A couple years ago, I began writing this blog to tell the story of a remodel of a moldy old house into  a home: a real home with kids, a budget and imperfect piles of stuff. But that kind of blog can only go so far, because a shiny new remodel is only shiny & new for so long and really, no one really cares that much about which paint colors I used. I've been working to expand the horizons of this blog beyond the remodel to talk more about relationships, neighborhoods and family...you know, the stuff that actually matters. The stuff that actually makes a home. I don't have a limitless budget or time, although both would be nice. I have an old house with quirky room layouts, crumbling plaster ceilings and old cracked tile. In other words, it's a real house for a family of six, and I need it to function well in order for us to stay organized. With that in mind, I'd like to introduce you to a woman who is out there, being awesome and doing good work.  I met Holly several weeks ago and I instantly liked her. Holly started her own company, See Jane Work, because she saw the need organizational items that not only look great on your desktop but also takes into account how people already attempt to organize their stuff. Take me, for instance: I'm a stacker. When the bills, art projects, report cards, permission slips, etc. come in the door,  I stand next to the recycling bin in the kitchen and throw things out that I don't need to hang onto. Everything else gets stacked into piles and left on the kitchen countertop, which inevitably gets in the way when it's time to make dinner. When dinnertime comes around, my piles get relocated to the "office", which basically describes a table piled high with other miscellaneous junk in a nondescript room.  Holly wanted to know if she'd be able to help me get my office organized, and could I send her a photo of my office?  So I did what any other person would have done if an organizational guru offered to help: I said yes. Um, and sure I can send photos of my "office"...I totally have one of those.  This is the photo I sent to Holly, which is an SOS signal if I ever saw one. The plan was to have a film crew come in and show off Holly's amazingness in my, um, office. My procrastinating self didn't begin tackling this project until the weekend before the film shoot (which is yet another reason why I need serious organizational help).
So I spent 48 crazy hours trying to create a space that would function as an office for Greg & I, as well as a homework/art room for the girls.
There's a bedroom next to the kitchen that we previously used for the girls' playroom. Now that the basement is complete, we've relocated their toys downstairs and I have a space to work with. We moved the piano out a couple weeks ago and this is what I began with on Friday.

The room had white walls, a giant bulletin board, and a table my father in law built out of an old countertop we had, but mostly there's the random stuff that we don't know what to do with. Most of the stuff I moved into the closet until I have the strength to deal with all of it. If that ever happens. First, I moved the table to the center of the room so that several of us would be able to work around the table the same time. I decided on a [gulp] bold color, Hague Blue, by Farrow & Ball for an accent wall. I had some woodwork to paint where the piano used to be, which I didn't paint it until midnight the night before the film shoot. Of course. 

I shopped the house to find something that could hold the printer and hide all the cords and the router.  I hauled this cabinet down from the girls' room and Greg drilled some holes in the back for the cords.  



I scored the chair & white table at Marshalls and the air plant & terrarium at West Elm.




I reupholstered this old chair over the weekend too. It was a quick job and I just don't want to talk about it, which is why there's no tutorial and no close up shot of it.  Just keeping it real here. (Obvious tip #29: Don't upholster a chair when you're panicked and pressed for time. Obvious tip #30: Don't upholster a chair if you have no clue what you're doing).















I love these engraved clips. They bring out the brass I have in the room and they're subtle, but I love the engraving so that I remember what goes where.


These large art boxes are the perfect size for the larger papers that come home and don't fit in traditional files or letter sorters. And I love the labels & magnetic lid!

There’s some pretty amazing people out there who will voluntarily let their children paint in white shirts, or make homemade vegetable-dyed playdoh “just because”, or don't mind a bit when their children’s pointy-edged legos pierce their bare foot in the middle of the night. 

Those people are amazing. I am not one of them. 

Yet sometimes, sometimes, I am capable to just entering into one day and tell myself that this is the day that will be epic for my kids. For one day only, I was able to join the ranks of those people.

Yesterday was that day, at least in my estimation.  The only way I was able to do it is because my sister, Cindy, came to town with her four children and we teamed up and served as the other’s support staff. She also was there to help do dishes afterward, wipe the table, remind my children for the umpteenth time to say “please”, and we were able to make the day awesome.

The day’s agenda:

It was Luciana’s 5th birthday, and like all the birthdays in our home, we start the day with a donut cake and candle.  We let them eat a pile of donuts as a breakfast appetizer (already, this doesn't sound like me). After their breakfast appetizer, they played for awhile and then we had second breakfast of scrambled eggs, juice, fruit, and more donuts.

They watched a movie while Cindy & I packed picnic lunches for the zoo.  

We got to the zoo, had lunch, and actually made it on time for a bird show. I typically forget to check what time the shows are, but not this day. We were there with minutes to spare. Whole minutes, people. Oh, and when the kids were hungry for a snack, I actually had one for them. And did I pack water bottles to spare? Yes, and they were cold (extra points)!

I usually only have enough energy to do an hour or perhaps 90 minutes at the zoo but we were there until the vendors started closing up their shops. I still don't know how this was possible. 

The original plan was to let the kids eat ice cream for dinner. But Cindy & I figured it wouldn't keep them full for long. "Hey, kids- on the way home do you want to pick up some pizza? Of course you do. Let's get two." So we did. 

Once we arrived home the conundrum was if we should let them eat ice cream or pizza first? Well, this was a conversation I never thought I would have in my lifetime. We settled on pizza first and then got the toppings together for the ice cream sundae bar.

The kids were slightly excited about the ice cream at this point.

The create-your-own sundae was a hit. Shockingly.

They ate on the front porch (because I haven't completely lost my marbles) and then ran their sticky-faced little selves around for awhile to burn off some sugar.

But we weren't done yet.  "Hey kids, who wants to watch a movie outside? Should we stay up way past bedtime to watch it? Does anyone want popcorn with the movie? And why not invite some friends over?" So we did. And you know what? At the end of the day, not a single child complained about going to bed. Not one kiddo got out of bed because she was hungry/thirsty/scared/etc. They went right to sleep. Yeah they did. Because their mamas rocked that day. But only for one day. 
You can do it too. Go forth, find support staff, and...