Oh Ikea, You're My Favorite

This Christmas, I was given a couple Ikea gift cards, so yesterday I took a trip to the nearest Ikea and tried to control myself.  That place is dangerous!  I was very well behaved, only buying items that we actually need.  There were a couple items I wanted to help organize our apartment a little better, but they are specific to this apartment, and I only wanted to purchase things that can be used in any future living situation.

The first piece of furniture I looked for (and immediately found) was a shelving unit for the pets’ food bowls.  We have to keep the cats’ food up high so that Colbert won’t eat it, but it also has to be located near Colbert’s food bowls because the cats eat his food too.  By having their food near his, I can pick them up and move them to their own food when they start eating Colbert’s.  They also only drink out of Colbert’s water bowl (even when they have fresh water right next to their food), so that’s another reason why the cats’ bowl needs to be near Colbert’s.

Prior to my Ikea trip, we were keeping their bowl on top of the washing machine.  For obvious reasons, I wanted to find an alternative solution to this.  This shelving unit works perfectly.  It fits right where Colbert’s bowls were already located, and the shelf for the cats is just high enough that Colbert can’t reach it, but not too high that it’s difficult for them to jump up to.  It is also the exact depth of their food mat, giving them plenty of room to both be up there at the same time.

Another item I purchased was something I had not planned on getting: a carpet for the living room.  When I was walking through the textiles area, I noticed this rug for only $20.  I knew the size would fit the living room, and I loved the neutral color and pattern.  I had thought about a rug there before, because Colbert has difficulty on hardwood floors and I like the idea of warming up the most-used room in the apartment, but typically they are very expensive.  The appealing price tag on this one, though, had me sold.

I also bought some other items for the bedroom, laundry area, and the kitchen, but I’ll discuss those another time.  Until then, here’s a picture of Pat and Colbert playing with one of the Ikea boxes.