Spec House Time Machine

I love my house. It's perfect for my family, and we have developed a system of organization that works for us. There are times, though, that I wish I had a time machine so I could go back and do a few things differently. Most of my regrets have to do with the area leading to my back door. If I had planned it right, that space could be the most efficient space in my house, but it's far from it. For example:

• I wish I'd spent more time thinking through the storage in the laundry room. I really want my laundry room to look like this

but it doesn't. It's a jumble of cupboards filled with who knows what, and no room for either laundry baskets or hampers. Sometimes the only way I can tell the clean laundry from the dirty laundry (besides the obvious) is this: the dirty laundry is on the floor waiting to be washed, the clean laundry is on the red chair in the family room waiting to be folded.

• I wish I had re-constructed the linen closet by the bathroom before I moved in. Now that I have three kids in school, I dream of a storage system that looks like this

but mine doesn't. It's filled with a mixture of toilet paper, tote bags, loaf pans, empty vases, sometimes beach towels, sometimes things JP is hiding from the kids. I dream of having those three backpacks, coats and lunch boxes staged perfectly by the back door. But, unless my kids want to grab a roll of toilet paper, a loaf pan and a handful of foreign coins on their way out the door, the closet is useless as anything but a holding pen for things I don't know what to do with.

• The powder room would be perfect if I were a single girl with the occasional visitor, but is not at all functional for a family of five. If I had it to do all over again, I would replace the toilet with an industrial strength model with would support the needs of a sorority house, and I would replace our pretty pedestal sink with a more functional model that has storage. That way Jack's vast collection of Axe personal care products could be stowed away under the sink along with extra rolls of toilet paper. As I mentioned earlier in this post, rolls of toilet paper are stored in the closet across the hall from the bathroom. Very inconvenient as you can imagine if one finds herself faced with the empty roll still on the holder and no one within shouting distance to come to the rescue.

If we decide to do some renovating in our house, that area by the back door is going to be the first thing to go. I can imagine it completely reconfigured into one big room with laundry, bath and mudrooms all in one. Maybe we can even work in a little spot for Jasper.

Galvi Envy

I've noticed in the last year or so a modern rural decorating trend spreading itself across America. It could be that the recession makes simple design more appealing to Americans, it could be the popularity of The Carneros Inn in Sonoma County, CA or it could be that Martha Stewart made the trend hot 20 years ago and it's never quite died down. Either way, I like it.

The element I like most is the creative use of authentic galvanized containers. They're perfect for my house: they're simple, they look great and they're impossible to break. (see previous post Everyone Can Use a Little Luck to understand the importance of that specific point.)

My favorite ideas are:

Hanging galvanized pails for storage

Feed troughs used as planters

Buckets used inside for flowers

Little buckets used for organizing

Or lined with parchment on the table

And the ultimate indulgence, fountain made from a feed trough

A great resource for the authentic pieces is my local Alamo Hay and Grain. If you don't live in my neighborhood, though, Dover Parkersburg has a great assortment and will ship anywhere.

Whether the trend stays trendy or not -- no matter. Durable, low maintenance things that look good are always in style at the Furber house.

Tell Me What You're Missing, and I'll Tell You If I Gave It Away

Last week's post made me want to organize something, so I sent JP, Katie and Jasper to the dog park this morning and attacked Katie's room while they were gone.

Jack and I plowed through every drawer, shelf, bucket and tote and came up with a hefty bag full of clothes and toys to donate to charity and a half bag of trash and her room is sparkly clean and organized. We were prepared for Katie to flip out when she got home because her stuff was all moved, so Jack and I intervened with some psychological warfare: we left a note on her bed that said "Dear Katie, We cleaned your room for you. We hope you like it. XO Mom and Jack" and we left three Tootsie Rolls along with the note.

So far, so good.

No Girls Allowed

Jack will be 12 on Friday, and he's needing his mother less and less to manage his room and his stuff. It used to be that I'd go into Jack's room once a week or so and organize his stuff for him -- sports stuff all in one drawer, t-shirts in another, pants in one drawer, shorts in another. I'd get his desk all ready for the week, and put all his books away.

Well, those days are over. Jack now refers to his room as his "Man Cave" and the women in the house require an invitation to enter.

I have seen laundry go in there nice and clean, and when it comes out on Jack's body it appears to be a little messed up and wrinkled. I have seen plates and forks go in there, never to be seen again. Occasionally, Jack walks around the house collecting stuff like rubber bands, string, paper clips, scissors, band-aids, and measuring cups, then disappears into his Man Cave for a few hours. I have no idea what he's doing in there and have adopted a "don't ask, don't tell" policy. I would like to know what happened to my kitchen shears, though. I haven't seen them in months.

Jack seems to be functioning just fine without my intervention. He manages to dress himself in clean (if slightly rumpled) clothing, he always wears underwear, and keeps track of his school stuff with a system only he understands.

In six years or so, when Jack goes off to college, I'm looking forward to an anthropological dig in the Man Cave. I'm hoping my study will lead to a better understanding of the human male teenager. Or at least the discovery of my kitchen shears.

The Return of Suburban Zen, and the Daily Shower

As you may have noticed, I have been neglecting Suburban Zen lately. I know for certain my Mom has noticed, as she sends me a message each Sunday morning reminding me that she's missing Zen. The Furbers have been so busy living our fun and happy life this summer, there has been no time to write about it.

Well Mom, school starts tomorrow, and so does the discipline that rules during the school year, so no more lounging around enjoying the Summer for me. Tomorrow marks the start of:

Regular bathing so we don't have to ask "when was the last time you had a shower?"
Sleeping in pajamas every night rather than the occasional falling into bed fully dressed
Wearing clean clothes every day
Regular meals that loosely follow the food pyramid
Homework in the afternoons
No TV on the weeknights
Making lunches after dinner
Tidying up the house before we go to bed
Regular bedtime for all Furbers

Pay heed, Furber children. That list is for you.

With all that activity, there's plenty to write about, so look forward to the return of Zen's regular schedule of once or twice a week coming soon.

Another school year is over, and this was a big one for the Furbers: Jack graduated from elementary school, Katie finished kindergarten, and Andie graduated from middle school. With the end of each school year at my house comes a variety of trophies, certificates, awards, and really cute art, and along with all that comes the challenge of storing and displaying it all. JP and I developed a system that has held up very well over the years.

When Andie started school (9 years ago!) we bought 20 26"x12" flat files and started filling them up with mementos for each year.
Now each child has a box for each school year that contains all the good stuff we want to keep. Some have parts of halloween costumes (like the giant white sunglasses Jack wore with his Willy Wonka costume), some have party invitations, pictures of friends, tickets to plays, programs from performances.

Because all three of our children have gone to the same elementary school, it's especially fun to compare the school projects they've all done -- we now have a complete Furber set of the Old Lady Who Swallowed the Fly from the Rancho Romero Kindergarten curriculum.

Every once in a while I sit down with a stack of them and try to clean out the contents, thinking the kids can't possibly want all this when they move out and have to store it all themselves. But then I get lost in the memories brought back by each little item, and I keep it all.

The Last Family on Earth Without DVR

We are indeed the last family on earth without DVR. Or On Demand. Aside from a few gadgets in my life, I'm not a huge fan of non-essential technology. It always seems to create as many problems as it solves.

However, I'm finally ready to take the plunge and invest in DVR and On Demand for the simple reason that I can't find a DVD in my house when I want one. We've tried storing them alphabetically, by genre, by rating. No luck. If I want to watch a movie on a friday night, I have to resign myself to watching whatever I can find in the room I'm in.

I estimate that we've invested around $15,000 in our DVD collection over the years, and really just watch Ocean's 11, National Treasure, Iron Man (I do love Tony Stark), and Notting Hill over and over because those are the movies we can all agree on and can find.

Call the cable guy, JP. I'm ready to donate that big DVD collection to the local library and use those cupboards to store my shoes. We will no longer be the last family on earth without DVR. But sorry Jack, we will still be the last family on earth without AirSoft Guns.

Backpacks Everywhere

I'm looking forward to the end of the school year for many reasons:
I've volunteered for Jack's end of the year picnic, and Jack loves it when I volunteer for his activities
Andie graduates from middle school this year, and Jack graduates from elementary school
The backpacks can be put away for a while

Throughout the school year, it seems like backpacks are everywhere and my family room looks like this:

when I want it to look like this:

Not likely. The red chair in the family room has become a junk magnet, and everything related to the school day is dumped there the second the kids come home from school.

My project over the summer will be to develop a system Andie, Jack and Katie can use to pack their backpacks when they're done with their homework, tuck them away for the night and actually find them again in the morning. Whether my new system works perfectly or not, it's bound to be a vast improvement over my current system which consists of yelling in frustration at least once a week "Hey short people, come and get your crap. This chair is not your dumping ground!"

Tips for a Healthy Family Home #1

Whether you like Al Gore or not, you have to admit, it's getting hotter every summer. My husband can no longer stand the 100 degree + temperature in Alamo, and for the past several years has sought refuge and cool wind in Olympia every summer.

For those not so lucky to have parents on the water, there's always a basket of sunscreen in the backyard and a sprinkler. We have used these clam baskets in our backyard for sunscreen, hats, goggles for years:

They're cute, useful, weatherproof, and can be found at any flea market anywhere in America. Click here to find the flea market closest to where you live.

If you're looking for advice on which organic sunscreen to use, EcoBusinessLinks.com is a good source for information. We like Soleo because it's made in California.

Behind Every Organized Woman, There's a Man Who Remembers to Buy the Paper Towels

Regular SuburbanZen readers might get the impression that I am the mastermind behind our casual, comfortable and organized house. However, it's really JP who does all the heavy lifting. For any mother out there wondering how to keep it all together and looking good with three kids and a big dog in the house, I highly recommend being married to a man who:

Surprises you on a sunny friday afternoon by getting the outdoor furniture out and ready for the season so you can relax in the backyard all weekend with your family.

Makes you spinach eggs for breakfast at least twice a week.

Plants tomatoes and peppers in the backyard so you can have them in your salads all summer.

Gets the house all organized the night before the cleaning lady comes every other week. And does it before you come home from work so you don't have to pitch in.

Orders your favorite shampoo and lotion from Origins so it's delivered right before you run out.

Breaks down and disposes of all the boxes from the mail order deliveries that come to the house.

Deals with the cable, wireless and other mysterious conveniences in the house.

Takes the dog to the dog park every day to wear him out so he doesn't crash around the house knocking over your furniture and eating your throw pillows. (Although there was an incident last night with a pillow that left feathers two inches deep all over the floor of the office.)

Cleans up the feathers when the dog eats a pillow in the office.

Cleans up dog poop when you say you will, but can't get started because you're distracted by all the dry heaving you're doing.

JP, if you're reading this: thank you, I love you and I'm ready for my spinach eggs.

Stow or Show?

That is the eternal question in a house full of people and stuff. Do you assign a place for everything, and put everything in it's place, or do you let it all hang out? Who knows. But at the Furber house, it's a combination of the two.

Because I think stacks of books, piles of white napkins, rows of glasses or baskets of photographs can be some of the prettiest accessories in my house, I've always been a big fan of open storage. My dining room is a museum of simple everyday objects that I think are beautiful:

However, not everything in a house with three kids is so beautiful, or easy to organize. I recommend a simple Q&A to decide whether to show or stow:

Would you want to look at it every day for the rest of your life?
If yes, then proudly display it.
If no, then tuck it away in a built in, a closet, or invest in a very pretty piece of furniture that has lots of storage and fill it up! Last year I bought this chest for my entryway:

My husband rolled his eyes at how frivolous (and kind of expensive) it was, but that did not deter me, and now I have five big drawers that I can fill up with whatever I want. The possibilities are so vast, I still haven't decided what I'm going to use it for. I need to decide quickly, though. We seem to have a squatter's rights system of claiming storage in our house and I fear if I don't designate a purpose soon, I'll find it filled up with dog toys, old Golf Digests, or Legos.

Maybe I Need a Backup Plan

In order to secure my retirement, I've been planning to invent a universal charger that works with all rechargeable electronic devices. As retirement grows closer though, I'm realizing that I may not have the mental capacity to invent such an item for the approximately 100 million devices that need charging at any given time in my home. And I've just learned that someone has beat me to it. A new universal adapter is in the works and will be introduced in 2012 -- glory hallelujah.

I'll be first in line in 2012 to get my new universal adapter. Until then, we've got all of the following devices in regular use at all times in the Furber house:

Two Blackberries
One cell phone
Five cameras
Five iPods
One DSLite and one Gameboy (both Jack's)
Various remote control cars, planes and helicopters

And that's not counting all the things that only come out occasionally and therefore are separated from their chargers and become useless after a few months.

In order to keep the chargers at the ready, and keep my house from becoming a jungle of plugs, wires and devices snaking out from every available outlet, I've devised a system that works pretty well:

The big kids each have recharging stations in their rooms with enough plugs to handle all the devices used regularly by that child. Andie has this one for her phone, iPod and camera:

She likes it because she can close the lid and it looks nice on her desk.

Jack has this one for his gameboys, his iPod, and his remote control fleet:

He likes it because he can put pictures of cool cars, or whatever else is his current interest, in the front.

JP and I keep our chargers in our cars so our phones and iPods can be charging while we're driving.

For those things that aren't constantly in use or charging, we have a color coding system that works great: we mark each electronic thing with a sticker, and it's adapter with the same sticker, so we can match them up. We've been known to mark things with valentine stickers, basketball stickers, alphabet stickers. It doesn't really matter what kind we use, as long as we have two of them.

Every once in awhile I have to go through my house and tighten up the screws on our organizational system by unplugging things from random outlets and putting them back where I like them. But for the most part order reigns, and our system will hold us for the next three years until I can sleep on the sidewalk outside Best Buy to get my universal charger when it comes out.

The Cheater's Guide to Appearing Organized

Organizing is very heavy on my mind these days. December always seems like a flurry, and the New Year always brings with it a desire to pull it all together. While I'd like to actually be organized and efficient, these days just appearing so is a huge victory. I can find most things in my house at a moment's notice, because of a simple tool: The Shoebox.

Rather than neatly file or stack things, I like to put all the similar stuff together, throw it in a shoebox, label it, and stash it away. I used to save my shoeboxes and use them, but now that shoeboxes come in all different sizes, shapes, materials and patterns, I love them even more.

I use shoeboxes like these for photos, chords to all our misc. electronics, art supplies, and other stuff that seems to always be piling up here and there.


We use art files like these for all the kids' art and papers from school.

Scrapbooks are a ridiculous idea for a family with three kids and a working Mom. It's much easier to assign one box to each child each year, throw everything in it as the year progresses, label it and put it away at year end. And it's much more likely to get done.

We use canvas boxes like this for food in the pantry. No plastic, and they're easy to move around.


Andie uses boxes like these to organize her room.


Shoeboxes are the best organizational system. I love them because they're neat, they stack, and they're nice and small so I can easily seem what's in them. I also love them because they create the appearance of organization -- only I know what mess lies within.

Five Things I Forgot I Had

The swap meet at the Furber house last weekend was a moderate success. JP,Jack, Andie, and Katie all got great things that they were very excited about. One man's castoff is another man's treasure, it seems.

I rate the event as only moderately successful because I didn't get the inbox I was hoping for. Maybe next time. However, as always happens when I start looking in closets and under sinks, I found some pretty good and useful stuff I had forgotten about. For example:

Some plastic storage drawers that were nearly empty under my bathroom sink are now in the garage holding JP's odds and ends on his workbench.

Some empty wine crates are now holding table linens in my dining room.


I found a supercool corkboard that now makes a great addition to my command center in my laundry room.

I found stashes of notecards all over the office. When I gathered them all together, it seems like we've got enough to get us through about the next five years of thank you notes. We now have a drawer in the office dedicated only to notecards and thank you note writing supplies. Stand by Grandmas and Grandpas -- thank you notes are on the way.

I found dormant frames all over the place -- in the garage, in the office, in the hall closet. Next time I think I need to buy a frame, I don't. And the next time after that, too.

Cleaning out my closets looking for stuff to trade just wet my appetite for a bigger excavation. I think I'll venture into the garage next -- maybe my inbox will be in there.

Swap Meet and the Furber House

Now that the resolutions are done, it's time to get back to my topic of making the most of your $$ during a recession.

Andie and Jack have been making noises lately about needing (or wanting) new things for their rooms. I've fended them off, as I feel like we don't need any more stuff in our house. In fact, I've noticed that whenever we move, we find great things that we'd forgotten about, or didn't realize we had.

That gave me an idea: this weekend all five Furbers are going to find ten things in our rooms that we don't need or want anymore. All 50 things are going on the kitchen table, and all family members can shop from the table for new things for their rooms. Anything that doesn't get swapped will be donated to charity.

I need a new inbox for my desk in my office. Wish me luck!

Has Anyone Seen My (fill in the blank)?

My husband and I had a revelation Friday night -- the entire Furber Family social calendar can no longer be housed in JP's head. We had scheduled all of the following:

A sleepover at our house with Jack's friend Conway
Andie's end of the season soccer party
Katie to attend a birthday party

JP had scheduled one of the events, I had scheduled the other, and the soccer party worked its way in somehow. All happened roughly at the same time, and required pickup, delivery or both.

We also have been tracking Jack's Outdoor Education permission slips all over the house -- they've traveled from the kitchen table, to the office, to Jack's room, to Jack's backpack and back to the kitchen table. Always when we need them, they're not in the first place we look, or the second, and usually not the third.

We need a new system that involves a calendar, a to do list for each kid, and a holding pen for all the papers that spend the week in limbo on our kitchen table (and roam around the house so they're not on the table when you need them).

We've decided to make a hard-working, no nonsense command central in our laundry room that includes:

A good old-fashioned Stendig calendar. This design was created in 1966 by Massimo Vignelli and is a classic. No pictures of cats or flowers to distract from our serious task of scheduling.


A chalkboard for each of the Furber family members so we can keep track of our stuff. We bought these magnetic chalkboard tiles from Pottery Barn a few years ago and now have have the perfect use for them.

They're extra useful because you can write notes on them with chalk, or you can stick things to them with magnets. First thing that's going up is Jack's Outdoor Education stuff.

Cannisters like these that stick to the chalkboards and hold things we always seem to need at the last minute: hair bands, barrettes, chapstick, lunch money.
A weather clock so we can keep track of the time and dress ourselves as we walk out the door.


Once our Command Central is all installed our household should run like a well-oiled machine. Or at least we'll be able to find our Outdoor Education permission forms when we need them.

There is a Method to my Madness

In spite of all evidence to the contrary, there is a system of organization that holds the Furber house together, and it's about to be put to the ultimate test. We're looking forward to the arrival of eleven relatives for Thanksgiving. During the week of November 23rd, the occupancy of my house will range anywhere from 0 to 16 people, depending on time and day. This is the week when all of the various organizational and space saving tricks that I employ all year round come together to pay off big. For example:

My giant 120" kitchen table is too big for my family of five most of the year, but will be just the right size for the extended family.

Those Tolix french stacking chairs that I bought on sale in June will now come off the back porch, and sit around my table for the week so there's always room for everyone at the table.


My refrigerator will be filled with cleaned and chopped fruit and vegetables so everyone can help themselves throughout the week. (See post "I Love My Fridge" May 2008)

There's plenty of room for everyone (or nearly everyone) to crash. (See post "Welcome to Casa de los Furbers. Checkout is at Noon." August 2008)

We have lots of tiny bars of soap and tiny bottles of shampoo that we've collected. Perfect for guests. (See post "I Bought My House for the Bathtub." June 2008.)

I can find anything in my linen closet at a moment's notice. (See post "A Linen Closet Expose" May 2008)

I invested last year in Pottery Barn's Caterer's Box dessert plates and wine glasses, which will be put to good use as we blow through three meals worth of dishes each day. That will save us from the temptation of using paper plates and plastic glasses at every meal.


The foundation of my house is mostly white, so when everyone leaves, all I need is some hot water and bottle of bleach to get it all spotless again. (See post "Life in the White House" June 2008)

I expect the week of Thanksgiving to be fun and happy, with very little stress related to the care and keeping of the house. I still wish I had that cement floor with the drain in the middle, though. (See post "Get the Hose!" June 2008)

If I Were Stranded on a Desert Island, I'd Want My Husband, My Children, and My Two Bushel Rolling Hampers

A recent visit to our condo in Sun Valley reminded me of the single most useful tool that exists for a family with kids: the two bushel wheeled hamper from The Museum of Useful Things in Cambridge, Mass.

We have three of them in Sun Valley and use them for everything from holding toys (and moving them from one end of the house to the other), transporting laundry around the house, moving groceries from the car, and best of all, moving luggage from the car to the house when we come to visit. One winter, Jack took one of them ouside and filled it with snow so he could transport the snow and his shovel to the location where he was making a snowman. When Katie was a baby, the big kids used a hamper like a wagon and pulled her around the house in it. As I said, very useful.

I must warn though -- The Museum of Useful Things is not too big on mail order. It took several weeks, several phone calls and about $100 in shipping to get my rolling hampers packed, shipped, and delivered. By the time I had received my shipment of rolling hampers, I think I was in for about $500.

Best $500 I ever spent.

Get in, Stay in. That's My Motto. by Guest Blogger Andie Furber

One thing that my mom always says when we're in a public restroom is "Come on, hurry up, I don't want to stay in here all day!" or "Get in, get out...." As you can see, she's not the biggest fan of bathrooms. But I love my bathroom. I feel it's an essential place to keep all your stuff.

In my bathroom, I have a designated place for EVERYTHING. By the sink I keep all of my daily things, like toothpaste, a hairbrush, deodorant, etc. I have a little green jar to hold my toothpaste (My mom and I have switched to Tom's All-Natural toothpaste) and toothbrush. On the other side of the sink, I have some handsoap and a towel.

One thing in my bathroom that my mom got me that I absolutely LOVE is a double-decker shelf of jars to hold my stuff. And every jar holds a specific thing:

Jar 1: Chapstick
Jar 2: Hair clips and rubber bands
Jar 3: Bracelets
Jar 4: Necklaces
Jar 5: Q-Tips
Jar 6: Miscellaneous

It's an essential for me. I use it everyday, and I always know where to find everything.

I have 3 drawers in my bathroom. Each one is organized so I can find everything. The top drawer holds things like spare toothbrushes, and since I'm in a theatre group, all of my stage makeup. In the middle drawer, there's things like headbands, and soap, and pretty much everything you can think of. And the bottom drawer holds my blow dryer and straightening iron.

Even though my mom doesn't like bathrooms much, I take pride in my bathroom, because it's neat, organized, colorful, and Cute.

Get in, get out. That's my motto.

I have a love/hate relationship with my bathroom. I know the bathroom is a necessary part of my house, but I really don't like to acknowledge what goes on in there. I like to display my pretty bars of soap in my shell soap dish, I love pretty hand towels, but up until now, extra rolls of toilet paper have been completely out of the question. Don't even get me started on the subject of magazines in the bathroom.

I've realized recently though, that my children (one in particular) may or may not choose to use toilet paper if there's none available. So my design challenge in recent weeks has been to figure out a stylish way to store extra rolls of toilet paper in the bathrooms that don't have built in cabinets. The solution is obvious:






but I just can't do it.

I've decided, instead that I'm going to pretend my toilet paper is something it's not, and display it proudly like I would display beautiful flowers. I've narrowed it down to three choices, all from Pottery Barn:






All of these vase collections have a size that's about 7" in diameter and 20" high, which will fit about four super fluffy rolls (I've been doing my research.) I'm leaning toward the white glass, so no one has to know what's in there.

On second thought, I may want to be more obvious about it -- if Jack can't find the toilet paper, he may not be inclined to use any.