Kids are home this week. So am I. ;o) I subbed the last 12 school days in a row before break. And the house looked like it! We did get a lot done yesterday, though. Today DD had gymnastics practice and I picked up/dropped off a teammate. So, time-wise, that running around was the biggest chunk of my day, with no real results to show for it. In between, I went to BJs wholesale club to stock up on some regular stuff. Took it home, put it away, made the boys lunch. Rotated laundry. Went back for the girls at the gym, watched for an hour (it's a 3-1/2 hour practice). I have also read 2 lessons of my online class (I'm behind, I have 4 more to go today to be caught up). Just checking in here before I leave the computer for now. I'll go by the laundry room and rotate more laundry, then down to the kitchen to load dishwasher and start dinner (I don't know what yet). The boys' practices are cancelled today because it went and SNOWED! OK, just flurries, but it's cold and wet... this is supposed to be SPRING break! I am also going to make some afternoon coffee.

IMHO I think that *color constrast* makes a room look larger. Right now my bedroom has the walls painted deep dark grey but I have light ash wood furniture and white drapes and a white down comforter. I tried the same furniture and accessories with light mint green walls and it seem to make the furniture seem bulky. I have the bed on an angle. I think that having the bed up against the wall makes the room seem cramped and scrunched. Sure it gives a larger area of floor space that way, but the bed looks like it was shoved aside to 'make some room' when it is against the wall. You can also hide stuff in boxes and put them behind the headboard when the bed is at an angle. :) Mirrors make things seem too "busy" in a bedroom and not relaxing and spacious. If you NEED a mirror in a bed room for dressing have one of those lightweight mirrors that can be installed on the inside of the closet door. The mirrors that come with bedroom sets are often sold separately. I never purchased the mirrors with either of my bedroom sets, to the amazment of the sales clerks. Keeping the room free of clutter and chtotskies will make the room seem larger. Use just a few larger accessories like a ceramic vase or art glass bowl and don't buy those dinky little dresser lamps. The lamp I have next to my bed is 26" tall and has three levels of light setting for reading or all room lighting. Painting the woodwork white makes any room look larger. Everyone always says "Oooh, don't paint wood. Leave it natural." But most likely the woodwork won't be the same tone of your furniture and isn't going to match anyway, and too much wood in a room makes it look smaller. Think *vertical*. Use lightwight draperies that come all the way down to the floor and hang them high on the wall not on the window frame. Cafe curtians in a bedroom look cheezey - even in childrens rooms. Hang photos and/or artwork high and limit wall hanging to just a couple of things, or just one *grouping* of photos. Keep the corners of the room empty. Resist the urge to fill in the corners with wicker baskets or tiny end tables. Shiney wood floors or linoleum will make the room seem larger than wall to wall carpeting. You can add throw rugs or a larger accent rug to soften things. Those bi-fold doors always seemd clunky to me. I've had apartments that had them and they were noisy and never slid smoothly. I think a curtain or sliding screen are easier to use and give a more spacious look. Doors that swing out that have glass inserts also make things seem more light and airy. I am currently trying to find the right size doors with glass, to replace closet doors in both my bedrooms. Closet organizers are a great idea. It is amazing how much more space you will gain when everything is organized that way instead of just a pole and a shelf! Underbed storage boxes are great for out of season clothing. You can even get plastic ones on wheels and be used for more everyday stuff since they are so convienient to access. High shelves with storage boxes can be both decorative and functional. A little step stool can be used to access. If you are able to, try to keep all electronics out of the bed room. Bedrooms are for relaxing. Computers and televisions in a bedroom add clutter with all the cords and bulk. If you MUST have these things in a bedroom put them in a unit to hide them or get a screen divider to keep them out of sight. Just my humble opinion of course.

lazy_gardens, that's a great idea! We store most of our PFDs in the kayak, so similar thinking. We have a cartop carrier too, but haul skis and snowboards in it in the winter, so using it for storage wouldn't work for us. I'm visiting my Mom this weekend, and working graveyard shift next week, which tends to wipe me out enough that I don't much feel like doing projects when I'm awake. I have high hopes for getting a lot done next weekend. DH had Tuesday off, and went though all of his clothes (Woot!) and cleaned a bunch of crap out of his closets. I pulled most of the wire shelving out, but now I have a bunch of holes to patch. That has to be done before we paint, obviously, so I need to get it done next week (night shift or not). Ever notice how our stuff is stuff but other people's stuff is crap?

Keep playing with drawing til something makes sense. I tried to sketch something out, let's see if I can attach it. Did you want to add a tub, or just a bigger shower? If windows can be added to the left wall, it would really add more possibilities! I made the bigger closet skinny so the window light still comes in. This loses the hall closets so it may need more work. I am not a big fan of the hall between the closets, it was my attempt to keep the window. Either of the closets where the master was could be removed to be a sitting area or a desk area. Obviously I am not a professional. I just like looking at and thinking about floor plans. I am sure others will jump in to improve my sketch by criticizing it lol. I left the toilet and one sink in place. I think the shower could use the same drain and it would not be too bad to extend the pipes to make it bigger, and add the second sink. The entry point is a bit crowded but I was having trouble adding a second sink if I made the bathroom door by the closets.