Solutions for entryway

This is what our entryway looks like right now:

We have a closet and hooks, plus the little book shelf. But because 1)we are lazy,
b) we are always in a hurry and
choo-choo train) we have no organizational system
it ends up looking like this:

YIKES! Wow I am super embarrassed... but this is really how it ends up looking. Well, with maybe the exception of the pile of small boxes and junk in the bottom left corner; I had just dumped them out of a bag that I needed to put donated clothes in when I was cleaning out my closet.  However in its place are normally 5-6 or more pairs of shoes that come off as soon as I walk in the house.  

I need some creative and Very Thrifty solutions.  I need somewhere for the hats, scarves and other little wintery accessories to go.  

I need some system for sorting mail: Not a trash can.

Maybe a notepad for reminders or notes for Jason and I.

I'd like it to look nice too if at all possible. I've seen some great ideas from Martha Stewart, and from the Container Store and IKEA but am interested in what you think and what works for keeping you organized.

Hours in a week.

Day Two of the transformed life and it went... okay. I didn't get up on time, that may be because I stayed up til 3 this morning working on some of my other goals and so I have set a bedtime for myself. It is currently set at 1:00 am and I want to eventually get it back to midnight and maybe even 11:00 but its about baby steps people.


I did a little bit of math today and figured that there are 168 hours in a week: 7 x 24 = 168
If I sleep 8 hours a night 6 days a week and give myself one "sleep-in day" a week at 10 hours I get,
6 x 8 = 48 & 48 + 10 = 58 I spend 58 hours a week sleeping.

For each work week I am required to work a minimum of 45 hours and usually average around 50.

I spend 5 hours and 15 minutes a week on personal care and hygiene.

Meals at home = 4 hours
Grocery Shopping = 2 hours
Chores/Errands = 5 hours
Commuting = 7 hours

Jason time = 14 hours
Family / Friend = 3 hours
Church = 7 hours
Youth Group Prep = 5 hours
Prayer/Study = 4 hours
Exercise = 3 hours

Add all these hours up and you get... 167.25.
Which leaves me 45 minutes a week for fun and leisure!!!

That is not gonna be okay.
Granted I can multitask some of this stuff. For example I do a lot of praying and listening to the word preached or praise during my commute and usually spend the drive home from work talking to Jason, so there is some overlapping there. But where else am I going wrong? Any thoughts?

Here we Go

I am determined to blog the truth about this transformation as it happens. I am not happy with how my life is going and am excited to make changes necessary to get things in order.

I told my DH tonight about how I was feeling and he agreed wholeheartedly. We both feel that we are too lazy. I am excited to start putting effort to make changes that will improve the quality of my life. I have a lot of things that I want to change. Here are some of the ways I want to be better:
1. Get to work, church etc on time
2. Maintain a clean home
3. Maintain a neat and organized home
4. Read a book every two weeks
5. Study, pray and meditate on God's word more (ultimately getting to several hours a week) outside of church
6. Pay all bills on time.
7. Eat at home more often (at the kitchen table).
8. Have makeup applied, teeth brushed, deodorant applied every time I leave the house (I sometimes apply makeup at work and carry deodorant in my purse in case I forget.)
9. Pay down doctors bills and credit card bills
10. Exercise 3 times a week minimum.
11. Attend at least two church services a week.
12. Build the Youth Ministry at church.
13. Make my bed every day.
14. Be more frugal.
15. Properly fold a fitted sheet.
16. reupholster a couch patchwork style
17. Learn to sew to do hems and alterations
18. Walk the dogs a few times a week
19. Maintain a budget
20. Live greener

These are just a handful of all the ways that I want to improve myself.
Tonight I cleaned out my closet of all the clothes that either didn't fit or weren't fit to wear and organized it by style (casual or dressy/tops/bottoms) by fabric (knit/woven) by length or sleeve length and by color. I did three loads of laundry, even putting everything away. I set out my outfit for tomorrow and even did a SHMILY for my DH by setting out his uniform for tomorrow too. Day 1 in a day of a very long journey.