The great porch cleanout

Living in a house with two sporty boys and no garage is a little trying. They play out front on the boulevard, in the vacant lot across the street, or in the schoolyard around the corner, so storing the equipment in the shed doesn't work so well. No matter how many times I move it to the shed, it migrates back onto the porch as it's easier for them to drop it there.

As a consequence the front porch tends to accumulate a lot of sporting goods, and they're messy. We have a hockey net, goalie pads, rollerblades, baseball gloves, bike helmets, tennis rackets, hockey sticks, and a huge assortment of balls. Case in point

I tried to keep stuff corralled with baskets and rubbermaid containers, but they didn't seem to make a dent. So Friday night I headed up to Canadian Tire and picked up a rubbermaid deck box.

And a miracle occurred.

At the other end of the porch I set up the Ikea shoe cabinet that we had in our front hall pre-closet.

It's perfect for holding baseballs, pucks, tennis balls, baseball gloves, and cleats.

And on the wall between the cabinet and the front door I installed a lockbox. No more leaving the key in the oh-so-clever hiding spot under the doormat. 

Going from this

to this

made for a very satisfying afternoon! Now to finish up in the spare room before our company arrives on Friday...