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Blessings Overflowing

Faith~Family~Creativity

April 20, 2016 By Jackie 2 Comments

Coat Closet Makeover

Having too many coats and shoes to fit into a closet is definitely a first world problem, but it is one that my large family has. I have tried several different ways to organize our outerwear and shoes in the coat closet in our dining room over the years, but I always end up with tons of stuff crammed in, even things that shouldn’t be in the closet.

Last month I decided enough was enough. After the too small shoe organizer was “mysteriously” broken I started brainstorming ways to reorganize the closet.

My final idea was rather drastic because I literally took the doors off of the closet and forced asked my husband to build me a bench/shoe box. However, in spite of my drastic idea, for the past month we have all been loving the simplicity of our new system.

Coat Closet Makeover

Shoes that we wear in public (We have play shoes on our patio.) go in the box, the coats we are currently wearing go on the hooks, and the younger kids’ backpacks go on their hooks, too. Such a simple method of organization has eliminated a ton of clutter from our lives.

I wish I had taken a better before picture, but I have been out of the routine of blogging for so long that I forgot until I was halfway through. Just picture tons more stuff on the floor and a closet rod that had more coats on it than signers of the Declaration of Independence. Ok, so that is a bit of an exaggeration, but there were a lot of coats.

You can see the tiny shoe organizer I had in this picture and how it is broken. It wasn’t working for us anyway, so I wasn’t too upset. Now that I think of it, I think the organizer was broken when one of my children, who shall remain nameless, sat on it while playing a game of hide and seek. 🙂

Before Coat Closet Makeover

After I removed everything from the closet, and took the sliding doors off, I prepped the coat closet for painting. I am going to have to repaint our dining room anyway due to some water damage, so I thought it was a great time to pick a completely new color.

I had such a cute little helper!

Painting the Closet

After a coat of primer and two coats of paint, I was ready for my husband to help. All I had to do was tell him what I wanted and he was able to make a sketch, come up with a materials list, and then make the box. He is cool like that.

He made a frame using 2×3’s (You could use 2×4’s. My husband thought 2×3’s would do the job and be a little cheaper.).

As you can see he made a rectangle around the perimeter on the floor (He even put a few screws into the floor to hold it in place better.), and then he added upright pieces in the corners and made another rectangle on the top.

Making Shoe Bench 1

After the frame was built he measured some 1/2 inch plywood and cut the top piece to fit snug on top. Then he cut out the piece that was going to be the lid so he could use the rest to screw into the frame.

As you can see I painted the plywood before he used finishing nails to attach it to the frame. He had measured and cut it, made sure it fit, and then I painted it.

I did want to note that I purchased the type of plywood that was already sanded on one side and was only 4 feet wide so I could get it into my vehicle.

Making Shoe Bench 2

He then attached the front piece to the frame using finishing nails.

Making Shoe Bench 3

Next, we attached the lid. We used four 2-inch hinges. To determine where to place them we set the lid on the frame and evenly spaced the hinges and then used the screws that came in the package to attach them.

Installing Hinges

The final step was to attach spring lid supports that keep the lid open when we are looking for our shoes. (Be sure to get one left and one right spring.) We just followed the package directions for attaching the springs.

This picture shows our new shoe box/bench in action. As you can see, we used the walls as the sides of the box. We could have used plywood, but we decided to take our chances with shoes being thrown into the box. This saved us money, and we haven’t had any issues so far.

Finished Shoe Bench

I had purchased a 1×3 piece of wood to attach the coat hooks to. My husband made some special cuts to get the wood to meet properly in the corners and then I painted the pieces.

My husband used a stud finder and a level to determine where to screw the 1×3 pieces into the wall. After the pieces were attached we did some measuring to decide where to place the heavy duty hooks I purchased.

We installed 7 hooks, and we are only putting 1 in-season coat on our hooks. The littlest kids also put their backpacks on their hooks. The rest of our coats are in our clothes closets. We can only wear one coat at a time, so only keeping one coat out at a time has cut down on our coat issue.

Coat Closet Ready for Coats

We are loving our new coat closet nook! In this picture I hadn’t taken down the sliding door track because I wanted to be absolutely sure I didn’t want to use the doors anymore. I have since taken it down.

Finished Coat Closet Makeover

The shoe box/bench is nice to sit on when we are tying our shoes, and apparently it is good for sleeping on if you are five. 🙂

Coat Closet Bench

I thought some of you might be interested in the breakdown of how much I spent on this project. Obviously, I could have done nothing and saved about $100, but my sanity has been saved since we completed this project, so I think it was worth it. No more clutter, you can’t put a price on that.

Materials List

  • 7 Heavy Duty Hooks $3.99 each ($27.93)
  • 2 Packages of 2 inch Brass Hinges $2.81 each ($5.62)
  • Spring Lid Supports (Left & Right) $3.59 each ($7.18)
  • 2 Sheets of 1/2 inch Plywood (2’x4′) $8.37 each ($16.74)
  • 1 (1″x3″) 8 foot Board $1.47
  • 5 (2″x3″) 8 foot Boards $1.79 each ($8.95)
  • 1 Gallon of Paint $23.74
  • Primer (already had)
  • Screws (already had)
  • Finishing Nails (already had)

Total Cost: $91.63 (+Tax)

So, for just under a hundred dollars we were able to turn our dysfunctional coat closet into a space that is not only functional, but adds a nice touch to our dining room.

As you can see from the picture at the beginning of this post that I made a vinyl sign with my Cricut. I think it adds a nice touch. Plus, I love that Bible verse.

While it was a little scary to think about not having doors on our coat closet, I am so glad we did it.

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jackiesblessings

I have mixed emotions when I reflect on all that h I have mixed emotions when I reflect on all that has happened in 2020. There have been so many negatives for so many people. I can’t say it has all been positive for me either. However, there are some things that have happened in 2020 for which I am so grateful. 
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The main thing I am grateful for is the extra time I was able to spend with my kids. We had so much fun during quarantine and this summer. I know this wasn’t the case for everyone, but I do not regret the days when we had nothing planned and could just have fun together. Whether it was walking in the woods, playing games, watching a movie together, or even doing chores, I never once heard an “I’m bored.” 🙂 
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In addition to the gift of more time together, I am also grateful for all of the milestones we have celebrated this year. In June, my parents celebrated their 50th anniversary, and then we had four milestone birthdays. Julia turned 21, James turned 18, Joshua turned 16, and Joseph turned 13. (Janna felt left out, so we told her that her birthday was special because it was her last birthday in single digits.) Also, today marks 25 years that JT and I have been married. 
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While I won’t be sorry to see 2020 go, and I hope
and pray 2021 is better for so many people who are hurting right now, I don’t ever want to forget the good times we had this year. 
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P.S. I took all of these pictures over fall break.
The girls and I recorded our parts for our virtual The girls and I recorded our parts for our virtual church service yesterday, and I couldn’t resist getting a picture with them in front of this beautiful Christmas tree. ❤️
James has been playing school basketball since he James has been playing school basketball since he was in the fourth grade. Tonight he and his fellow Seniors  were recognized at their game, and I just can’t believe James is this old. 
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Normally, Senior Night is the last game of the season. However,  because everything in the world seems so uncertain right now, we wanted to make sure the boys got a chance to be recognized. We wanted something “normal” for them. I am thankful James and his teammates not only got recognized but also won their game. 
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P.S. We had our masks on at all times other than when we took pictures.
We have another teenager in the house! Joseph is t We have another teenager in the house! Joseph is turning 13 today, and it just doesn’t seem possible. The beautiful baby boy who was placed in my arms on a cold and foggy day in December is still my “little” guy. However, after looking at this picture of the two of us, I don’t think he will be shorter than me for long. Joseph is still my shy guy, but he is also sweet, loving, kind, and just an all around good kid. We also lovingly refer to him as the cat whisperer because the kittens and cats follow him around like puppies. 🙂 It has been so much fun to have Joseph at school with me this year now that he is in junior high, and I am so thankful that I get to be his mama. Happy birthday, Joseph! ❤️
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When I signed up to take my first class in January, I had no idea what 2020 was going to entail. Teaching in a pandemic isn’t for the faint of heart. Taking classes and caring for five kids while teaching in a pandemic has allowed me to see what I am really made of. I don’t mean to brag, but I am pretty happy that I received straight A’s. Beyond that, I learned so much, and I am grateful for this opportunity even though I felt stretched to my limits some days. 
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Yes, 2020 has been challenging, but I have been blessed with more time with my family, knowledge gained, and challenges met and overcome.
I almost forgot to post this here. 🎂 Joshua is I almost forgot to post this here. 
🎂
Joshua is 16 years old today. It doesn’t seem possible that my little pip squeak of a baby boy is now about 6’4”. Joshua is now the tallest of the family, and I’m not sure he is done growing. There hasn’t been a dull moment since Joshua arrived, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. He is a fun-loving, hard-working, kind-hearted, and intelligent young man. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for him. I am so thankful God thought I was up to the task of being Joshua’s mama. ❤️
My little 7 pound 20 inch baby boy, who didn’t c My little 7 pound 20 inch baby boy, who didn’t cry as soon as he was born but first looked around to see what was going on in the world, is now a 6’2” handsome man. I truly never thought the years would go by so quickly, but here we are. James is 18 today. 

There are so many words I could use to describe James: hardworking, dedicated, persevering, intelligent, funny, curious, kindhearted, dependable, respectful, and helpful. I could also expound upon his accomplishments, and I could tell you how great he is. However, I don’t love James for what he has accomplished but simply because he is my son.

I have been so blessed to be James’s mom, and I thank God every day for entrusting him into my care. I don’t know what the future will hold for him, but I know he will do great things. 

For anyone reading this who is struggling with a tantrum throwing toddler, a strong-willed child, and/or a child who questions everything, I would like to encourage you. Look for the positive qualities your child possesses such as perseverance, dedication, and curiosity and build upon that. I will never regret the hard days of parenting because my prayers and hard work have paid off. Helping James reach his full potential and keep those qualities without breaking his spirit has been worth the effort.

Happy Birthday, James!
I’m not going to sugar coat it. Today seemed sur I’m not going to sugar coat it. Today seemed surreal. It felt chaotic. Nothing was normal. We are all exhausted. However, it was wonderful to be with my students again after five months, and my own kids enjoyed seeing their friends. I don’t know how this school year will play out, but I am ready to go back tomorrow and try to make teaching virtually and in person work to the best of my ability. My students are worth the effort. 
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James is a senior, and this was his last first day of school. Joshua is a sophomore, and Joseph is in 7th grade which means I have all three of my boys in the same building with me. Janna is in fourth grade, and she was very excited to be back at school. Julia will be a senior in college when she starts back next week. 
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I am praying we all have a safe and healthy school year. I plan to try not to think about the unknowns and what-ifs and take it one day at a time.
This morning I told four of my kids we were going This morning I told four of my kids we were going to go on an adventure. (No, I didn’t leave one out of the fun. James played in a golf tournament with his dad. 🙂) Anyway, it was quite an adventure. It started with my vehicle telling me one of the tires needed air, but it must be a bad sensor because it was fine. Then I almost ran out of gas. I drove us on all sorts of country roads we had never been on, and I even thought I was going south when I was actually going north for like 10 miles. 🤷🏻‍♀️ It was very obvious I have not been many places since March. 
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Anyway, Julia, Joshua, Joseph, Janna, and I went to @maxandhoneys where we took some pictures and picked a beautiful bouquet. It was really fun. After that, we went to Greencastle and then to Lieber State Recreation Area. We finished by stopping to do a few things in my classroom, and we made it home before it started raining.
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Here are some pictures from our day. The last picture is of James before he went to play golf. How is he old enough to be a senior? 😢 I am so thankful for my family. 💕 Also, kudos to Joshua and Joseph for being good sports about picking flowers. Their future wives will thank me. 😀

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