The Beginning

Let me just say, right off the bat, that my husband is a very loving, understanding, and put-upon man. I don't just say that to pay lip service. It's his honest due. And I love him for it. And I'm pretty sure that it's mostly his sweetness and laid-back manner that keep this marriage going and happy. Because honestly, I wouldn't want to put up with me sometimes! So anyway, that being said...

"People shouldn't live like this! People don't LIVE like this! What are we doing?? How can it possibly take this long just to LEAVE THE HOUSE?"

That's me in a desperate, emotional breakdown, yet again, because of our apartment.

"I can't keep up with this and it should not take THIS flipping long to LEAVE THE HOUSE!"

I'd shudder to think we were heading to church while I talked like this, but it's entirely possible.

"WHERE IS MY OTHER SHOE?? EAMONN! EAMONN NO NO NO!!! OHHHHH CRAP!"

A can of soda, partially consumed, got emptied right next to my husband's keyboard while I frantically stumbled across piles of clothes, a high heel that Ryan later stepped on cutting his foot open, and other clutter that wasn't put away because there was just no place to put it, trying to grab our toddler son before he got into more things that would make a baby-proofer's hair curl.

"I. CANNOT. DO. THIS. ANYMORE!"

Luckily, I am a calm and clear communicator who uses wit and good humor to say what she means with grace and a smile.

"SOMETHING HAS TO CHANGE!!"

We live in a two-bedroom, two-bath apartment in Southern California. There isn't a garage or a patio, and all of our possessions have to fit within the confines of this space. A lot of times I start to clean, look around, and give up before I've begun. We just don't have enough room and as much as we get rid of things, we just don't fit here.

If I could get us on Clean Sweep, despite the inherent shame in letting millions of people see our mess, I'd do it. But the problem with shows like that for people like us is that you have to own your home in order to have it fixed for you. And even if I wanted simply to copy what I saw happening on that show or others like it, we simply don't have the cash for the huge overhaul our place would recommend.

In my mind all this begs a very important question: What about people like us? Can a family without huge financial resources organize their space and their lives in such a way that the changes not only accommodate their strained finances and lack of space, but also create an environment that actually gives them a leg up? How do apartment dwellers make their spaces work for them and not go bankrupt doing it?

Well, that's what I'm hoping to find out, and I'll be tracking it here. With the help of my enviably organized friend, Laura, and any other resources I can find that we can afford, I'm hoping to transform our apartment into a home and a sanctuary -- a space that works for us, not against us.

I'd love your thoughts, comments, and insights as we work, as well as to hear about living space problems you might have. Let's see what this thing becomes!