Taking Control!

  The last six years have been a roller coaster ride in the Jenkins home to say the least.  Some great events and others extremely hard for us. Our first grandchild  Andrew was born in September! By the following summer Dad got so bad he had to go into a nursing home.  The next two years brought graduations for our son Curt and our daughter Beth as well as her wedding to a young man we loved!   It also brought three miscarriages for our daughter Amanda.  The sudden heart aneurism suffered by my Mother N Law with a fourteen day vigil in ICU left us all shocked at her passing. Amanda got pregnant again and had a very hard but successful pregnancy.  ( The result was Mollie!)  But during the pregnancy my  Father N Law, who had never been sick a day in his life, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.  All of his four children and their spouses shared staying with him, taking care of him and seeing to the needs that this awful disease encounters.  He held on long enough to hold Mollie who was born the 2nd of November and  losing his battle on Dec.11th.
    Less than a year after Buddy died Amanda (as many of you know) was diagnosed with stage two breast cancer and a very aggressive kind.  One of the hardest things this mother ever heard.  The whole year was a struggle, seeing her go thru chemo every two weeks. The doctors felt as aggressive as her tumor was she needed an equally aggressive treatment.  Several surgeries all the while a mother herself with two little ones at home.
     She had hair just in time for Curt's wedding to our sweet daughter in law this past July!
 I do not share all this with you to get your sympathy.  We serve a loving Father who showered us with much more Grace than sufficient to get thru it all.  And He made sure to rain down the Blessings as well!!
    I tell you because there are so many big things in all of our lives that we have no control of.  I started reflecting on what I could do to regain some in my life.  Believe it or not it started in the bathroom!  Don't worry ,not my reflection, just the starting place of regaining control!
    Our home had accumulated so much stuff!  To the world it may had looked tidy enough but I knew too well the secrets hidden under the bed,behind closet doors,and the dreaded basement!                                     We both love antiques and collecting, that along with a small antique business that we quit had left us strangled with stuff.  Not to mention children growing up leaving the nest and wanting to store their things here!  Did I mention our love of antiques and collecting?!!          
    I have a passion for jewelry as well. It is not all my fault, Mom says I get that from my Non Non, her mother. (Yes, that's my story and I am sticking to it! lol)  I cannot begin to tell you how many times I did not bother to wear a certain piece because I did not have the time or want to to look for it.

     So one day I decided enough was enough, there had to be way to combine a love for antiques and things of old with a new purpose to restore order in our home, and I have!  I can now tell you where every piece of jewelry I own is as well as all the make up it takes to be me can be found. I do not care if you peek in the drawers or behind cabinet doors! I will even show you starting with the pie safe that once belong to Mike's mother!

 Some things I felt were worth the splurge such as the acrylic boxes that I got from Amazon where I can see everything.  Other things such as the inexpensive stack able food containers work great!

 This   is an antique hanging tool box that I talked Mike out of.

Inside what was once meant for hammers,screwdrivers,and such makes a great storage for bathroom needful items!

A carpenters tote and old canning jars I thought was a pretty way to have my soaps and bath salts handy!

A prim table with a stool,another carrier with the jars hold cotton balls,q-tips,and makeup pads. (This is where the magic happens, I sit here to put on my face!)

 The shelves I made using old drawers my fil gave me from a job he did refurbishing an old building in Clinton.  I also try to put towel rods and hooks any where I can get by with it.

 I kept with carpenter theme and used an old saw box to store hand towels.

The sink vanity everything has a place.  (Simple enough that even Michael puts things back!)

 The shelf over the tub may not look great but the curtain hides it from view from the bedroom, it holds everything we need for bath time.

More needful s  have a hiding place in the bottom of the corner cabinet.

I put things that are alright to see behind the glass doors.
 (In case you have noticed all the soap in back up, yes I am a bit obsessed with that too!)

I hope you have enjoyed the tour of our master bath, because it really started the organizing ball rolling here at our house. Making life easier and a lot less stressful for me.  Maybe you too can get inspired and figure out something you can regain control of.  I will be sharing more of making our home work better for us, if you are so inclined,  please come back.  Be it ever so humble, there truly is no place like it.