Our new mudroom is finished! Just before school began we hired a construction crew (& friend) to turn half of our existing 2-car garage into a mudroom. This idea was born out of necessity! All last year, our dining room table looked like a vast sea of mismatched colors as it became the dumping ground for 4 children's back packs, jackets, sweaters, etc. We had a large coat rack as our initial solution to tame the mess, but Gabby pulled on a sweater that was hanging up and the whole thing teetered and crashed to the floor. Needless to say, it broke in ways which made it beyond the average repair. This summer, we knew we had to do something more permanent. Dan & I talked about design and purpose. He drew plans and I began to dream of how I'd decorate. The result is in the pictures you see. Our mudroom has one large wall of closets. Inside, there are 4 closet poles for hanging items and a column of shelves. There's also 2 large shoe racks. The floor of the mudroom is white tile with blue veins running through it. I wanted a coastal cottage look...something bright & clean. We knew there would be no way to have any window put in for natural light, except for the door. I wanted to lighter the space visually as much as I could. You'll notice that the ceiling is painted a light blue. That saves the room from being too white and echoes the blue in the tile below. And yes, I chose a highly washable paint! :) In the picture below, you see a small white door. This is dirctly outside our kitchen door leading into the mudroom. This was pure genius! Behind that small door is a rolling trash can for recyclables, located in the garage on the other side of the mudroom wall. When we need to throw a box, can, etc into the recycle bin, we never have to leave the kitchen. We reach out, open the little door, and toss it in. As a busy mom running on high test every day, such convenience & efficiency are downright necessary! The white bench in the mudroom has a seat with a hinged lid. It opens for additional storage. Eventually, it will have pretty seat cushions (thanks, Jan!). Above the big closet doors where all the sweaters, shoes, and backpacks go, there are more closet doors above. We use these now for seasonal storage. So there's our mudroom! We're down to a one car garage (which we raised the height of during the mudroom project), but phase 2 will begin next year. In 2012, we will add on a 2nd garage bay, which will increase the space in the girls' bedroom above and allow for another bathroom to be built. As for how the mudroom is working out now that school is in session??? It's wonderful! We should have done this a long time ago!!! 
