shed redo

When my parents were here for Em's birthday party weekend my dad helped out with a few household repairs/projects.  During his work he relocated something out to our back yard shed.  His only comment on his return, you could use some shelves. His restraint was more than admirable because this is what he found:

 

 

We don't have a garage so this shed is a dumping ground for anything and everything I don't think belongs in our house.  A lot of what is in there we inherited along with the shed when we bought the house 5 years ago.  Extra paint, travertine bathroom tiles, bead board, and assorted other things.  All our-house specific so I felt we needed to hold on to it all for a 'just in case' scenario.  I usually take everything out twice a year in the spring and fall and reorganize.  But I'm pretty sure I've only tackled that project once since Emma was born.  And it's been a particularly crazy year.  The result is above.  When my dad mentioned shelving I was surprised.  For some reason it had never occurred to me that I could add shelves for an organizational assist.  So this past weekend I decided to 'redo' our shed. 

 

I started by taking everything out and spreading it around our yard so I could see what was what.

 

 



You can see that my assistant showed up to help about that time.  Next up, cleaning!

Emma Rose loved sweeping so much that we had to get her a little mini broom and dust pan cleaning set later that day:)

Once everything was out and the shed was an outdoor version of clean I started to look around at what needed to go back in so I could figure out how much shelving I needed and where to put it.  Then I realized something huge.  I had no idea where to begin.  And then the next revelation.  I SUCK at DIY.  I shouldn't.  I should be awesome at it.  My parents can do anything and everything.  And I watched them throughout my childhood and into adulthood.  So many opportunities to learn.  But I didn't.  I just did not.  Maybe because they're so great at it?  Maybe they are just always there to do whatever I need doing and so I never had the proper incentive to learn.  Whatever the reason, I am not the DIYer that my genetics and upbringing hint I should be.  But what I can do, and do exceptionally well, is organize.  I can organize the hell out of anything.  And so a mental shift into organization mode.  A trip to Big Lots for heavy duty storage containers (and the previously mentioned mini-me cleaning set) and we ended up with the following:

All those our-house extras that I still can't manage to part with.

 

A container each for gardening, party, paint, pest control, and assorted 'project' supplies.

 

Easy access to our coolers and camp chairs as well as the super cool ladder Mom and Dad gave us as a wedding present;)

 

 

I still have to make labels for the containers and find a more appropriate home for all of our patio cushions.  Plus I have a rarely used bike that needs a parking spot.  Overall I'm pleased with the weekend's work.  That shed may still see shelving someday.  But for now, my organized soul is happy:)