

Evan’s family also gifted us this amazing BBQ as a housewarming gift! Which has made the backyard 10 times better than any decor we could have done! This is on the other side of the main patio kind of in the corner between the side yard. Then we finished off the space with a few plants, of course! I had got a flat of marigolds for the garden and my flower boxes in the front of the hose so we filled up a few more pots with those and then Evan really wanted to get a Japanese Maple tree in honor of Scoots so he picked up that little guy! In a few years it will probably be the perfect height to fill up that space too.

The Balcony

For the balcony, we decided to keep things really simple and keep that budget in check. I went back and forth on some different options but decided to save on this portion and we went with a few stackable chairs from Home Depot. Then I added a little signature Anna color to the space with an outdoor mat and some throw pillows I found at Michaels on clearance. Evan also found the side table on clearance which finished up the space perfectly! Now we can enjoy weekend mornings out there watching the hummingbirds.

3 Piece Patio Conversation Set: Rattan Set Amazon | Rocking Chair Set: Amazon

The Side Yard

This one was the toughest part! I was so torn on what to do with this space. The side yard is pretty narrow — I’m talking 5 feet across so we definitely didn’t have too much space. I also didn’t want the space to just go to waste though! I must have went back and forth on 10 different ideas before finding reasons why they wouldn't work. After running through so many ideas, I had just decided to leave it as is for a dog run for Benji and figure something out next year 🙈. Evan knew I really wanted to do something with it though so for our anniversary he decided he was going to makeover the space for me!

The one thing I was really hoping for that space was having a place to lay down especially because it’s shaded over there for a lot of the day. Originally I was thinking a hammock, but we ran into the prob of the stands being too big and there’s concrete poured below so we wouldn’t be able to dig up for posts — like I said, so many ideas squashed! All that being said, he decided to build me an oversized bench! Then we had also gotten some pavers from my sister that they weren’t using so he put those in place, leveled out the space with more gravel and even got a little patch of grass for the corner for Benji!

Pavers: Home Depot | Pea Gravel: Home Depot | Large Pillows: Lowe's | Standard Pillows: Similar & Similar | Chaise Cushions: Lowe's | Cinder Blocks: Home Depot | Landscape Divider: Lowe's

The bench is 8 ft long and a little more than 2 feet across so plenty of space to lay down! We found a few different simple designs on Pinterest that we liked that were simple and didn’t involve too much construction. He built it out of interlocking cinder blocks and then some wood for the top part that he stained and sealed. Then to finish it off, I bought some cushions to make it extra cozy!

Since he made the bench, the size was a little bigger than most of the standard cushions so I ended up getting two chaise lounge cushions and then a few big outdoor pillows to mix in with some others I had already bought. All of the cushions and pillows were on clearance too so it was a major score! Can you believe those big pillows were only $13?! On top of the other smaller ones I got at Michaels for $7 a pop! If you’ve ever shopped for outdoor pillows you know that’s a steal!

Here’s a look from above too so you can really see we weren’t working with a lot of space there! overall I am SO dang happy with how the space turned out. I knew Evan would do a great job but it really exceeded my expectations and I’m so excited to spend more time in the backyard now that summer weather has finally arrived in Washington!

Shop the backyard

Well, it’s official. Apartment life is coming to an end… FOREVER! In the last 12 years I’ve lived in 7 different apartments in 4 different cities and 3 different states. And this apartment will likely be the last one I ever rent because we BOUGHT a place! Talk about closing a chapter! Before we start packing things up though I wanted to give our space one last hurray!

I don’t want to get too sentimental on you, but this apartment really meant a lot to us. Funny enough, when Evan first told me he wanted to move to Tacoma I joked that I didn’t know if I could date him if he moved there. I was totally kidding (okay, maybe half kidding), but let’s just say Tacoma was not on my radar. Shortly after, he moved into this apartment and little by little I started spending more time in the city, and dare I say I started to actually like it?! Sorry Tacoma… but you had quite the rep growing up and it wasn’t a good one. It turns out things have changed quite a bit though and I quickly learned why it’s actually a great place to live. After months of spending more time there than not, I made the jump and moved in.

There are a lot of things about the apartment that I really liked — the size, french doors, natural light, and the location were my favs. Located right next to Stadium High School, we were surrounded by gorgeous views and the water was just a few mile walk (one I did regularly). We also were right across the street from what would be some of my favorite restaurants. Surely, it was a much smaller neighborhood than any of my NYC apartments, but it had many of my favorite conveniences and felt familiar and new at the same time.

When it came to decor, most of our apartment was filled with neutrals with pops of color throughout. Then Evan let me take over the 2nd bedroom and turn it into my office/colorful guest room. We’re both not afraid of DIY projects so we took on a few for the apartment. One of the main ones being the dressers. Evan had picked the set up prior to us dating and we decided to give them a second life by painting them. We had also painted the bench prior, so both came together. Another DIY project was the guest bedroom bed frame. With the exception of a few furniture pieces, I was completely starting over after moving back west so I bought a bed frame for $25 off Facebook Marketplace. I really liked the industrial farmhouse vibes so with a few cans of spray paint I got the look I was going for! We definitely brought together a lot of eclectic pieces to make it feel like home for both of us.

I have to say, having a guest room and actual office was a game changer! After living in TINY apartments for most of the previous decade 850 sq ft felt massive! The office was, not surprisingly, my favorite part of the apartment for obvious reasons. It was so nice being able to have some neutral spaces for both of us but then also have my own creative space, especially since I work from home.

I also loved our kitchen! While in the scheme of things it was still on the smaller side, we maximized the space the best we could and spent a lot of time in there cooking. Plus, it was my first time having a full-sized oven since college which was SO nice! It’s the little things after living in the city haha!

Our building was also one of the oldest in the Stadium District and was actually used as the first hotel in the city at one point. Because of its age, it was filled with vintage charm (and let’s be honest quirks too) like our claw-foot tub. We also had beautiful marble floors in the bathroom and kitchen as well as fun retro pink striped tiles in the kitchen that I liked. It was a really solid apartment and there are definitely a lot of parts about it I’ll miss! It has had such a big role in our story and was a big reason why we ended up falling in love with Tacoma and for that, I’m so glad Evan decided to take a chance on it! Cheers to closing one chapter and starting another!