In my quest to love my apartment regardless of what others may have that is better, newer, and more spacious, I have had to be rather creative in storing all the little onesies, bouncers, and blankets.

Then I ran out of space. The closets were full of old clothes and a stroller that only seats one (Ah, those were the days – when I could fit down an aisle in Penny’s!). Underneath the bed, you’ll find maternity clothes, off-season clothes, air mattresses, and more. Under the crib is where we keep the baby bath and random baby toys that Benjamin has outgrown.

And you’ll never guess what’s under the couch. Tools. Yep, that’s where Josh stores his tools.

But where do I put the diapers that no one was using? I must have circled the apartment a good dozen times before realizing the gold mine that was in front of me the whole time:

The pack n’ play, a.k.a. changing table (Whoa, that’s a lot of punctuation for a fragment of a sentence.).

With the bassinet feature in place, it is a two-tiered storage unit. On the top we have baby blankets and a wide assortment of pants that are not quite clean, yet not dirty enough to be thrown in the hamper. In the lower level I found my solution to the diaper-storage-quandary. And bonus: The bottom of the pack ‘n play is the perfect place to store dangerously non-edible diaper creams.

For all you family apartment-dwellers out there, I hope this helps. Of course, you probably thought of this ages ago. And if that is the case, I ask you, “Why didn’t you write a Works-For-Me post so I could know, too?!”

So last time I mentioned I use a door mat to keep my kitchen mess from being tracked into my CARPETed dining room.

And I may have also mentioned that I think it’s CRAZY TO PUT CARPET IN A DINING ROOM.

*Deep Breaths*

Quick, what’s a positive for a carpeted dining room?

Warm feet on a cold winter morning.

(Don’t remind me that an area rug on a hardwood floor would also do the trick.)

Anywho. I have a toddler. A toddler who really could care less what kind of mess she makes at the table (the table on the CARPETed dining room floor). I spend most mealtimes telling her to Please turn around. Please put your legs in front of you. Please keep your dinner on the table.

I also have a baby. A baby who, as soon as I put him down on the floor, rushes as fast as his little hands and knees can take him over to the glorious feast laid out for him under that high chair.

So I needed a way 1) keep Olivia’s dinner from staining the carpet and 2) keep Benjamin from eating foods that the Baby Book tells me he’s not old enough to eat.

And I found my answer in a bath towel.

(Can I just sing the praises of bath towels for a minute here? They keep the carseats level. They keep the cold air from seeping through the cracks on the sliding door. They keep the crib mattress flush against our bed. They even *gasp* dry me off after a shower.)

And now, the bath towel has found another purpose in our house. Thank you, Lord, for our plethera of bath towels.

Here’s is our bath towel solution:

It catches the crumbs and spilt juice. I fold it up in 1.2 seconds flat, take it outside, give it a good shake, and then lay it back down again. Good as new. And when it gets too dirty to put back under the chair, it just gets tossed in the wash. (Make sure it’s always a dark-colored towel.)

Yes, I know you can buy mats to go under the high chair. But you have to sweep and wipe them. And they can’t go in the wash (or can they?). And I would have to buy them.

So I use a bath towel. Works for me!

Also, be proud of me that I didn’t misspell the title in an effort for perfect alliteration.

But anyways, on to the Kitchen Catastrophes. Our kitchen has a linoleum floor. Our dining room has a carpeted floor. I am a very messy cook. My toddler seems to have inherited my genes. Whatever we make in the kitchen is often tracked all over the house (but mainly the dining room adjacent to it). And then the baby crawls it it. And eats it.

I spent a lot of time resenting the carpeted dining room. I mean, who in their right mind would carpet a room designated for eating? Wouldn’t the apartment complex be saving money by putting down a floor that wouldn’t absorb tomato sauce and grape juice so readily?

But there’s nothing I can gain by complaining or resenting or wishing things were different. I had to accept the carpet that I could not change. I just made one small addition…

Yep, that’s a welcome mat. In front of the kitchen. Please, wipe your feet before entering the dining room. Thank you.

I really should have taken a picture the other day when we made pancake mix. There were actually quite defined footprints of flour on that mat.

Oh, and I left the dishwasher open on purpose. It adds character. Don’t you think?

*Stay tuned for the solution to the how-to-avoid-stains-under-the-high-chair dilemma!*
_________________

For more tips on life, visit Rocks In My Dryer. Yeah, I know – who’dathunk you could get useful advice from someone who once found rocks in her dryer?