Day 23: The Opposite of Progress

I've decided that children are the very like those magical elves that come into the cobbler's workshop at night and make all the shoes for him. . . except in reverse.

This morning I got up (late, we accidentally slept in and my 5yr old nearly missed getting to school on time) with the express desire to clean up the general disarray.

This clean up effort is in contrast to the organizing of specific areas I have been tackling on this blog. They are important to the overall functionality of the house, but they have merely scratched the surface of our day to day detritus.

As I was cleaning, I swear someone was making messes behind me. My own little elf (or two). Of course, I can't blame the kids for everything (except for the matchbox car "parked" in the hallway waiting to commit vehicular homicide AND for the stickiness of the remote control), but today I only tread water. I am no more ahead than when I started.

I will try again tomorrow.

Day 22: More Kitchen Joy

I know I said I was going to work on the Mail Problem yesterday, but that didn't happen. Something else EVEN BETTER occurred. :)

I got to go to the Container Store [contented sigh].

I escaped the house (alone) ostensibly to go to Target for a handful of essentials (soap and stuff), but I passed the CS along the way, and I knew that's where I'd end up. I scored a couple of clearance deals at Target on some organizational items - one of which I'll reveal in an upcoming photo. Then having met my basic household obligations, I headed to the Container Store.

I'd been eyeing this one door solution online but hadn't pulled the trigger on it because I'd seen others in blogland achieve a similar result with cheaper items (like wire baskets for $1 at the DollarTree). However, after a couple of weeks keeping my eyes peeled for these items at my own dollar/discount store and coming up empty, I decided it was time to just lay down the money for the Elfa system. Upside, they're having their annual Elfa sale, so I got it 30% off. Here is the end result:

The only mishap was when I bopped myself in the face with one of the baskets at the store while trying out the fastening system. Fortunately, no one saw that and the bruise is pretty small.

Isn't it beautiful? They have a variety of basket sizes and depths to choose from that just simply hook into the holes that run the entire length of the bracket bar. Very customizable. You see I put all my spices in there, and I actually have empty space. [gasp]

That freed up a drawer for odds and ends. I used my clearance Target drawer organizer here:

The trick will be if I can keep this collection so spare . . . hmmm.

Which allowed me to dismantle the near permanent counter installation I pictured in a previous post. Here's what it looks like this morning:

Yes, my dirty dishes are there on the left.

It's like some amazing domino effect. I can't wait to try hiding something else on the back of another door or cabinet. ;)

And before anyone gets carried away thinking that my home life is nearing perfection, let me derail that assumption with is little picture:

Day 21: Dare I Tackle the Mail?

I'm now completely out of order with my blog as compared to the inspirational site (CGIH) and it's 31 days to an organized home.

I've pretty much skipped 6 days of organizing in the last 21, but considering my track record for finishing projects I think I'm doing pretty well.

I read a quote once in a magazine that said "Finished is better than Perfect," and that's my unofficial mantra right now.

So, I looked back at a few of the postings that I missed during my "off" days, and one of them had to do with creating an "Action File" for all the papers that enter the home.

I like this idea, but I've never had real luck with instituting it. However, I think I'm going to give it another go.

Now that I've written this down and put it out there, I'm hoping that I actually finish the project.

For further inspiration, I am reposting the photo of my current mail "solution" in the house -- also known as "wherever it happens to land."

Day 20.5: I Got the Paint on the Walls and Nobody Died

It's here! The long awaited After photo of my kids'/guest bathroom.

I spent much of this project fighting my habit of cutting corners and not doing everything I know I should do. Things like:

- get all your materials ready before beginning (aka: don't wait to slop paint on the floor before going to get a wet rag or paper towel)

- cover anything you don't want to have to clean later. Even the tidiest painter (not me) will end up with those itty bitty paint drops here and there that the roller throws off while you're covering the big areas.

- if you have to stop and come back later to finish the job (you know, so you can tend to your long-neglected family), clean your brushes or rollers thoroughly. Or at least wrap with a wet paper towel and seal securely with foil any brush or roller you're using. Key words are "wet" and "securely." Otherwise, don't expect to come back three days later and just pick up where you left off.

These are all things I know. I pretty much grew up with either paint brush or a rake in my hand. Indoors and Outdoors, my parents were the original DIY couple, and all of us kids were expected to participate.

It is some kind of miracle this is done. I say "done" even though ALL of the baseboards need replacing due to excessive bathtime (and -er . . . toilet) splashing. But the fact that I did the painting while my children were home (albeit playing lots of Minecraft) -- and the only incident so far is when my three year old busted in doing the potty dance, placed his hand on the freshly painted wall, and then tried to wipe it off on one of my good hand towels -- is nothing short of amazing. I didn't lose my head (so neither did he), although I think I made a strangled noise that sorta startled him. I call this a minor incident. 

Anyway. Here's the picture:

AND! Now that it's done, my kids can take a bath again ;) 

Day 20: (There is no 19)

I have discovered the secret to a beautiful home. . . Yep.

I know you are all on the edge of your seats (while I pretend to build suspense).

Ready?

Flowers. Fresh flowers.

I have decided that no matter how grungy a countertop, if there's a vase of fresh flowers sitting upon it, the magic of misdirection happens. The flowers pull focus from the dust and the crumbs, and even the stacked plates waiting their turn in the dishwasher seem less like a project unfinished and more like an art installation.

Ok, I went to far with that last part.

Anyway, I spent yesterday doing humdrum household tasks (changing sheets! Argh!... etc), so I bought myself flowers. Totally worth it.

Between that and some sunshine after all the ice and snow, I was ready to get back into Operation Bathroom Makeover.

Almost there. Hope to have a picture for you tonight!

Day 18: Nothing to See Here

Seriously, no progress occurred today. day three of Snowpocalypse 2014 is getting me down.

Hoping for better tomorrow.

Day 17 (-5): The Lights Are Still On

Today was day two of our Snowpacalyse 2014, and my boys were home as well as my husband.

I tried to keep the hollering to a minimum (mine) and the cabin fever at bay.

Something about thinking the power was going to go out any minute made me feel like I had to get Everything done.

So while my boys binged on PBSkids, I flitted back and forth between projects. 

Operation Bathroom Makeover is ongoing. I didn't get a before shot (conveniently), so I'll save the pictures for the end. For anyone with young boys and also who is not superwoman, you can use your imagination. 

Painting has commenced. And I managed to not spill gobs of it as I balanced this task whilst trying to control the shrieking (the kids" - not mine) during my husband's business call. 

I do have a picture (or two) for you, though. After I gave up trying to finish the painting today with all the ruckus and responsibilities, I moved my attention to my pot cabinet. I usually HATE it, but I've been gazing at it lovingly this evening. It's saying, "Hey, maybe this house isn't run by monkeys after all!" or even "Perhaps a responsible adult does live here."

:)

Before - eeeeek!

After - ahhhh!