The front of my house, which is actually the side.
Our goofy Barn House is situated so that we use our back door more or less as our front door. It's confusing to delivery people and those who have never been to our house. It's even confusing for US, and we have to clarify which door we are talking about. We generally call the actual front door (which is used as the back door) "the Old Front Door," and we call the back door (which is used as the front door) the "Kitchen Door." Then there's the "Way Back Door" in the back room, but that doesn't really help our confusion.
Paying attention to the Front Door area is easy. It's a No Brainer. It's where most guests get their first impression of your home and you can maintain a facade of orderliness for the first few feet into your house.
The Back Door area is another story. It's where the stuff of life happens! It's often where the family enters from the garage, or where the washer and dryer sit. It's where the shoes, backpacks, econo-packages of toilet paper, trash waiting to be taken outside, pet food and yard toys often reside on a semi-permanent basis. If you are lucky enough to have a back porch, the whole area can be the messy underbelly of a busy family's life. I swept the floor by the door yesterday and was horrified.
Today's Small Thing is to pretend you are a Back Door Friend, coming to your own house for coffee.
What is the first thing you'd notice when you enter from the back?
Perhaps your Back Door area is pretty neat, but your door itself could use a wipe-down. Maybe you need to cart some of the shoes to closets or move some of the tote bags to the family members' bedrooms. Could you put away the items from Costco that sit there forever? Maybe sweep up the dirt that's tracked in. Move the junk mail and straighten the rug. Strangely, I have two old lamps and an auto part sitting in the back entry that need to be moved.
Give yourself a pat on the back for doing a little Back Door clean up. It's going to feel great to walk in and not stumble over the stuff that always collects there!
What's YOUR back door situation look like today? How can you improve it?
Song of the Day: Looking Out My Back Door, Creedence Clearwater Revival
