Apparently, I had some grandiose ideas about what completing a lot of my Forty Before Forty goals would look like. With January already halfway behind me, my chronic illnesses keeping my health in flux, and our financial situation growing more dire by the day, I had to take a step back and reevaluate how rigid I was being in regards to what a completed goal looks like. This wasn’t supposed to be about perfection, just inching myself closer to having an organized and comfy home, developing some good habits, carving out time to relax and foster creativity, and taking some weight off of my shoulders. This brings us to today’s completed task: I acquired a peg board!
~Tada!~
When we moved to North Carolina, each of us were able to have our own space, but there was one more bedroom available. Since we were now much closer to friends and family on the east coast, we set it up as a guest room. Unfortunately, it very rarely got used. That left an empty room, offering nothing to us, for the majority of the year. My frequently used art supplies were tucked away in the classroom encroaching on all of our school books and other items we needed on hand for lessons. It wasn’t an ideal situation. The remainder of my less frequently used craft and art products were stored in totes in the garage, an even less ideal arrangement.
~It was a slightly messy transition from guest room to pink art room. (Jan. 17, 2021)~
Raymond and I agreed to turn the guest room into my art space, and I was ecstatic to get to work painting and decorating it. Finding a desk that suited my needs was challenging, because there is only so much space allotted to me. One wall is rendered nearly useless because the builders decided to install our crawlspace entrance in this room, rather than in the upstairs landing, as they had for my in-laws across the road with the same floorplan (albeit, mirrored). Needless to say, the layout and space meant we needed to be purposeful and creative with furniture placement. I’m not skilled at maximizing storage space, though, and envisioning how furniture will fit, so even today my art room is a work in progress. I have arranged and rearranged everything multiple times but I haven’t been able to find a system that works as flawlessly as humanly possible.
Enter: the pegboard!
~Hooray! Waiting to have our pegboard piece cut in half.~
Never having cracked five feet in height, too much vertical space is lost on me, but a peg board would allow me to get some of the clutter off of my desks, increasing my workspace. Raymond surprised me with a trip to Lowes in December to shop for some pegboard, as part of my Christmas presents. Though the employees weren’t as knowledgeable about the whole process as one might expect, eventually someone led us to the screws they recommended and we Googled the rest. Raymond carried the large sheet of pegboard to the wood department where they had a saw for employees to cut it for us. I was surprised to recognize the employee who showed up as a younger member of our church. He took his time and very cleanly cut that pegboard in half, and we gratefully wheeled it to the front of the store to pay for our goods.
~December 13, 2025~
Later that week, I came home from a program my daughter had danced in, to find Raymond mounting the pegboard to my art room’s wall. I left that big dotted board alone for a bit, until I finally committed to ordering a set of containers to try out. Instead of ordering everything I thought I’d need at once, this would allow me to better visualize how much space they took up, what they could hold, and how many I’d need of each type. It took me even longer to actually affix the containers to the pegboard and fill them, but that’s where the whole health in flux part of my thwarted grandiose plans comes in.
~Raymond hung it up for me, and I made him pose with his hard work. (Dec. 20, 2025)~
I hesitated on posting about this goal because I had not filled the board. It isn’t technically finished in that regard. However, as I opened with, I had to shift my expectations and not be so hard on myself. Besides, I am the one making the rules here. I know what the spirit behind each one of my forty goals was, so only I can really judge if it’s “completed enough”. I’m only up against myself as a judge. Therefore, since there is indeed a pegboard now hanging securely in my art room, this challenge is officially checked off!
~Moving torwards a more organized art space! (Jan. 16, 2026)~
~Not too shabby! Still want to swap out that gray folding table for a desk someday. It was only meant to be temporary.~
~I am still trying to figure out a system that works
for the rest of my room’s storage.* (Jan. 18, 2026)~
*PS: Those gray curtains were there for the guest room, and I didn’t have an immediate replacement…so they remain. One day I will switch them out!~
Challenge Accomplished: December 20, 2025.
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