Nesting again. This time it's the closet under the stairs.

When we added our upstairs a few years ago, one of the bonus perks was getting a closet under the stairs.  We use it to store everything from vacuum cleaners and mops to jackets and backpacks and oodles and oodles of kids' clothes.  I'm a terrible packrat and just can't let go of my kids' clothes or shoes unless they are really worn or stained.  I must have a little hoarder in me:).  Here's what our schoolroom looked like after I unloaded the closet.

(Yes, I'm one of the idiots that believed the informercial on space bags.)

It spilled over into the living room.

And shoe chaos.  On the bench means second hand store.  In the box means keep for next kid in line.  On the floor means missing it's match so trash-bound.  What happens to those missing shoes, anyway?

 

Ok, I know this closet isn't perfect.  It is awfully full of stuff, but it's a bit more orderly now.

This is one of those closets that turns a corner.  Way back in the dark, remote recesses is where I'm keeping the (sniff, sniff) baby girl clothes.  That's right, I'm expecting a baby boy, our sixth child, and I still can't get rid of my baby girl things.  Yes, I do hope to have another baby girl.  Crazy, I know.

Here we have the trusty hand-me-down shoe box.  These are the shoes and boots that were in good shape and costly enough that I deemed them irreplaceable.

And the next layer of the onion provides easy access to cleaning supplies.

When you open the closet door you see these four hooks and the vacuum chargers.  I would so love two more hooks.  Maybe next to the dustbuster?

And on the left side of the closet:  shelves. 

This part of the floor is a little messy.  I have a basket full of protective gear (why I have this I don't know- my kids never wear it), two ice skating bags (and now my girls say they want to go back to gymnastics next year instead of ice skating!), and a row of roller blades and ice skates (3 pairs of roller blades, one pair of roller skates, and three pairs of outgrown ice skates).

The next shelf has bike helmets (more protective gear that goes unused) and swimming paraphernalia.

Boy clothes 12-24 months.  (I hung all the 0-12 m clothes in baby Calvin's closet.)

And on the top shelf:  Girl sz 4-5.  I have a big bag of sz 3 clothes that I need to hang in Louie's closet since it won't be long before she's in those.  The clothes that are too small for Twinkle Toes, but too big for Measle I'm putting in their closet since Measle will be wearing them next year.

So, that's it for now.  Next project= laundry room.  Maybe I should ditch all that protective wear.  What do you think?  My kids literally NEVER wear it.  Why do I hold onto it?  I seriously have a bike helmet in every size and color.  Why?  I have no idea.  This closet is a little like my life.  Not terribly out of control and not incredibly with-it either.  It's basically controlled chaos.  That pretty much sums us up.