Courier-Journal
Estimated printed pages: 2 May 13, 2006 Section: Features Edition: METRO Page: 1E Pro helped provide space for both cars Susan Hall Special to The Courier-Journal By Susan Hall Special to The Courier-Journal When John and Janice Brennan moved into their home near The Summit, they made a pact that they would always park both cars in the garage. John had never had a garage, and though Janice's parents had one, they'd never been able to park a car in it, she said. But after six years in the house, space in the garage was getting tight. "You know how things accumulate," noted Janice. "It was just mayhem out there," said John. "We were really threading the needle to get a car in." After driving over one of their boys' bikes it's not clear who actually did that Janice bought three hours of professional organization that Tracie Utter had donated to the Norton Elementary School silent auction. In her consultation with Utter, owner of Utterly Organized, Janice had two goals: "I didn't want to spend a lot of money, and I just wanted to know where everything was. " In four hours Utter gives the first hour free, they pulled everything out of the garage, sorted and organized the items destined to stay. "We had bins for "keep," "toss" and "donate," Janice said. They decided to part with baby seats, outgrown ride-on toys, cushions for lawn chairs they no longer owned, leftover wood from home projects and a wheelbarrow. It's one of those things they might use again someday. But it took up a lot of room. "We had used it once in six years," John said. Bikes no longer are just tossed into a pile. Each of the boys ages 4, 7, and 9 has a place along one wall to park his bike and a hanger for his scooter. Utter said putting the bikes on wall racks made no sense because the boys could not get their bikes down or put them back by themselves. "You have to think about how the family functions," she said. "And teach for long-term success. If you set up an organization system, teach your children to put things where they go. Get them engaged in the process so they have a say in it." They moved in an old dresser from upstairs, setting John's toolbox atop it. At waist height, it's more accessible. They used plastic bins they already had to group like items on shelves: One for lawn chemicals, one for barbecuing items. They hung their garden tools. Janice said she hung the hangers herself. "It's really easy. You just set them level, find a stud and drill a hole. I did it myself with a drill."
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