Laundry Chaos: Where do we put our clothes?

There was a time when my kids had hampers in their rooms.  That is until every time I went to do laundry I would find  legoes, stuffed animals and the occasional sneaker.  In one of my "enough is enough moments", I removed the hampers from their rooms and changed to one hamper in the main bathroom.

Well, this is what has been happening.  The dirty clothes makes it to the OUTSIDE of the hamper.  I am not sure if the lid is to heavy or maybe they are not sure how to work the lid, but they always seem to put their clothes here and not INSIDE the hamper.

So I found a new hamper.  It is a little pricey but I waited until it was half price.  You can order one here at 31 bags

This hamper is located in the spot as the old one. ( After all I didn't want to confuse the children. ) 

It doesn't have a lid to lift.

And it is split into two compartments for whites and darks.  

I must say we have had it for two weeks and so far the kids seem to be able to handle it.  They are putting their clothes INSIDE the hamper.  I guess that lid was tricky.

Added bonus: the bag has handles so it is easy to carry down the stairs.  No more transferring into a basket and THEN hauling it downstairs.

Spring Cleaning 101: Car Chaos

I love to clean.  Yes I know that sounds weird but I do enjoy my clean and organized house.  I especially look forward to spring cleaning.  My house never looks as good as it does on a bright sunny day with the smell of Pine-Sol in the air. 

I have a list for everything and everything on a list, and the first thing on my spring cleaning list is my car.  

With the weather being crazy this time of year; one day it's snowing and raining, the next its bright and sunny, my kids and I tend to have impromptu trips to the park.  My kids love these trips but the very first time we did it I learned we can't just stop at the park we have to be prepared. So every spring I get my car "park" ready.

 I start be emptying and vacuuming the car. I like a clean interior and after a winter of not being able to clean the car in the driveway, it gets pretty gross in there.  The kids are in charge of decluttering their sides. The rule is "If it is still there when I vacuum it is going in the trash".  The kids hate this part but I especially love when my kids clean their side of the car and find things they have been looking for all winter.  We find toys, books, socks and shoes (yes SOCKS and SHOES, I am not even sure how that happens) 

My super cute spotted bag, and not so cute black bag

Once my car is nice and clean, I refill the trunk.  I know that sounds weird but my trunk is separated into zones: shopping and play.

 

In my super cute spotted bag I keep all the reusable and thermal bags we use for grocery shopping.  I clean out the bags and throw out any that have wholes in them.  I also only keep ten bags. Honestly, if I didn't put a limit on how many bags I have I would buy I new bag every time I went to store and that just defeats the whole purpose of reusable bags.

Super cute First Aid kit in the not so cute black bag.

In the not so cute black bag I keep our very important First Aid kit. The trips to the park can get dangerous with fearless a 8 and 10 year old.
The First Aid kit is in a super kit bag :).  The bag is actually one of those fold out cosmetics cases, but I don't wear that much make-up (just blush, mascara and chapstick) so in the interest of being green I repurposed the bag.

This bag is the perfect size to fit a First Aid kit.  I take this time to clean out the kit and replace anything that has been used or expired.

The other thing I have is a clean up kit.  This is also super handy to have when they eat or make a mess.  The park doesn't always have bathrooms that should be used by humans so I have them clean their hands in the car. 

And last but most importantly we have a basketball, jump rope and blanket in the car.  The blanket is for me to sit and watch my little angels as they go have fun.  

My car is ready for spring!  Now we just need nice weather.

I linked in at what-we-accomplished-wednesday #9l 
http://myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.com/tuesdays-treasures-128/and
http://www.abowlfulloflemons.net

Kitchen Chaos: Oil and Vinegar

Just quick before and after in the kitchen.

This is how I stored my oil and vinegar before:

Here it is after:

 So nice and pretty.

Bathroom Chaos: Waste Not, Want Not

Sometimes it's the little things that make take the longest time to decide.

In my case it was the waste basket in the downstairs bathroom.  

 We are in the process of redoing the downstairs bathroom. We have new walls, tiles, tub, commode, my dream pedestal sink (yes, the sink makes me smile) 

 Well new everything, EXCEPT for the wire basket that is just WAY too big for the space. I had to tuck it under the sink ( yes, under my precious baby) because it was the only place it would fit. Worse is the fact that because of where it is, you are forced to stare at it while you did your business (sorry that's as delicate as I can put)  It just was not cool.  (Yes, NO WIRE BASKETS! was constantly screaming in my head)

 Don't get me wrong, I like the wastebasket, just not in this space.  For this bathroom, I knew I wanted something smaller and white.  So of to Amazon.com and I an 10 minutes later found the waste basket of my dreams. 

( I know I have a problem :)

Isn't it cute. It's small, it's white and fits nicely NEXT to the commode.  It's not screaming "Look garbage!"and best of all I don't have to look at the trash anymore !!! 

My new view is nice and garbage free.

What happened to the wire basket, you ask?  It has found a new home in the bigger upstairs bathroom.