Making our house a home

In honor of our esteemed guest joining us this weekend, we're rolling out the red carpet.  Well, at least the read door mat.

When we moved in, our front door was in need of a facelift.  It was painted the exact same color as the cream siding around it.  Very boring.  So, last week, I gave it a paint job, added a friendly wreath...

applied some vinyl so everyone can find us...

And voila, a much improved entrance. 

I'm laughing at myself because it looks an aweful lot like the front door of the house we just moved from.  Same color, same pots, same welcome sign.  I guess I just needed something to feel like home.

And since Jen, Chad's sister and our expected guest, is the most organized human being I know (TV characters and magazine layouts don't count), I decided I needed to help her feel at home by doing a little organizing myself.  When we moved in, we pretty much unpacked as fast as we could and just threw things in closets wherever they would fit.  They main body of my house looks pretty put together, just don't open any miscellaneous doors.  But now, the mess is getting pretty annoying.  I didn't have time to tackle everything so I decided to attack one of the worst offenders.  The pantry.  This is how it looks before.  The worst part is that when this picture was taken, I desperately needed to do a big grocery shopping trip.  So this is the pantry without much in it.  I know Jen, I'm hanging my head in shame.

My last pantry was three times as big and I haven't been coping well with the loss.  But, I was determined to change all that.  And after a little shopping around I found some great storage solutions.  This next picture is the after AND it's after a big shopping trip, so there's tons more food in there.  Even better, there's room for even more!

The door mounted rack is from bed bath and beyond.  It's not an easy to find item.  I know because I tried several stores.  But, I bet you could find it on amazon.  They have everything!  The rest of the shelves/hanging baskets, and this wrap rack (I really don't know what to call it) came in an inexpensive 6 piece set at walmart.  Awesome!

These gallon sized jars house some frequently used ingredients.  I was worried at first that they might be a pain to get at set up like this, but it's been so perfect and easy to use.  It's almost like I measured before I went shopping (hmmm forgot that part).  Behind them are some infrequently used ingredients and my ice cream maker. 

Ok, so it's not the cutest, most amazing pantry ever.  But, it gets an A+ for functionality.  And compared to the frustration I was going through while trying to cook with my old setup, it's the bomb diggity!

Next to tackle...The garage.

Yikes!

And in other recent news.  Liam has started shaving.

Remind me not to leave my razor within reach during his shower tommorow night.