House, you look like a cold mess

Jared and I both consider ourselves to be pretty clean people (you’re relieved to hear that, I’m sure). But after three and a half years of marriage, I’ve learned that clean is one of those to-each-his/her-own kind of things. For all the things that drive me bonkers (clutter, dirty dishes, things not being in their designated “spot”), Jared has his own list (messy toothpaste caps, sloppy shoes on clean carpet, trash left in the cup holders of his car — all things that point to me as the culprit, interestingly enough). Most of the time, our differing lists of clean-y preferences make for a mighty clean casa, but there are times when they come head to head. See photo above.

We had our first big(ish) snow of the season a few weeks ago, which made for a wet, sloppy mess outside of our apartment building. When it starts getting icy, the apartment folks spread some sort of sandy substance on the sidewalks and the stairs to keep everyone from slippety sliding all around the place. It’s pretty considerate, I think. Jared, however, will spend the next two months fighting the endless stream of sand that comes into our apartment as a result.

So here’s the problem: Because we enter our abode with pebbles o’ sand stuck to our shoes (the doormat only takes so much), we take our shoes off right after getting inside. My anti-clutter preference is that the shoes go directly from foot to hall closet. But in winter, when our shoes are covered in sandiness, Jared doesn’t want to stack sloppy shoes on top of one another. So there they sit. Taunting me. Argh. And yes, that is Jared’s bike happily parked near the front door of our apartment as well. Because bikes don’t like the snow on the deck, you know.

Don’t get me wrong; I love, love, love the wintertime. But is there a solution for all snowy messes that end up inside the house? Where do you put sloppy shoes if you don’t want to look at them? And not just the shoes …

What about all the hats and scarves and dog sweaters and towels used for wiping snowy puppy feet? They’re too wet to be stuffed back in the closet but not dirty enough to need a round in the washer and dryer. What to do, what to do? This is quite a quandary.

How do you tackle the wintertime messes? Are you up to your eyeballs in clutter, or have you found a solution for all those snow-covered knick-knacks? Does anyone else go bananas at the first site of the ice-fighting salt and sandy mixture? Let’s hear it!

XO,
Katrina