We made it though February! Heading into March is always a good thing. Spring is right around the corner and I’m feeling incredibly motivated to finish organizing everything on my challenge list. Once the weather is warm and evenings start staying lighter longer I just want to be outside! Now is the time to get things in order inside the house. If you’re working your way through the organizing challenge with me don’t give up! Commit to just working on a little bit each day.. even just 15 minutes makes a difference! On our way to an organized home. :)
*You can find challenge details and this free printable HERE. I finished a lot of my closet to-do’s last week (my closet is still a work in progress) and I’m moving into bedrooms. Goal is to finish my closet before April.. it has been a lot of work!)
I’m wrapping up the month with my February Amazon Buys! You can tell I’ve been doing lots of organizing and decorating by the Amazon purchases this month. :) You’ll be seeing a lot of these items popping up in future posts! I picked up some beautiful trays and decorative boxes I’ve had my eye on for quite a while to use for shelf styling. I needed more of my favorite to-do sticky notes..I love the little “to do” “to buy,” “to put off,” etc. They are so fun. I use the “to remember” notes a lot with my kids. I left something in El’s car for her at school that she needed a few months ago with a little “to remember: your mom loves you and is proud of you” note and she saved it. Made me smile when I saw it on her bedroom mirror. :) When I tackled my kitchen during the organizing challenge I tossed all of our old mismatched glasses/cups and ordered new clear every day drinking glasses on Amazon.. we’ve loved them! We were due. Some of our old cups were around when my girls were toddlers! The two coffee table books were from my husband for Valentine’s Day. I’ve wanted them for a while.. he knows me well! :) Lately my favorite way to relax is to watch a show while I’m flipping through one of my home decor coffee table books. They are always so inspiring to me! I picked up a few other kitchen organizers that you’ll see in more detail soon! And we were out of our electronic cleaning duster. :)
It was a fun Amazon delivery month! For my boys too because they ordered lots of cool things for their fish tank. I just didn’t think you’d care too much about those items. ;) Fish are doing well by the way. We lost two and Kole was heartbroken (RIP Sunshine and Edward). Thankfully my fish Gilmore is swimming strong. Kole is feeling better after a trip to the fish store this weekend to pick up a few new friends. I feel like we need an Edward 2 (team Edward from Twilight forever). I also suggested Paul Anka to be besties with Gil (if you’re a Gilmore Girls fan.. you know ;)) but Kole isn’t feeling it. I’ll keep working on him.
*This post is sponsored by Walmart. All product selections and opinions are my own!
Who is ready for warm weather!? In the Fall I’m always incredibly jealous of those of you who get to experience the changing leaves and Fall in all of her glory! I start dreaming about moving to the East Coast or to northern Utah by my sister where I can wear sweaters 24/7 and over the knee boots and sip apple cider by the fire. Then before I know it the holidays have come and gone and it’s mid February. San Diego starts showing off with warm, beautiful sunny days here and there and I remember that I’m actually quite content right where I am. ;)
Every year around this time I start getting excited for Spring and Summer and days spent by the pool! It’s also when I start planning anything I want to change/add to our yard and my front porch to welcome the new season. I’m planting a few more rose bushes and one more lemon tree! (You can never have too many lemons in my book.) I’m also adding some furniture in our backyard and the first items I ordered came a few days ago. I was so excited for fun mail! I opened the boxes, laid everything out, looked at the multi-step directions.. and then called Kenny. :) Really this wasn’t hard to put together at all, but he can do this type of thing so much faster than me that I’ve found my skills are better used elsewhere.
Like looking for the frogs that are hiding in our water fountain with Kole which is what I did while Kenny put everything together.
Each chair comes in a set with the matching ottoman and I LOVE the canopy! Our back yard bakes in the summer with non-stop sun and I’m so excited that these chairs are covered. I can keep my face out of the sun and my legs in the sun which is usually what I prefer when I’m sitting poolside. :) We love our lounge chairs, but when the pool is full of kids and friends it will be so nice to have this extra seating.
I’m going to put these in the front facing the pool (I just turned them this way because I couldn’t photograph them very well from the water!) so I decided to anchor them with a rug. I ordered two options to try.. this navy geometric outdoor rug.
and this cute multi-colored striped rug. So happy and fun for summer! I love them both – great price, great quality and I’m excited about the cute patterns for summer. Originally I was going to return one of them, but I decided to keep the navy rug by the pool since that works so well with our umbrellas and the outdoor pillows we already have and I’m going to use the striped rug on the back porch or on my girls’ balcony.
Ok.. back to these chairs. They are so comfortable! They are also wide so two kids could easily share one.
My favorite part is the detail on the side. Those wicker loops and circles! And the tassels on the canopy!? SOLD. Details like that get me every time. :)
The cushions are made with fade-resistant and stain-repellent fabric so they should hold up well. I will put them to the test and report back!
I was snapping these pictures and before I knew it two little heads were popping up in my photos. I couldn’t believe Kole and his buddy jumped in.. that water is ICE COLD right now. They only lasted a few seconds before hitting the hot tub. BRRRR. Our sun is making an appearance and flowers are starting to bloom, but we aren’t quite pool ready yet!
I took this picture a little later in the evening when the sun was starting to set so that you can see a better look at the rug. I’m so bummed it doesn’t come in a 9×12! This is exactly what I want for our outdoor seating area. Hunt is still on for that space.
Chairs are now turned the right way ;) and Addison and I have been testing them out. She and Ellie are trying to convince me that they need these chairs on their deck upstairs, but for now they are staying put! I’m very excited about planting right here this summer – just me and my Coke Zero and a good decorating book. A little slice of heaven on earth. BRING ON THE SUN! We are now officially ready.
Walmart has so many cute options for outdoor furniture this year! I rounded up a few more favorites below. I’m thinking about picking up a couple more items that match these chairs for the lower back deck.. this set is just speaking to me! My birthday is right around the corner and I think I just found what I’m asking my husband for.
Assembly required too babe. Don’t worry.. I’ll help Kole find ALL of the frogs.
Sharing some simple styling today! Things have been a little quiet around here today after a fun weekend that had a not so fun ending! We took the kids to Palm Springs for the long weekend. It’s just 2 hours away from us and a quick and easy escape. We had beautiful, warm desert weather and spent most of the trip relaxing at the pool and just enjoying low key family time.
One morning we took Kole to the zoo (girls passed and stayed at the pool) but he loved it. It’s a great zoo by the way if you have kids and are ever visiting the area. This guy just looks happy doesn’t he? Not a care in the world. :)
Overall it was a great trip. Our last night there we took the kids out to dinner, spent some time after in the hot tub, came back to our room and watched a movie together and then went to bed. At 1:00 am I woke up SO sick. Long story short I got food poisoning! It must have been something I ate at dinner. Oh my word.. honestly one of the worst nights of my life. I was violently ill and I’ll spare you the gory details but at 5 am Kenny finally called an ambulance because I kept passing out. I spent the rest of the day in the emergency room. I was fine once it was out of my system and I had fluids in me again but wow. What a horrible night! I’m so sad too because the bad food was from one of my favorite restaurants and I don’t think I can ever eat there again! That’s the worst isn’t it!?
Anyway.. I’m so grateful to be home and feeling good again! I hope you had a nice long weekend that didn’t involve the emergency room. Clearly I like to keep things interesting. Ha.
On to some fun styling because that’s WAY more fun to talk about right!? :) I’m loving my console table at the moment! I was a little torn on what to do with it because I’m ready for light and bright and Spring, but I’m also loving the dark, moody vibes that are trending and with the black pendant lights in my kitchen so close to this table I wanted to make sure everything was flowing and working together. I think I found a good combo!
I put some faux cherry blossoms in a favorite vase (I love faux cherry blossoms this time of year!) and then added my pretty scalloped bowl with my chain link.
Then I ordered this canvas that I could not love more! It’s so beautiful and looks a lot more expensive than it was. I love that it has darker tones/colors but also some soft pinks and lots of white. A perfect way to create a moody vibe that still feels like Spring!
This shelf just makes me smile when I walk by it now. I love that about decorating and organizing. So easy to create happy little moments throughout your home. I of course have some unhappy moments too (a few rooms in my house are a hot mess!) but we’ll just focus on this shelf and the console table for now.
Happy Saturday! Yea for the weekend. A long weekend for some! My kids are out of school Monday and Tuesday (Kole is out all next week!) so we’re excited to enjoy a little family time and break from the routine. When I shared my face steamer in my powder bathroom in my last blog post I got lots of questions about the faux flowers in this space and realized I never shared these pics on the blog. So for those of you asking, here is my pink bathroom in all of her February glory.. links included. :)
I’m sharing a few cute tops and some great weekend sales! This ruffled chambray buttondown is a bit of a splurge but CUTE. Fits true to size (a great fit!) and I personally love the ruffle top. Obviously the color spoke to me. :)
It’s the same color as the bag I’ve been using since November. Have I shared this yet? It deserves a post all of it’s own! That’s how much I adore this bag. I’ve owned this beloved Madewell transport tote for years (Nordstrom carries this similar option with a zipper.. I personally don’t like the zipper). It has been such a staple for me for so long that when I saw the same bag in this green canvas my heart skipped a beat. I was going to ask for it for Christmas but couldn’t wait! So it came early from Kenny. He just didn’t know about it. Ha. (I’m tricky like that.) I own some cute small bags that I love to take when I’m going out on a date or with friends (a little more dressy), but for every day running around Madewell totes are so convenient! They fit EVERYTHING and are so easy to just toss things into. This canvas bag also has a huge pocket in the front (perfect for phone and keys so I can always find them) and a zipper pocket inside with a smaller pocket in front of that (perfect for lip gloss or whatever.) Plus it’s just so cute.. army green! With those leather straps! As you all know most of the clothes I wear are pretty casual and this bag just works with my wardrobe. Green top with jeans? Good. Black top with jeans? Good.
Speaking of black tops.. one more favorite from Antho. Looks like the black sold out but it also comes in white and moss green! I’ve been going back and forth on getting the green too because it’s such a cute, flattering, comfortable top! But my sister always tells me I’m not allowed to buy anymore green tops so I’m pausing.. (Car be proud I’m at least waiting a while before I go ahead and buy another one.. progress.).
Speaking of green tops I’m not supposed to buy.. oops. One more. :) Cutest puff shoulder sweatshirt! It comes in a couple of other colors too. I was wearing it in IG stories one day and got so many questions about it so I snapped this pic in my car to post with the link while I was waiting for Kole to finish tennis. It was evening so the lighting isn’t great.. color is really a deep green like the Nordstrom pic shows it. Also this initial pendant necklace is one of our favorites (Addison wears hers every day to school) and it’s 60% off – just $15 right now! I’ve never seen it so low. Not all letters are still in stock. I just ordered a few that were in stock for friend gifts. SCORE on that one.
If you are looking at larger home purchases (furniture.. couch, bed, mirror, coffee table, barstools, etc.) President’s Day weekend sales are some of the best for items like that! I rounded up sale favorites below from a few stores I always check out! Things I already have and love that you’ll recognize along with a few things I wish I had! :) I also found some cute sale items from Loft. I don’t shop on-line there often, but maybe I need to start. They carry one of my favorite brands of lounge wear (LOU & GREY) so I went down the rabbit hole on their website the other night looking for sweat pants and found a few really cute items on sale.
I hope these picks are helpful! Enjoy the start of your weekend! First up on my Saturday morning agenda is to finish de-cluttering a closet or two (still chipping away at my organizing challenge to-do list!). Then it’s time to relax and play. I hope you can do the same.
I hope you all had a good Valentine’s Day this week! Kenny took the afternoon off and surprised me with a drive and lunch. So nice because our evenings are always just divide and conquer with the kids’ activities and I wasn’t planning on going out or doing anything. Then Addison had a choir concert and sang the song “Like my Father” (I need a man who loves me like my father loves my mom.) Have you heard that song!? It’s so beautiful and we both teared up while she was singing. Ok.. Kenny teared up. I was full on SOBBING. Ad said the song reminded her of us.. the sweetest. Kenny and I are celebrating 25 years together in 2022 and I honesty can’t even believe it! I’ve spent more than half of my life with my husband.. HOW are we old enough for that!?
And yet.. we are. :)
I always re-read this past post on 10 ways we keep our marriage strong this time of year. I wrote that post 5 years ago and we are still consistently doing the things I mentioned. Our marriage certainly isn’t perfect, but we must be on to something because overall we are pretty happy. High school sweethearts beating the odds! Going a little crazy while we do it.. but still. :)
(If you visit that post and have a tip, leave it in the comment section! I love reading about how other couples stay happy (and sane) together too.)
Kole had a good Valentine’s Day too! With his tennis court box and Christmas socks. This kid is living his best life. Ha.
On to a few recent favorites! I’ve shared our beloved face steamer before and I know many of you now have one and love it too. Vanity Planet recently came out with one that includes 6 different settings (hot and cold) that is next level! Addison and I love this thing too much. I just leave it out on my bathroom counter and recently I’ve been steaming a little to wake up in the morning! I’m not a morning person and waking up is always a struggle for me (wonder why after hitting “publish” on most blog posts after 1 am..). This wakes me up and feels SO good on my face in the morning! The steam opens all of my pores and hydrates my skin and just helps me feel better about facing the day. My make-up goes on better too. It’s like having your own little spa in your home!
Comes in a black too! Vanity Planet let me offer my IG friends a discount and I asked if they would extend it a little longer for anyone who missed my IG stories but reads my blog. If you order through THIS LINK you will get my discount along with a free gift! (Reusable face rounds in a little mesh bag.. you’ll see it when you check out.) This steamer also makes a great gift for women of all ages (teens too). I’m not sure how long my discount will last so don’t wait if you want one!
I’ve been on the hunt for a couple of new trees for my home and so far I really love these 3 options. The Eucalyptus tree in the middle I’ve had for a while (the trees I put on my green & white Fall porch!). The other two are new options. I would definitely recommend any of them! They all have very realistic trunks and leaves and look beautiful everywhere I set them. I want a tree that is a little taller for this corner in my family room so I just ordered this faux ficus tree to try in that spot. I’ll let you know where they all land as soon as I figure that out!
These are a few other recent Target favorites I’m using to style my home. That round rattan tray is so beautiful! I’m obsessed with the table lamp too. It landed in my office. :)
Along with faux trees Target also had the BEST selection of faux plants this year. I sorted through lots and found some REALLY good options. This jasmine and these ferns are so realistic! I love the pots they come in too.
The jasmine was so pretty I picked up a few extras to give as gifts and just gave one to my friend Amy on her birthday. In my opinion it’s so much better than sending real flowers that die! Something a friend or neighbor or teacher can enjoy in their home for years. It’s no secret I am team FAUX plants and flowers. ALL. THE. WAY.
I’ve done enough damage with real plants to last a lifetime. The plants and I are BOTH over it. Ha.
These are 3 other beautiful and realistic options! I’m so excited to show you where these all landed in my home. They brought in so much warmth! A little taste of Spring is always the best this time of year isn’t it!? I’ll share everything here styled in my home soon!
Right now.. I need to get some sleep. Kole has to be to school early for play practice and my steamer (while it works wonders on my tired face) can only do so much.
Happy Friday! I hope you’ve all had a good week! I finally wrapped up my kitchen organization. I seem to be taking two weeks per space so I’m totally behind on my own organization challenge living proof of how you can tweak this challenge to work for you.
I’ve shared this space before.. it’s one that I work to keep clean and organized daily! My best tip when it comes to keeping your pantry clean is spending a few minutes on it every time you bring in new groceries. I always unload our groceries, toss boxes and empty packages in the recycle bin, toss anything else from the pantry that is garbage (empty sacks, expired items, etc.) and then I straighten things and quickly vacuum crumbs out of the baskets and drawers. It has become such a routine/habit for me that I don’t even think about it! I just naturally do it every time I bring in new food.
Because of that I didn’t have to do too much in this space. I basically just followed my routine this week to tidy things up and then I snapped some pics with my phone to share! I’ve been using this beloved handheld vac to hit my drawers quickly and absolutely love it. It’s so small and is perfect for drawer crumbs!
I even organized our treat drawer. Every home needs one. ;) It made me smile when I saw all the green and purple Blow Pop suckers. My girls and I love them but we all 3 like the red ones best! You’ll never find a watermelon, cherry or strawberry sucker in this drawer because we eat them so fast and then just have purple and green leftover. Ha.
This pic of our top pantry drawers was taken years ago!
So I also smiled when I took pictures the same drawers this week.. my kids are older but snacks around here haven’t changed much.
Kole still eats Ramen noodles at least once a week. Creatures of habit at my house. ;) And I still swear by my drawer dividers for spaces like this! I use different drawer dividers in my closet drawers too and love them. They are perfect for separating items without taking away drawer space.
The main pantry update I wanted to share with you all today is my Ziploc bag drawer! It’s one drawer I continually have to straighten because it usually looks like this with my kids getting in and out of it so much for lunches and snacks they take to school.
I found a couple of fun Ziploc back organizers on-line and ordered two different sets to try. I ordered this set that isn’t available anymore (I linked a similar set above) and I wasn’t sure how much room they would take up in my drawer. I tried laying them in a square like this.
Then I played around with a few other arrangements.
They basically took up the same amount of space as this similar organizer that has everything in one box. My second option! I decided to go with this because I knew my kids would move the individual boxes around and there was a better chance things would stay put together with this organizer.
Plus we never buy quart sacks! And we always have TONS of sandwich bags so I like that with this box I could label them how I wanted to and use two openings for sandwich bags. Is this organizer not GENIUS!? Seriously why did I not invent this? The top slides off so you can place the bags in their individual spaces and then it slides right back on and bam! You can now easily pull one Ziploc bag out and everything else stays in place. Words can’t express my love for this organizer! After I had this beautiful set up going on I had to find something to store my tin foil and saran wrap. I mean why mess with perfection!?
So I ordered this too. Ahhhhh! When I stood back to look at my drawer after adding the foil/plastic organizer the angels were singing so loud the heavens opened! Seriously brilliant. Not only does it store tin foil and plastic wrap nicely but is also has a little cutter that cuts them perfectly too! DAY YEAR MADE. I wanted to order this dispenser & cutter with 3 slots so that I could fit my parchment paper also, but it was too large to fit in my drawer. I was bummed for about one minute until I asked myself when was the last time I actually used parchment paper and I couldn’t remember a time I’ve ever used it.. ha. So I decided I could do without both the larger organizer and my parchment paper. Less is more, right?
I’m tricky like that.
Pantry is clean. Ziploc bag drawer is the cleanest.
And I am one happy mom.
Right up until it’s time to fix dinner. Again. My menu (that hasn’t changed in 6 years) isn’t helping much.
Since it’s Friday I think it’s time for take-out! What better way to celebrate a clean pantry than to just leave it clean? Right!? At least for one night.
Or two.
We’ll just play things by ear.
Because I’m tricky like that.
:)
{POST SOURCES}
*I linked some fun fruit print options since mine are sold out!
The weekend is here! I’m excited because it’s a weekend with not much on our calendar other than a few activities for the kids and dinner with friends. Lots of down time which means I’ll have time for some organizing. YEA. I’m almost done with my kitchen and I’m ready to start closets. It’s feeling so good to de-clutter! I hope if you’re joining me in my organizing challenge you are feeling motivated and making progress too! I’m switching gears a little today to talk about kitchen runners. And weekend wear. Because it’s the weekend and well.. we need cute sweatshirts to wear when we organize. ;)
I ordered 4 different runners for my kitchen because I loved them all on-line and just couldn’t pick one without seeing them in my kitchen. Then they arrived and I tried them all in my kitchen and I still couldn’t pick just one.. they are all so good! So I’m keeping 3 of them (ha) and just putting a couple in other spots around my home. I thought I would share them all with you in case you’re looking for a new affordable rug too! They all come in lots of sizes at great price points!
First up this beautiful cream stripe jute rug with charcoal stripes. LOVE this rug. Great texture and it adds just enough personality without being too busy. It also works the best with my kitchen dining nook rug (below) that has some blues in it because this charcoal color almost looks navy. I’m keeping this and I’m going to try it in my mudroom or laundry room and maybe switch it out in the kitchen (it’s my second choice for this spot!).
Another striped jute rug for the win! Wow.. love this one too! It has such a cool casual/modern vibe and I like the black stripes with my black pendants. Another fun option that I can’t part with!
The 3rd runner is a great neutral option. I really love this rug.. it’s beautiful, has great texture, a fun pattern and I love the tassels on the ends. BUT. It feels a little too neutral with my current kitchen decor and I already have these neutral washable rugs that I can use during the holidays when I have more going on in my kitchen.
So this rug is going back but I wanted to share it because I do love it if you are looking for a good neutral rug!
And we have a winner for the kitchen! At least for now. :) This is the same rug as the neutral runner I just shared above but in black. I couldn’t love this jute black runner more! I’ve always been a sucker for black stripes. It has the same great texture and fringe and tassels as the rug above, but the black has so much more personality that I’m loving in my kitchen right now.
Plus just look at it with my black pendants! I knew it was the one the second I laid it down. But I love the charcoal/navy striped rug in this space too and it has more of a summer vibe so I’m thinking I’ll keep this rug here now and maybe switch to option #1 as it gets warmer.
Before I sign off I thought I’d share a few sweatshirts I’ve been wearing and loving. I don’t know about you but I’ve had a really hard time getting out of lounge wear the past month! January and February are kind of funny months to me because I go between “it’s a new year and I’m so motivated to set new habits and do ALL the things!” Then 5 minutes later.. “Can I please just curl up in my sweats and take a nap?”
Anyone else? Hence the reason these 3 sweatshirts were really speaking to me. :)
First this pretty blue weekend graphic sweatshirt. (So comfy!)
Then inhale exhale. Always a good thing – whether you’re climbing the highest mountain or binge watching Stranger Things for the 4th time. (Speaking of I think season 4 is coming out this year! CAN’T WAIT.)
And of course.. ready for VACAY. Because when are we not ready for a vacay?
All 3 of these sweatshirts are warm and soft and comfortable and perfect for this time of year when we’re ready to do all the things along with absolutely nothing. :) I linked a few other comfy sweatshirts below!
*I usually wear xs in tops but I sized up to a small in all of these because I wanted a comfortable, loose fit so go up one size if you want the same!
Happy February! Isn’t that crazy!? I feel like I JUST got Christmas put away around here. You too? Are the months flying by faster than usual or am I the only one feeling that way? January is usually a chill month, but this month was packed and I honestly can’t believe it’s over already! I’m crossing my fingers that February brings some down time with it. :) Since we’ve had a lot going on lately I’m behind on my organizing challenge and still working on my kitchen. I’m going to try to finish up my kitchen this week and start organizing closets, but don’t stress at all if you’re in my boat and still have a lot to check off your to-do list! One drawer and cupboard at a time. Really this challenge is meant to work for you so if you need to take an extra week do it! Or move on and then go back to things you missed after. I never make it through the challenge with everything finished on my list, but I do make a lot of progress and that’s what counts! More organizing coming soon. :)
Today is a quick post! I’m sharing my January Amazon buys (fun things this month!). I also rounded up some gift ideas for friends, sisters, mothers.. anyone really! Valentine’s Day is such a fun time to celebrate love for everyone in your life! A perfect day to send someone a little gift and note and let them know you care. One of these years I’m going to throw a Galentine’s Day party and have friends over. I’ve always wanted to do that! This year we are booked with kids’ activities but one of these years it’s going to happen. Until then.. cute little Galentine’s Day gifts will have to do. :)
It’s organize your kitchen week! But I’m posting about my organized laundry room cupboards and drawers. How’s that for some organization? Ha. I’m off one week but I’m so excited to finally share this cleaned out space with you! This laundry room is on our main floor right off of our mudroom and for years it was the most unorganized spot in our house. (Followed closely by my closet.. ha.) Last year during my organizing challenge I worked hard to whip this space into shape, but by the time I finished organizing it we were moving on to organizing our kitchens. Then it was Spring Break and life got busy and I never prioritized sharing the makeover! Hence the reason I’m sharing it one week late this year. If I don’t get these pictures up on my blog they may never make it!
I would love to switch out the light fixture over this sink for something larger with a little more personality (on my 2022 home to-do list!). The rug is a favorite I’ve had for years.
These simple jars hold clothes pins, these wool dryer balls I sometimes use instead of dryer sheets and laundry soap (I use Tide pods for every day but like having some of the detergent around for rubbing out stains). I wanted something to add behind our drying rack for years and finally landed on these cute WASH DRY FOLD prints. I just bought them as a download and took them to an office supply store to print them. They come in a set of 4 but I didn’t have room for REPEAT. :) An easy, inexpensive way to decorate a laundry space if you have a blank wall or room on a shelf for a few prints! Looks like the exact frames I used sold out but similar options are here and here.
This drying rack pulls out from the wall just like the rack in our upstairs laundry room. So handy for drying clothes and I love having the fun prints behind it to break up all of the white in this space!
Side view with the rack down..
{magnolia baskets – mine are out of stock but lots of fun options!}
The grey vintage wash basin in the corner is so special to me. It was my great grandma’s – such a treasure! Can you imagine doing laundry with that!? It’s a constant reminder to me not complain about laundry. Ha. ;)
Ok.. on to some organization.. are you ready!? I am so ready. :) This entire laundry room made one great “before.” It was such a mess! I never really organized it after we built our house and moved in and it quickly became a catch all for any and everything. I always knew what items I wanted to store in this space, but I kept putting it off because I knew it was going to be a big job! I just kept the cupboard doors closed and walked away. Ha. So happy that’s not the case anymore!
I had so many random things to store on this side I decided bins or baskets would be the best option. These canvas bins were the perfect size (I have the XL) and I love the look for a laundry room! The lighting in these pics are making them look a little yellow.. they are a true cream with grey stripes.
I mainly wanted to use this cupboard for our towel overflow. Extra pool towels on the bottom shelf and extra old towels we use for cleaning and for the garage on the middle shelf.
I also wanted a set bin for Kole’s swimsuits! It has always made more sense to keep them in this laundry room vs. upstairs in his bedroom. When it’s summer and he is swimming daily with friends it’s easier to just wash his suits and toss them on him in this room!
The top baskets hold sewing supplies (they are organized in a container I forgot to photograph!) and other miscellaneous items I need to store that I don’t reach for as often. I got rid of a lot during this little project! I tossed and donated so many random items and just kept what we really use/love so these baskets aren’t too full.
{BEFORE}
I never created a good spot in my house to store all of my candles and knew I wanted to make space for them in this laundry room. That meant not only cleaning out these messy cupboards and drawers, but also rounding up candles from various spots throughout my home. (This messy drawer was still holding hardware from when we built our house over 8 years ago!)
“Before.”
And “after.” Yes! I know! That’s a lot of candles. In my defense (and as you know!) I really use and love them. :) I actually don’t have half of these candles in this cupboard at the moment because I gave them away in Nov/Dec. I always stock up on my favorite Anthro candles because I use them all around my home and give them as gifts every Fall/Holiday season. I put my smaller candle holders on the top shelves. I love having a set place to keep them all together!
I cleaned all of the hardware out of this drawer so now it’s pretty much empty other than a few scrub brushes I use to clean and sink stoppers/strainers.
The cupboards below store extra picture frames I’m not using at the moment and my larger candle holders.
{BEFORE}
These three drawers were a hot mess! I had one battery organizer but ended up with so many extra batteries they didn’t all fit so a lot of good that did.. ha. I think Kenny and I each ordered batteries at different times not knowing that we already had plenty! That’s what happens when things aren’t organized well, right!? You spend money on things you already have but can’t locate!
And the after. {SIGH} Nothing like organized drawers that actually function well too!
Then comes the battery drawer. You know how much I love my battery organizer (it was my favorite I took as a gift to one of the favorite things parties I went to in December!). So I didn’t think twice about picking up a second one to hold our overflow. You might notice I have some of the batteries turned facing down in one of the organizers.. those were batteries I used for a short time during Christmas 2020. I used them again this year and now they’re dead and gone. :)
The next drawer holds our flashlights and headlamps. I have them separated with these grey adjustable drawer dividers that I love! I use drawer dividers a lot to organize things and have these in a few other spots in my home too. I used to keep flashlights and our headlamps in the garage but then Kenny and I started hiking in the evening and often needed the headlamps and our kids always need flashlights for camping trips and other events with friends. Plus it’s nice to have all of this close when the power goes out. It went out for an hour in the evening a few months ago and Addison and I both said “I have a fun idea!” at the same time. Her idea was to light candles and play board games. My fun idea was to all go to bed early. Ha.
One year later these drawers still look great! It was so nice during the holidays to have my candles and batteries all stored together! Easy to access and easy to clean up and put away when it was time to take things down.
{BEFORE}
This cupboard above my drawers was a catch all for years.
Now it holds my larger candles. Yes! More! And I use every one. When you decorate for a living you get to own as many candles as you want!
And pillows.
And throws.
And vases.
And faux flowers.
I could go on but we’ll stop there with you fully understanding why this job speaks my love language. ;)
I had extra wallpaper from my powder bathroom laying around so I cut it out to put below the candles so that they don’t stick to the cupboards. I don’t ever use contact paper in cupboards/drawers because I keep them pretty clean and I like to use organizers so I didn’t have any on hand. I was trying to use what I had to knock this makeover out quick! If I would have known I wasn’t going to share this space for over a year I might have taken the time to get some contact paper. Ha. ;)
The cupboard on the right side of my hanging rack is mostly empty! A few extras for decorating and that’s it. It felt so good to clean all of these shelves too.. they were pretty dusty!
{BEFORE}
Last “before.” This is the cupboard we stashed all of our extra lightbulbs in when we finished building. You can see why I just shut these cupboards and walked away for so long!
Much better!
I moved our extra hardware to these drawers below my washer/dryer. I get asked a lot whether or not these drawers are functional. They are! They just aren’t very deep.
The perfect place to store extras I’m not quite ready to part with. :)
Now that the cupboards and drawers are clean and organized this laundry room is running like a well oiled machine! If only it always looked like this with no laundry in sight. ;)
I hope you enjoyed the tour of my organized laundry room cupboards and drawers! Nothing motivates me like a good before and after. I’m ready to tackle a few spaces in my kitchen!
And hopefully share pictures of my progress before January 2023.
Last week didn’t go quite as planned and I didn’t have time to share my main floor laundry room (and 100 other fun things I have ready to share) so this will definitely be a catch up week for me! We had so much going on with my girls.. Ellie turned 18! And between her birthday and prom and a dance competition and tech week for one play and tryouts for a new play we’ve either been on the go or have had teens over at the house. I had to get an MRI this weekend for my knee and the guy in charge said “are you going to be ok sitting still and not moving for 20 minutes?” I was like “are you kidding me? I’ve been looking forward to this all week!” Then I got chatting with the nurse after (she has a 12 year old daughter and was asking me about raising teen girls.. what does she have to look forward to) and we just hit it off and were laughing so hard talking about life with teens. The guy walked over to me and said “ok.. you are having WAY too much fun at an MRI appointment!” Ha ha. What a week. :)
Laundry room post is still coming! But if you are working along side me with my organizing challenge we are kicking off KITCHENS this week! (Challenge details are HERE and you can join anytime!) I’ve written so many posts on kitchen organization.. it’s a favorite topic! This post on KITCHEN ORGANIZATION TIPS will help you get a jump start if you need some motivation. It has links to posts that show how every inch of my kitchen is organized along with some other general tips. I also shared some fun pantry inspo. towards the end of the post. I’ll share a few recent organization updates I’ve made to my kitchen soon too!
In other news I am slowly warming things up around my home and doing a little decorating. After the holidays I leave things bare for a couple of weeks to just organize and enjoy less clutter! Then I’m always excited to start adding things I love back in. I left my Christmas porch up (just wasn’t quite ready to take down the trees!).
Then a couple of weeks ago I took down the garland and bells and tossed up the hearts! 10 minute Christmas porch turned Valentine’s Day porch and DONE. Work smarter not harder. ;)
I’m slowly adding a few updates to my kitchen and I’m having fun bringing in more black!
I moved my metal tray to this spot next to my range top. I’ve shared this antiqued metal tray before.. it’s one of my favorites! I have the large size and it just looks good everywhere. I think I’ve had it in 7-8 different spots throughout my home. :) A bowl with some lemons, wooden spoons in my crock, and I gave myself this beautiful gold salt & pepper grinder for Christmas! I first saw them at a store in my hometown months ago and loved them but I didn’t buy them because they were kind of pricey. Then I kept thinking about them! I finally hunted them down on-line and couldn’t resist ordering them and I don’t regret that purchase one bit. They are so beautiful! I put them on this cute little 7″ footed stand. It’s the best when practical items double as beautiful decor! They sell out quickly and then come back in stock (I ordered mine here). But I also found them on-line here and here (these are both 8″ – mine are 8″ and 9″). I also found them at various heights like mine here.
I was playing around with some Valentine decor on my kitchen island and thought I’d share the ideas I came up with! These ideas could be used on a kitchen island or table or on a console table.. so many options. You’ve seen this little display from last year.
This is another fun Valentine’s display that isn’t too over the top! My minka textured pot (this is the medium size) holding my favorite faux olive branches. I’m sure you remember these olive branches from the Fall. I had them all over my house and I know a lot of you ordered and love them too! They are a great versatile faux option year round (Christmas is really the only time I don’t use them). They are perfect for Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer.
Then I just added a fun heart bowl with some candy. I always tie candy into my decor for Valentine’s Day and Easter because chocolate hugs & kisses and Cadbury Eggs make life worth living. ;) These heart bowls are an inexpensive and fun way to add Valentine’s decor into your home. The darker heart bowls come in both 8″ and 10″. The lighter bowl is on-line here (out of stock but might come back!)
I hope this gave you a few ideas! You can mix and match all of the items I shared and come up with lots of fun ways to style tabletops for this season and into Spring!
I have some fun Target decor I’m excited to share soon.. have you seen the cute items they recently came out with!? I love a good trip to Target but for the past two years I’ve been buying almost everything on-line. I especially get into trouble with on-line shopping when Kenny is watching football and since it’s the playoffs well.. let’s just say my house is getting a fun Spring re-fresh! Ha. Really there is just something about football and on-line shopping. It’s a good match I would totally recommend. ;) I’ll get things photographed to share soon but here are favorites I’ve either bought or have my eye on before items start selling out! I’ll also link post sources at the end.
We’re moving on to week two of our organizing challenge and kicking off laundry rooms! But first.. how did your bathrooms go last week? I still have a little to finish up this weekend but I’m feeling good about the progress I made! It definitely didn’t take as long to give my bathrooms a re-fresh vs. a complete overhaul like I’ve had to do in the past. Once you get spaces organized really well it’s a lot easier to keep them clean and just spend a little time wiping/vacuuming out drawers and cupboards every 6 months or so.
I’ve shared details on our upstairs laundry room before but here are some pics of how I have it decorated and organized for anyone new!
Last March when we were talking about laundry rooms during this organizing challenge I mentioned that I had never organized my main floor laundry room. (Not pictured here.) It was a mess for years! I finally took the time to deep clean and organize it during laundry week but then I got busy and never shared pics of it on my blog. It has been so nice having it all organized! It was one of those spaces that was on my to-do list for years. I’m going to share pics of that space sometime this week! Coming soon. :)
If you’re new here my pull out laundry hampers are how we store dirty clothes in this room. They are the first thing I sketched out for this house when I was in the planning stage and I can’t recommend them enough if you are building/re-modeling. If you don’t have the space for them I’ve seen so many cool ways to organize laundry with baskets! Type “laundry room hampers” in the Pinterest search bar and so many fun options will pop up.
You can’t see it in this picture, but I have each hamper labeled when you pull the drawer out – lights, darks and towels. My kids have hampers in their bedrooms but then separate their clothes in these hampers every couple of days or when they are about to do laundry.
We have a pull out ironing board in this room too but I rarely use it. Most of you know that I absolutely hate ironing and avoid it at all costs. It’s one of my least favorite chores (after cooking). ;) I try to buy wrinkle free clothes and when something really needs to be ironed.. I use a steamer. Anyone else with me on this one?
As far as tips for organizing laundry supplies.. I really don’t have much in this room! The few things I do use I keep in this cupboard above my washer and then I use the rest of the space in these cupboards to store my Christmas village! #priorities :) We display this village on the long table in our upstairs hallway each holiday season so I moved the village here a few years ago. It’s so much easier to set up and take down each year with it all stored right next to the table we set it up on. The rest of the drawers in this room are completely empty!
I use Tide Pods to wash our clothes and store them in these OXO good grips that are long time favorites. I keep them located right next to the washing machine. They are out of sight when you walk in the room but are close to the washer and easy for my kids to reach. The jars seal so tight and are perfect for laundry pods.
{LAUNDRY ROOM SOURCES}
When it comes to laundry I think it’s so important to have a routine in place! What that routine looks like doesn’t matter and it will be different for every family. The important thing (if you want to stay on top of your laundry and not let it get the best of you!) is just to have a routine. When my kids were little I cleaned my house in the late afternoon/evening and always did a load of laundry when my girls were playing together in their bathtub (their bathroom was next to my washer/dryer in our last house). When we moved into this house and my kids started getting older my evenings became a lot busier so I started doing laundry in the morning. I’ve shared my routine before but for those of you who might have missed it I do a load or two of laundry every morning. I wake up, splash some water on my face and put on my workout clothes and then start a load of laundry. Then I exercise (usually treadmill or walking with a friend but about to switch to my peloton bike). After I exercise I put the clothes in the dryer and then wake Kole up and start getting him ready for school (my girls are up earlier and get themselves ready and off to school). I used to toss in a load around this time in the upstairs laundry room for the kids (and sometimes still do) but my kids do most of their own laundry now. (The best!) I usually end up folding and putting away clothes later in the afternoon in-between my kids’ activities.
Now that my kids do their own laundry I don’t use this laundry room much other than to help with their sheets and towels. Tuesday is my main cleaning day so that’s the day that I always wash sheets and towels. I wash our sheets most weeks and I wash my kids’ sheets every other week (one week I wash Kole’s and the next week I wash the girls’ sheets). With this system I’m usually pretty caught up on laundry by Friday so I don’t have to do any over the weekend. For me it has always been so much easier to do a load or two of laundry a day vs. spending one whole day doing laundry, but I know for some families that might not be the case! I know one family who does their laundry together every Sunday. Try doing laundry a few different times/ways and see what works best. Set a reminder on your phone each day if you have to until it becomes a routine. I would love to hear about your laundry routine in the comments! If you’re really struggling to stay on top of laundry I would recommend doing a load or two a day at the same time every day. It’s so nice when you can stay on top of it all!
A few tips for the week while we get our laundry space organized!
– pull everything out of the room!
– touch each item and place it in a sack or pile
(keep/donate/trash/re-locate)
– wipe out/clean drawers, cupboards, shelves
– categorize the “keep” pile
(laundry supplies, storage, etc.)
– place items back in drawers, cupboards, shelves
– label any clear containers
– toss socks w/o a match
– clean out the washing machine (Google how to do this with your machine! I just cleaned ours out a few months ago.. not a fun job but so nice to have done!)
– vacuum the lint trap
– use bins/baskets to sort dirty clothes (lights/darks/towels)
– establish a routine for laundry & get the family on board!
Barefoot dreams blankets are all on sale! They are pricey so these sales are the best time to pick one up if you’ve been wanting one! Once you try one you’ll wonder where it has been all your life.
I’ve slowly had to buy one for every person in our family so that they don’t steal mine! I got this brown blanket for Kenny for his birthday. Then a navy one for Ad for Christmas (she kept stealing ours!). Then when my parents were here for Christmas my dad hinted he might need one for Father’s Day. (Thank you N sale.. got that covered!) :) They really are a dream to wrap up in! Barefoot Dreams Cardigans are on sale too!
These beautiful petal plates and napkins are also marked down! Perfect for Valentine’s Day and all things Spring/Summer. I rounded up other favorites below like the white towels in my girls’ bathroom and a wood bowl that’s one of my favorites! I have and love the clock too.
I’m slowly starting to decorate and warm up my home for a new year but organizing is taking top priority! Let’s get our laundry spaces whipped into shape and finish up bathrooms this week! Who’s with me!?
I can see and hear you all raising your hands and cheering with so much excitement and enthusiasm!
All the ornaments and all the trees. All put away.
Every last reindeer and fa-la-la banner.
And snowflake. The snowflakes are all put away too. Bummer! I’m always a little sad to take it all down, but once everything is organized and back in our attic the house feels so good! Very empty and bare. But also clutter free and a blank slate to play with. :)
I know I’ve mentioned these before but if you’re looking for a good solution for pillow storage and missed it they are my favorite! I can easily fit 5 pillows in each (I have the XL size). They would also be great for throws, bedding, sweaters, etc. Anything bulky and soft that you need to store!
Like the rest of the world I’m trying to get back on track with eating better and exercising. Let’s just say I enjoyed the holiday food a little too much this year. My jeans are beyond tight! I have no regrets. :) But now it’s time to kick it in gear. I’ve always maintained my weight by losing the few pounds I gain soon after I gain them before 5 pounds turns into 10. (Happens so quickly and easily doesn’t it!?) I got a new scale from Vanity Planet and it’s helping to motivate me!
This is the box that shows what the scale looks like when you’re using it. It’s a body analyzer that not only shares your weight but also your body fat percentage, muscle mass, bone density and water weight. I love that it gives you a more complete picture of your health because there is so much more that matters than just weight! I was able to get a discount to share on IG and asked if I could get one to share here on the blog too! I don’t think it will last long so if you want to use this to monitor your health/progress this year with me don’t wait! Click here and use my link to get 60% off and the discount will be applied at checkout. Score. :) This is helping to motivate me!
I’ve shared these before but prepping healthy snacks makes a huge difference for me too. I have no problem eating healthy food/snacks if it’s easy! If I have to take time to chop and prep things when I’m hungry it won’t happen. I’ll just grab a Coke Zero and whatever is closest in the pantry. Ha. These are perfect for a meal or a snack and I especially love grabbing one in the afternoon when I’m living in my car running kids around. They only last 3-4 days at our house (everyone eats them!) so when I do this I usually make them Sunday and again on Wednesday. Don’t add the pretzels! This was the only pic I had of them but I quickly learned that pretzels get soggy so I keep them in a separate sandwich bag in the pantry to grab. Here are some similar containers that are great for this sort of thing!
This is another healthy go-to for me when I need to drop a few pounds. Cut up cucumbers, celery and carrots.
Add lettuce/spinach to a tortilla, then the vegetables and then sliced almonds.
Do you have something in your closet that you gravitate to and wear ALL. THE. TIME? I do. My Vuori performance joggers. They are my #1 item that I wear more than anything else in my closet! They are perfect for cleaning and organizing and projects and computer work and running errands and running kids and being comfy on the couch. Plus they are crazy soft and a flattering fit!
This outfit is my “momiform” and I’ve been in in so much lately I had to snap a pic. I pretty much live in my Camo Vuori joggers with a black sweatshirt of some sort (I have many and linked some favorites below). My friends have seen me in this outfit more times than they can count. I have a few friends who also love Vuori joggers and one of my friends wears the camo a lot too. We always laugh when we both show up somewhere in them!
Speaking of cute and comfy.. how adorable are these heart pjs for February!? They are so soft! A loose fit and they come in other fun colors/patterns too.
This hoodie and jogger set is also fun for February! So cozy and warm. I love the bright colors on the grey and the hearts on the sleeve! The hoodie is also cute with jeans or leggings.
The joggers have hearts on the back of the leg too. You can’t go wrong with PJ Salvage! Especially in January when it’s hard to get out of comfy clothes. :)
Last but not least I’m sharing a fun new necklace I’ve been loving. So cute! It’s especially fun with tops like this cute v-neck sweater. I don’t get out of my Vuori joggers much this time of year, but when I do I’m in pjs, sweats or something Madewell. :)
I can’t believe we are half way through January already! Valentine’s Day is less than month away. I’m going to be warming up my home and adding a few festive Valentine’s Day touches over the next few days. Simple arrangements like pink flowers in a vase next to some cute heart plates are fun and not too over the top. My faux peonies are on sale right now! So is this cute petal cake stand. Also Target brought these cute heart plates back again this year in red! I couldn’t resist snagging a few. I’ll show you how I’m using them soon!
I linked other favorites for Valentine’s Day below! I had so much fun rounding these items up and ending up buying a few of them.. I wanted everything! I had to share a whole collage on socks because I always pick up a few pairs for me and the girls. I like to put little baskets together for the kids for Valentine’s Day. Do you do that too? My girls’ baskets usually hold candy, fuzzy heart socks, and other little surprises like earrings or some make-up. Kole’s basket will have candy, books, and since he is going through a waffle obsession at the moment I bought him this cute heart waffle maker. :)
I’m feeling the love! Enjoy the rest of your day! And keep organizing those bathrooms! I’m half way through my bathroom list and I’m going to hit it hard again tomorrow. It will feel so good to look back at the end of the week at all we’ve accomplished! So stay with me. We’ve got this!
:)
xoxo, Erin
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