my problems

The title of this blog may be misleading... well, aside from the obvious issues I have.. you know, being me and all... I have some others.


We have lived in this house since Thanksgiving. Moved in the week before Thanksgiving to be exact. Then the holidays hit. Well, just this week we have officially been removed from the "holiday bubble" and are beginning to fare a somewhat normal life, whatever that is.


I decided that I have some problem areas in this house that I want advice and wisdom from you all about... so I'm going to post them, one by one, and see if you can help me out. K?


I was going to start with the simplest one... but the photo is too blurry. *&**%^$#^!!@ camera anyway. So, instead, I'm going to just go for the gusto and share a real issue with you... :)
WARNING: The photos you are about to see may be graphic and contain material not suitable for self-respecting organization freaks. They are actual unretouched photos.
The first area that drives me to insanity... is the mudroom. I had this brilliant idea of putting a bench in there...made by my husband... it is seriously great storage. I thought, hey, we can use that for storing mittens, hats, gloves, scarves, etc... and it would be a handy place to sit to tie your shoes and so on and so on... above it, I installed six hooks - one for each family member - to hold a coat (you know because they only wear ONE coat at a time and the rest of the coats will be in their closets neatly hung in their rooms).
As you can see from the photo, there are a dozen coats strewn on the wall, along with hats and such... and the bench below has now been filled with shoes, dance bags, baskets of items no put away, things that go to the goodwill and have not yet been taken... (I removed the tv and cat bowl before I took the photo)....
I'm not sure why the shoes are on the bench and not on the floor. Maybe someone just doesn't want their shoes on the floor.
soooooo...any suggestions? should I chuck the whole system and start over or just instill some new fear and wrath in anyone who doesn't follow the rules?


Comments

Heth said…
Fear and wrath for those who don't follow the rules.

I don't know if you guys have assigned "chores" or whatever you want to call them, but that could be someone's (not you) daily job, to straighten up the mudroom. Rotate it so they all have to have a turn, maybe that will make them more conscience of where they put their stuff. I also say add more hooks. It looks like you have room for it.

And if you think that looks bad, come on over, I can show you a "mudroom" that will make you shudder.
Saturday, January 13, 2007 2:19:00 PM
Anonymous said…
From my experience, there should be way more than six hooks. Maybe six hooks PER MEMBER? ha, ha. But more. And more shelf type places- the cubby-hole kind of things. And an alarm that goes off when someone puts their shoes on the bench,
and an hidden boot that comes out from the door and kicks them in the rear if they leave a mess as they leave the room,
and a security camera for evidence at family meetings....

What a wonderful problem to have. What a precious family.
Monday, January 15, 2007 11:32:00 AM
Sarah said…
I think the other two are right. It's a good start and maybe every week you could have the whole family come in there and claim their items. Even the most beautifully organized spots don't keep themselves clean; they need our help to stay that way. :)
Monday, January 15, 2007 2:06:00 PM
Amy Flege said…
heck add some baskets for each person to put their crap into! then you dont have to see it and it at least looks organized!
Tuesday, January 16, 2007 11:37:00 PM
Amie said…
LOVE the rotate it as a daily job - I second that.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007 1:54:00 PM
Diane Viere said…
Love the idea of baskets....wicker baskets are decorative and hold a multitude of sins--I mean mittens, scarves and hats!

Actually--I live by the one and only rule that mudrooms and general vacinity...are gonna get a little murkey....so don't fret--just see the beauty in the lives those jackets keep warm!

Diane
Wednesday, January 17, 2007 7:46:00 PM
leighdrea said…
hmmm. well you have all these great ideas. when are you gonna do it? ever? :0)
Sunday, January 21, 2007 12:32:00 PM
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