So the army has been gracious enough to let me borrow furniture since I moved here but apparently civilians only get to use them for 90 days.  I got the call that they are coming to pick up everything next week- which will leave my house virtually empty again :(  So back to the drawing board and back to Ikea I went.  Ikea was actually a pretty nice experience this time since I went on a Monday when most Germans were working.  Unfortunately just about everything specific I was looking for, they were out of so I had to improvise.  I got two new shelves and a big bookcase- which I realized only when I got home that the wood was different colors.  Oh well, I'm going to have to make due since it's way to much of a hassle to return or exchange.  Tonight I decided to tackle one of my new bookcases.

I discovered just how many parts this bookcase has when I realized I could not carry this huge box upstairs by myself so I had to take each piece out and carry it in separately.  What I would give for a big, strong man right about now!

Maybe a little bit of wine and Dr. Horrible's Sing along blog (shout out NPH!) might just help.  No one will notice if the bookshelf is a little crooked, right?

but not quite- out of 23 step directions, I'm only on 14.  Why did I have to go for the fancy bookcase with a sliding door on the bottom shelf?

3 hours, 25 screws, 40 nails, 5 thumb smashings with a hammer, 2 splinters and a few choice words later, my masterpiece is done!!