MIHM #3 - Under the Stairs FOOD PANTRY?

Welcome to another week of MIHM.
Did you miss last week? Go check it out now :)
Make it Happen Mondays

This week I'm working on something, that I really have no idea how to make happen!
UNDER THE STAIRS - FOOD PANTRY

My mom used this space for SHOE storage before we moved in, with some extra pickle bottles, or soda cans roaming around in between. Again it was a horrible waste of space, and considering that our upstairs pantry is SO SMALL, I need all the room I can get!

This WOULD be a great addition to my upstairs pantry, if only I could figure out how to make this area work for me. Clearly the shape of the room makes  it challenging!

Plus there is another small door, that leads to another small area for storage. Not that I want to use that, but I can't exactly cover it off completely, my brother has stuff in there! See it in the picture below?

Obviously I've already removed the shoes, and added more food, but this extra pantry is a LONG way from finished. I also added those black shelves in there, because I had them on hand, and I needed to add more food to that side of the wall too. 

These pictures were taken when I first moved in, so since then I've added more food, but the space is so tight, it is impossible to bend over to see what is actually on those shelves, it's hard to get to anything, and there is yet so much unused vertical space. 

I know there just HAS to be a better way. I've been trying to design a practical solution to this space, mostly in my head, lol, and I think I've got it. 

HOPEFULLY things work out like I imagine them too, and when you come back on Friday, you will be as shocked as me, IF I can pull this project off. 

WISH ME LUCK!!!

Don't forget to leave me some feedback. I'm trying all kinds of new things here, in case you haven't noticed. I'd love to see what you think of it all. If you still don't know what I'm talking about you can start by catching up on a few posts.

MIHM - Make it Happen Mondays

FFF- Finally Finished Fridays

The Hairstyle Games

P.s. I'm linking up to these awesome parties ---->>

All the blogs I link up to can be found in my blog rolls in my sidebar. Go see what my favorite bloggers are up to :)

P.p.s If you host a party, and don't like the way I link back, kindly let me know, and I will be happy to make it right. I think having all the parties I link up to in my blog roll in my sidebar is a wonderful way for my readers to see whats new with your blogs, as it's always being updated. No need to wonder which party started, now you can see exactly what everyone is up to right away :)

FFF #2 - How to organize your Laundry Room, a picture tutorial

YAY time for another round of FINALLY FINISHED FRIDAY!

This week I worked on my LAUNDRY ROOM. I was telling you guys that even though it is like 10 times bigger than my old LAUNDRY ROOM / PANTRY, it was still a HUGE MESS! Yes there are cabinets in there, perfect for storage, but if they are not organized correctly, what's the point? Having counter space meant, the perfect landing spot to throw all our crap. Yup even the tops of the machines got used, because there just wasn't anywhere else to put this STUFF!

There was ONLY one shelf in this room, and it was above the washing machine and dryer. My mom initially had paper towels up there, and I other misc items that made NO SENSE at all, because SO much vertical space was being wasted. This is when we first moved in!


I took ALL the pots and pans she had hidden in her cabinets, and put them up there. She hates it, but I love it. Now we can see exactly which pots we have, what we want to use, and yes, you need to stand on a stepping stool to reach them, but oh well. So much more practical. 


For the time being I'm not showing you the inside of the cabinets quite yet, I'm not finished! But, lets get started on the rest of the room shall we?

 That shoe shelf you see there was put up by me already a few weeks ago, BUT that entire corner needed improvising. It was still such a mess. I had vacuum attachment parts, a shredder, and all kinds of other CRAP on the floor.

This corner was my major project for the week. I knew I had to utilize that space. It may bot be a lot, and it had all that silver air duct stuff in the way, BUT what a waste of space it was indeed. Initially I thought I would put ONE shelf up towards the top, and hang some clothes from it. Then realized a hanger wouldn't even fit, because of the silver stuff. So then I had to move on to plan B.

You see all those lovely little wire shelves there? Yup I installed those, and don't even think for one second it was easy. First of all it was my first time installing wire shelves, and while it's not exactly HARD, it was in this case, because it was such a crammed corner. Plus you REALLY need to measure everything perfectly, which I did not. I'll tell you all about HOW to INSTALL WIRE SHELVES later!

BUT look at what a difference it made. I was able to take ALL my crap that was lying around and put it on those shelves. While it still looks extremely cluttered, and messy, I assure you it's not. I'm sure once I pretty up the box I use to hold my cleaning towels, and do something about the silver air ducts and the ugly heater, it will look much better, he he. 

Oh and did I tell you these were FREE. I had a whole bunch of wire shelves that a friend gave me over 2 years ago, how sweet hugh? I never got around to using any of it, BUT now I'm finding all kinds of ways to use it. This is just the beginning people!!

Totally useful for the laundry room. I was able to put all the small stuff in there. 

Shoe polish, sponges, extra floor pads, etc. Totally get one, it's awesome.

These shoe racks on the other hand, were NOT FREE. I know I could have gone WAY cheaper, but I LOVE them, and sometimes, you just have to splurge a little. I'll talk about these SHOE RACKS later too. I seriously LOVE them,

Here's something different. Instead of putting all your shirts on hangers, you could just throw them up on this utility hook. It's just like putting them on the back of a chair, it keeps them from getting wrinkled, and when you're done you can just gently grab them and go to your closet and hand them up. Much MUCH faster if you're in a hurry, and they will not get wrinkled.

Clearly because you can have the UGLY silver duct pipes and heater staring at you from both directions, lol. No seriously....... it is a wonderful addition. It's a great place to get one last peek at yourself before heading out the door. AND it does make the room seem bigger, more open, less like a laundry room. Now if I can just make it look even prettier. I'm sure I'll get to it one day. For now, I'm just super happy that it's way more organized!!

 

So what do you think? Is it much better or what? Did you learn anything new to apply to your own laundry room makeover?

Don't forget to leave me some feedback. I'm trying all kinds of new things here, in case you haven't noticed. I'd love to see what you think of it all. If you still don't know what I'm talking about you can start by catching up on a few posts.

MIHM - Make it Happen Mondays

FFF- Finally Finished Fridays

The Hairstyle Games

If you LOVED this post, why don't you consider sharing it on :

FACEBOOK - TWITTER - or PINTEREST

P.s. I'm linking up to these awesome parties ---->>

All the blogs I link up to can be found in my blog rolls in my sidebar. Go see what my favorite bloggers are up to :)

P.p.s If you host a party, and don't like the way I link back, kindly let me know, and I will be happy to make it right. I think having all the parties I link up to in my blog roll in my sidebar is a wonderful way for my readers to see whats new with your blogs, as it's always being updated. No need to wonder which party started, now you can see exactly what everyone is up to right away :)

Make it Happen Mondays #1 - Maximize your closet space - Part One -

Hello, Hello, Hello!!!


I am super duper excited to start a new series on the blog. Make it Happen MONDAYS(need to work on a button, so you can grab one)
Here's what I'm working on this week :

• My closet
• My moms closet
• Linen closet

This is my moms closet!

Can you tell how packed her closet was? You would not believe how much stuff she had crammed in there. I don't know how she did it, but she managed to combine three closets full of clothes into one. It's no wonder she yelled frantically last week when the shelf started coming off the wall, ooops. I'm only surprised it didn't come crashing down sooner.

My closet may not have shelves falling down, but the amount of usable space was minimal. I had to fix that asap. After starting on my moms closet, my head was buzzing with all kinds of ideas. 

I would like to finish the closets up this week. I did not paint them, or do anything pretty, but I did find a way to MAXIMIZE the amount of usable space in both closets, and am pretty darn happy with the results. 
P.S.You want to know what this new series is about???
Well I have come to realize that I need to take my blog back to what originally worked for me, not to mention what got me started to blog in the first place. Cleaning, and Organizing seem to be an endless battle for me, one which I hope to win with the help of my blog, and my readers of course. Without the motivation and encouragement I get from you, I don't know if I could do it.
I love Mondays, it's a new start to a new week, and a new list of things to do. Anybody else love making lists? I get the biggest kick out of it, and every week I have such high hopes of getting tons of stuff done. However I'm lucky if I get even one or two things done from my long list, that can have up to twenty items on it, he he. I've accepted this reality and plan to be much more realistic with my weekly goals, and even my daily ones. I just need to pick ONE or TWO projects to work on, and MAKE IT HAPPEN, no matter what. 
This is where:Make it Happen MONDAYSHelps me get it done, and will hopefully help you too. 
I will be giving you sneak peaks throughout the week on what I'm working on, and THEN.....
I will start posting another new series:Finally Finished FRIDAYSWhere you guessed it, I will show you stuff that I Finally Finished. Naturally the goal here is to post on Mondays with things I want to get done that week, and on Fridays show you the results. 
I'm really super excited, and have the best feeling that this is going to work really well for me. 
I'm thinking of the best way I'd like to do the new link party, because I'm sure many of you need all the help you can get too. How fun it will be to get inspiration from each other :)
Ok, so that's it for now, I hope you are as excited as I am..... this is going to be so much fun!!
Come back tomorrow for some sneak peaks!!
What are you working on this week? Talk to me, and remember today is:Make it Happen MONDAY so lets do it..... no matter what!!

Amaze me August #41 ~ Cleaning out the Closet Part ONE~

Welcome to the 41st edition of Amaze me August. 

As usual I am so thrilled to have you here. How are you guys doing with all the trouble blogger has been having lately? I've been seeing many frustrated friends, myself included. I hate when things go wrong, or I can't do what I want, when I want. We are so used to instant gratification, we forget that sometimes things are out of our control. I really need to remind myself of that more often. Only when we let go, can we relax, and realize that in fact nothing will happen, if we can't blog for a day. The weather has been beautiful here for us in the south. My kids have been keeping me busy with swim practice, competition, studies, Tae kwon do, and trying to keep up with a houseful, all day every day. Oh the joys of summer. This has made it especially easy for me to neglect my blog, I just can't explain to my kids why I am in front of the computer all day :) By the time evening comes I'm usually exhausted, and haven't found the energy to blog as much as I'd like. In the end I think it will all work out, for myself, and for all of you too. I know that many are taking it slower now that it's summer, but for those that were getting frustrated with Blogger, just take a deep breath, (along with me) and try to focus on something that we can control. Like the amount of time we spend with out kiddos, or loved one. Hugs to you all, love ya.


Now let me show you a really quick sneek peak at my closet. The past few days, I've been working on cleaning it out, moving furniture all around, LIKE ALL AROUND, and trying to organize things better. I had extra shelves in my garage that needed to go somewhere, and I had no more wall space in my garage, and they are very industrial looking, not pretty. However one of them fit perfectly in my closet. 

 Total clutter, I know. I'm trying to make it look better.

 This is after removing a bunch of boxes from the floor, and shoes stacked on top.

 Can't say this was the best system for us, but I never gave it much thought, just threw things together, and hoped for the best.

 Major closet redo coming soon. I can't wait for it to be done.

So far this is the only thing I have to show you, hehe. The new shelf that will now hold some shoes, towels, and pants. Oh boy this will take me some time. Check back in a few weeks will ya, lol. Seriously, I am on vacation next week, so clearly can't do it then, he he.

So I've heard from a few people how annoyed they are with the new Linky parties, and the whole requiring a backlink to participate. I want to assure you that I am not enforcing such rules, and frankly I don't actually have any rules. Only requests, and if you choose to follow them, I am happy, if not, I don't stress about it. I hardly have time to go policing people, to see if they followed all the rules, and would hate going through that myself, so I won't do it to you either OK. Now if you choose to link back, grab a button, or tell your friends about my party, you will surely make me very happy. Also if you want to leave me a comment, and visit some other people letting them know you saw them here, gosh that would be awesome too. Whatever it is, be nice, and be thankful to WHOEVER you are partying with, because these parties do take a lot of work by the host. Thanks guys!!!

Amaze me August #40 ~ Look inside my FRIDGE ~

Welcome to the 40th edition of Amaze me August. 

I can't believe I have been keeping this party going for over 40 weeks now. That is so awesome!! Thank you to all my regulars, and this past week I stumbled across a couple blogs who left comments on here. When I went to visit their blog, I noticed not only are they followers, but they are even sporting one of my buttons, and I'm on their blog roll. Oh wow, I can't even tell you how happy it makes me, when I come across someone who reads my blog, and loves it. 

I mean really I wonder how many of you are out there, that I just have no clue about. So if you are secretly a follower, but have never left me a comment, or maybe you have once, and I never responded back (oops) I'd love to hear from you. Oh and for the record, and to be fair, it's super hard keeping up with all the emails, but I try my best. However if on top of everything else, when I go to respond you are a NO-REPLY blogger, well, then you probably won't get a comment back, PROBABLY! Not for sure, but probably. So make sure to check out THIS POST, on how you can fix your NO-REPLY problems, so that when you leave me a comment, I can respond, OK. 

Oh and if you missed out on the great conversation on EXTREME COUPONING, make sure to check out THIS POST. I loved all the feedback on the subject, and of course I'd love to hear what you think too.

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Ok so since I went kinda nuts on you guys with my rants and raves, on healthy eating the other day. I wanted to share with you the kinds of things I typically stock up on. I do this kind of shopping about once every 6-8 weeks. I usually go to the Indian grocery store, Super H-mart (a korean market), and yesterday it was a trip to Costco too. Sometimes it's Sams, and usually a trip to Kroger as well. 

I wish I could make it out to the farmers markets more regularly, but that takes organizing, and I'm so not there yet. you really need to plan your shopping out doing that, and I really want to start doing that more often. You can't beat the taste, flavor and obviously freshness that you get from a farmers market. But eve if you are not there yet either, I want to show you, how I shop usually.

I will only show you my fresh produce today. I will do a couple follow up posts on the rest of the stuff I bought, including stuff to make my own dishwashing soap (YAYYYYY), and the other misc things I stock up on. My whole point being that MOST of the things I bought either do not have coupons period, OR there are no coupons for the brands I like to buy. So here you can see the problem with trying to use coupons, for someone like me. 

This is my fridge basically before I started cleaning it out. Tons of leftovers, and just a few things that need to be reorganized.

 Reorganized so I could fit more veggies, thank you very much!!

 These are condiments that were either on my top shelf, or on the door. A couple bottles were pretty much empty, so those could go to recycling.

 This is our snack drawer. I keep fruit, and cheese in here. 

 This is our veggie drawer. A couple things went bad, erghhh, I hate when that happens. 

 My tortilla, cheese, and lunch meat drawer.

 Take a look at what kinds of veggies I usually stock up on. Can you name all the veggies in the picture?

 My snack drawer, reorganized. I just swapped out apples for oranges, because the apples were getting a but old, and I just got some yummy clementines. The apples will still be used though, don't worry!

 My veggie drawer restocked!!

 Above my veggie drawer, more veggies, hehe.

 The top shelf in my fridge, is where I like to keep the larger condiments, opened sauce bottles, ginger garlic paste,  feta cheese, etc.

 The next shelf, I like to keep milk on the right, and leftovers on the left.

 The next small shelf, is where I keep my eggs, and yogurt.

 My tortilla drawer, filled with mozzarella. I love making pizza remember?

 My fridge door. On the very top (not in this pic) I keep my butter, and sometimes chocolate, lol. Then my milk, one juice, and buttermilk. Then more condiments, and more condiments on the bottom. 

 Here is the fruit I have currently. This is pretty typical. We also love berries, but I stopped buying them so often, because strawberries are at the top of the dirty dozen. I rarely find organic, and even if I do, they look really bad. I miss my berries, so maybe I should grow some, he he. I do buy frozen berries, organic of course, and we enjoy that in our smoothies often!! 

 A full view of my fridge. Pretty much stuffed to the limit. Definitely grocery day!!

 My outside fridge, was pretty much empty, so I had to fill that baby up too. I had no more room in the other fridge, hehe. 

Alright, much better now. 

So there you have it. My fridge stays pretty clean, I wipe it down basically every month. Especially when I do major stocking up like yesterday, it's essential to clean it out, before you put new stuff in there. Check back this week, for a breakdown on what actually I bought, and more in depth peeks at the rest of my pantry, and freezer. It should be fun right?

Now show me what you got. Hope you are not to tired to link up after that LONG post, lol.

Have you guys noticed the new and impoved Linkytools? I love it, what do you think about it so far? The scroll window is fabulous, and they have all kinds of new options. I can even REQUIRE that you have a link back to my blog, before you can link up. I think many people will be using that, maybe even me, but not for now. I think all of you will link back on your own, just because you know it's the right thing to do, and you want to make me smile, hehe. Thanks again for all the support!!

Amaze me August #33 ~ Garage remodel PART 2 ~

WELCOME, to the 33rd edition of 

I am so happy you are here. I can't wait to see what you have been up to. This is the last link up before Easter. Can't wait to see what everyone has been up to. 


Now on to my Garage Remodel PART 2


I am so excited to start finally showing you what I spent most of Spring Break working on. It's taken years to do this, and although it did take longer than I thought, I am so happy we finally got it done. The hardest part anyway. There is still tons of final touches, labeling, organizing, but for the most part, the change is dramatic, and I hope you enjoy the transformation as much as I do. 

My kids were all eager to help, sweet hugh. Yes this little patch of wall kept Dino busy for a while, lol.

Even my cat Tiger wanted to help. Not really he was just trying to sneak in the house every chance he got. Poor cat, he ALWAYS tries to sneak in, and run under the beds. I guess he remembers the good old days when he was an indoor kitten. Then mean mommy let him out, because I hate the smell of kitty litter, ooops.

Feel free to click on this picture and make it larger, so you can see just how nasty and dirty this doorway is. Bye bye, no more white paint for me. Heck no. 

My princess doing a much better job staying between the lines. Or under the stripe shall I say. It was fun for her, and she did a pretty good job too.

Ahh, there's Big B, he was my shelf installer. He had 5 heavy duty shelves to install and put together, and after the first one he was a pro, didn't even need any more help.

Clearly the staying between the lines only lasted so long. I HAD to resort to taping to get semi clean lines. I really wanted to paint horizontal stripes in here, simply to make your eye go around the garage making it look even larger than it is. I am so loving the blue shades I picked out. I'm happy being in my garage now. Princess had fun removing the tape after it dried.

Looks pretty good right. You'd never know how nasty it was before.

So check out that new door. Well newly painted anyway. I decided to go with black chalkboard paint on the garage door, both inside and out, and also painted the water heater doors too.

Those would be the water heater doors to the left.

Oh you want to see my garage floor, OK, why not. At least its clear right. Half of it anyway. We had rain in between, so while I cleared EVERYTHING out on my driveway, I had to bring it back in at night. It was so frustrating.

How about another BEFORE!! Yikes!!

Oh wow, AFTER!!!

And there you have it folks. Big B giving his thumbs up, a sure sign of approval if I do say so myself. Truth be told, Big B also did most of the painting. I taped, and he painted. I did most of the trim, and he did the rest. So he was extra proud of the garage, and how it looked since he did so much of the work. 


The power of paint I tell you. As if you needed yet another example of that, we see so many transformations, but it's so true. Nothing can compare to a new coat of paint. 


All I did was remove the cabinets from the walls, and take everything out. I taped off the walls, so I could have some horizontal stripes, and painted accordingly. Painted several coats of chalkboard paint on the doors, and painted all the trim the darker blue. I think not bad for PART 2 of the remodel. 


Please let me know what you think so far. Do you like it?
Have you painted your garage, or do you think it's silly wasting your time, and money painting a garage?


Can you guess what Part 3 might be?


**I'd like to invite you to check out my new PINTEREST**
Just a really fun way to be inspired. 
Tons of ideas, and the easiest way I've seen yet, to save them all.

OH and I can't believe 3 more people until I reach 300 followers. Are you guys awesome or what. THANK YOU!!!!

I'm linking to the following parties, and to see list of all the parties I like to participate in, OR to add your own to the list, please click PARTY HARDY EVERYDAY.

Now link up your projects, and show me what you got.