Into the Depths of My Closet

My bedroom closet was a disaster zone.  I still am not 100% sure what came out of there.  Over the last year or so it had become the dumping ground.  Too many pillows on the bed?  Toss them in the closet and I'll get them out tomorrow.  Tomorrow never came.  Where do we hide the kid's Christmas gifts?  The closet looks like a good place.  Good thing we got them all out before Christmas morning 2013.  I have too many pajama pants, can we put some in the closet?  Sure!  I'll remember they are there.  I didn't.

It go to the point where the floor had disappeared, the door wouldn't shut, and I couldn't find my clothes for work.  I couldn't put any laundry away and the couch became the new dresser/closet.  The bedroom closet had become a huge subject of stress and Steven and I were fighting about it almost daily.  My style is more "a place for everything and everything in its place" while Steven follows more of a "frat boy just moved away from home" style of organization.  Sigh.

So the other day I decided it was time.  I knew it was going to be rough.  I knew I would find a lot of "lost" goodies.  I knew I would have the demanding baby in my arms most of the time.  But I was determined.  I wanted my couch back and to be able to see my clothing hanging up.  I didn't want to use a shovel to find my shoes...okay so maybe I didn't need a shovel, but in hindsight, it would have been useful.

I should have taken before pictures to show how hard I worked and justify the almost 2 days it took to finish everything.  I could make excuses, but really, I was embarrassed.  A lot.

The first thing I did was to strip the bed down to the mattress.  I knew that I would be finding pillows, Steven's crocheted blanket, and even the box full of sheets.  That, and Persephone barfed all the bed before we started.

In the beginning Persephone chilled out in her co-sleeper while I pulled random items out of the closet and played peek-a-boo with at least half of them.  After a while, she wanted to be fed so I gave her a little bit of cereal and nursed her.  Still wide awake, I placed her on the mattress in the middle of the mess and continued the bizarre game of peek-a-boo.

Somehow she tired herself out and fell asleep.  I kicked it into high gear and had the closet mostly empty.  I also spent an inordinate amount of time organizing my jewelry box, although I rarely wear jewelry anymore.

When she woke up after 45 minutes we played, nursed, and got her changed.  This is where progressed slowed a bit.  I set her in her bouncy and she started playing.  She was making the most adorable cooing noises as she played and I had to get video.  As soon as I started the video, she started yelling and making that "I'm getting pissed off" noise.  Fortunately, I got it on video.

By this time, the closet was empty with the exception of the area behind the door as Persephone didn't like when she couldn't see me.

I picked up the baby and together we started clearing and rearranging things in the closet.  We stopped for a selfie to document the process and text daddy to tell him this was her 4th outfit so far.

When Steven got home from work, he played with his little princess and I finished getting things put back together.  Before I could finish hanging up laundry it was dinner time, which soon leads to the "witching hour" for baby.  But tomorrow is always another day.








The next day I concentrated on returning the couch to its former position as a place to sit and relax.  I also hammered in nails to hold his hats, which includes a large sombrero...don't ask.  I also went through papers that were found and had Steven get all the stuff he wanted put away into his safe.  I still have a few loads of laundry to do and put away, but it looks so much better!

My side

Behind the Door

Even more shoes and accessories

Steven's side including sombrero

Welcome Butterflies!

For a few years, Athena has been asking if we could buy plants that would attract butterflies. It has been on the to-do list but never came to fruition.  Until the other night.  We had dinner at Gunther Toody's and walked over to JoAnns to get some supplies for my Tim Burton themed craft swap.  In between the two establishments is a Lowe's and outside was a clearance rack filled with ground covers and bushes.  After my citation from the city for the weeds on the side of my house, we have been looking for ways to improve the landscaping around my house.  We decided to purchase a few Blue Juniper bushes for near the stop sign (where the weeds can grow rampant) and went inside to purchase some soil.  As we looked around the store, Athena pointed out every plant that had a butterfly on the tag indicating that it would attract butterflies.  We found some Rudbeckia (Black-Eyed Susan) with beautiful yellow flowers that were on sale 3 for $10.  We picked up three plants and the next evening we replanted them into navy pots that sit outside the house.

We still need to get the weeds killed and the bushes planted.  I had planned that activity for today, but Perry has been attached to my breast and Troy came home sick from school.  Maybe tomorrow when I get off work.