Monday, August 8, 2011

I Can Probably Do This

The lovely ladies at Like Mother, Like Daughter have a series of posts on The Reasonably Clean House.  They write there that they write for people like themselves "who would rather be reading than cleaning."  Oh, yes, sign me up :)  Today they are hosting a link up of entryways and what good timing - I've been meaning to deal with all that (again.)  So here's what I've got. 

Here's where we started (today anyway.)  Not really so bad but it's such a small space that once stuff starts piling up we're doomed.  One of the biggest trouble with apartment living is lack of storage space, including no porch or garage for strollers and wagons.  And messy boots in bad weather but that's not a problem at the moment.  And we have a number of strollers.  These here are our two doubles and our new (to us) wagon.  I love FreeCycle, the source of the second double and the wagon, as well as another umbrella stroller, and as totally useful as they are we still need to find space to store them. 

There is also the trouble of not being able to get into the hall closet to, I don't know, put jackets and such away on account of the stroller parking.  And inside the closet there is also the bin of wrapping paper, broken stroller that hasn't made it to the dumpster yet, pieces of our too-large-for-our-dining-room table, and the play yard that we put up around the Christmas tree to protect it and the boys from each other.  Just so you know my excuse reasoning for not putting any of it in there. 

Here's looking from the bedroom doorway.  Yes, our bedrooms are right inside the front door.  Strange.  And I don't much like it but I don't much get a choice.  Like probably everyone else we tend to walk in and dump whatever we have with us.  Sometimes out of necessity, taking off little shoes and speeding the into the bathroom process or putting perishables away in the fridge really are at the top of my important stuff to do list.  And I'll admit, sometimes we dump just because it seems so much easier than going to the effort of putting it away.  And with a long hallway it tends to collect quite a collection along the wall of things being transferred from one place to another, either in the apartment or to go bye-bye.  

And here is what our entryway looks like at the moment.  Granted, I cannot guarantee it will still look like this by the time you are reading this post but it looks like this as I type.  (Because it's rest time and Littler has passed out on the couch and Bigger is watching Charlotte's Web *chosen because we are reading it,* eating goldfish crackers and cheese, and looking at a Berenstain Bears book.  What can I say, he's my kid.) 

Anyway, we got the broken stroller to the dumpster.  And on the way one of the unbroken wheels fell off.  Good timing, huh?  And as long as we were in there I hung up the jacket and stuffed the smaller double stroller into the closet.  The bigger one is still broken, which reminds me I need to remember to call to order new wheels later this week...  Sorry, passing thought, had to write it down in hopes of remembering.  Broken or not, it doesn't currently fit in the closet because the play yard is there - but that will be going to stay at my parents' house to help corral their kitties or to protect their stuff from the kitties, whichever works for them, they'll get more use of it than we will for the time being.  But once it's gone I'm hoping the bigger stroller will live in there.  At least most of the time. 

The rack there is actually designed for CDs/DVDs.  But that is so a bad plan with the boys - Bigger loved nothing more than pulling them all out and dumping them around.  Great, scratches and mess everywhere.  So we re- purposed them.  This one catches stuff at the door and holds our play quilts.  There is another in our bedroom that perfectly holds paperbacks.  No, these are not quilts I've made but were given in bins of hand-me-downs from an aunt and uncle -in-law whose boys are growing up; one is even old enough to have his own Facebook page!  

Note to self: need to get some goo-gone to get those stickers up off the floor.  I'm not sure where they found them but they have way more stick than the ones the boys usually can get a hold of.  I'd love to find somewhere better to keep shoes but am at a loss.  We try to take shoes off when we come in but given where the door is everything is still tracked all over.  I'm also not sure how I'll handle switching the art work when the school year starts - our hallway decor is all thanks to preschool.  Part of me hates to take it down but there is really only so much that we can have up at a time.  Unless we wanted to paper the entire apartment in it...  but I don't think anyone but the boys would really go for that. 

I'm feeling pretty accomplished.  Who knows how long it will last but I'll take it while I've got it :)  It's amazing what a difference a little tidying makes.  With all the decluttering I've been doing lately the whole place is feeling so much more peaceful, even with toys strewn all over.  Just watch out for those little wooden trains, they hurt like the dickens if you step on one, say, on the mat in front of the sink. 

11 comments:

Rosie said...

Looks great! Smart use of the DVD shelf - as soon as I saw it in your "before" picture, I thought, "that looks like a really useful thing to have by the door!"

Leila said...

You did a great job tidying! I have a huge house but no coat closet. I find that HOOKS are the best thing ever. Children just can't hang things on hangers, but they CAN manage a hook, and you can have a row down low and one above for grownups.

If you put the hooks into a piece of wood and fasten that to the wall, they are very sturdy!

thanks for joining!

Camille said...

It's refreshing, if even for a moment, isn't it? :-)

You see that door next to your art work? Can you hang a shoe holder on it? We had such an issue with shoes (5 of us with at least 3 pair of shoes at the door at one time!). It finally dawned on me to take an over the door shoe holder and I put it on my laundry room door near the entryway (I should have shown it in my post!). Even the two year old now puts his shoes away. Just an idea for you! It wouldn't be pretty, but maybe one on the outside of your bedroom door...? It looks great!

Mrs. Fordyce said...

You made a big difference! Looks good! I find baby stuff one of the hardest things to store. Strollers and play yards and swings are SO bulky, and you don't want to get rid of them in between children. Love the art work hanging in your entryway!

alanna rose said...

Great job!
Aren't double strollers the best? I'm not sure how women did anything before they were invented, we take ours everywhere.
I have to second Leila, hooks are great.
Love the art, too, it's always so hard to take down, isn't it?

Lindsey Gallant said...

I know what you mean about no garage or storage space for strollers, etc.! I'm thinking about some hooks for my hallway too now...

justamouse said...

What is it with kids putting stickers on the floors! And that artwork is precious. It looks fantastic.

Emily said...

Wow it looks great! I've been using old CD racks for books, too. Everything has at least one purpose, and if it can be re-purposed, all the better!

I like the stickers in the entryway (sorry!). I think it's neat.

MamaHen said...

Wow, you did great! I love the feeling of having something accomplished like that.

I agree, hooks would be great and maybe a short bookcase or big covered basket to put shoes in right by the door.

Emily (Laundry and Lullabies) said...

My favorite part of your entry is all the kid art on the wall! :)

Sarah said...

Great job girl! You should be proud!