One Month Down, Eleven to Go! Kitchen-Check!

This is my last post about my kitchen...which I finished this weekend, with the help of my wonderful husband.

Friday night we actually watched a movie and I multitasked by cleaning the junk drawer--which I had been putting off! Here's the before:

And the after--yes, we have too much incense (and lighter thingamajigs). But we do use them (although lately our very sensitive 5-year-old complains that the smell makes him sick!).

On Saturday I tackled the refrigerator--which was chockablock with stuff!!

I chucked out quite a bit of stuff, including bunches of takeout condiments (as Regina Leeds recommends), clearing out quite a bit of space. I also reorganized the food into logical groupings and DEEP cleaned all the surfaces.

Finally, I followed Leeds' advice and went for the "bare" look for the front of the fridge. We both have decided that we like it! But we've decided that we'll put one thing on the front, just so it won't be so bare...we will select it carefully--either a child's drawing or a quotation. Doesn't it look much cleaner and neater than before (those of you who have been to our house will remember how cluttered it was before). Let me tell you how long it takes to remove magnetic poetry from a refrigerator: about 20 minutes of painstaking peeling!

While I was working on the fridge, Mike tackled the kitchen nook, which had become a clutter magnet. The nook was one of the things we loved about our house when we moved in, but we really have not kept it very well cared for. I would like to do some further work on the shelves, so they look a bit more artful. But at least for now it's cleaned up. Here are some before photos:






And the after:

It was nice to have a clear space to lay out drying valentines! Now of course we have to clear off the valentines so it looks neat again. A never-ending process...

At last, the corner of the counter was cleaned as well!

That yellow cup by the sink contains a growing toy soldier that my mother-in-law gave Kieran after Christmas. I had hoped to put it away until next Christmas, but Kieran rediscovered it and put it back into water again! I shall try one more time, so I can get it cleared off the counter!

I cleaned under the sink and was able to move our compost container down there and off the counter.

I also tackled the windowsill, which was looking cluttered and messy...washed the windows, dusted the tiles hanging above the sink and the windchimes...and scrubbed down the kitchen cabinets. As I was doing so, it was hard to keep myself from plotting about how to paint the kitchen. I'm planning on doing a Mexican theme--with yellow, red, and blue colors. After I do more organizing!

Now it's onto the bedroom next!

January: Week Four, "Whip Your Kitchen Into Shape"

Yes, I know it's the last day of January. So I'm a tiny bit behind...

I'm not completely done with the kitchen yet, but I expect to be this weekend. This doesn't include the kitchen nook, though--that will have to overflow into the bedroom month.

Author Regina Leeds talks about how to prepare for an organizing project (choose your peak time of day--in my case, there's not much choice--evenings are really the only time I have available for this task).

She advises a second round of speed elimination. I skipped that step because my first speed elimination was fairly thorough...although I'm regularly discarding items as I tackle each section of the kitchen.

Leeds approaches each section or aspect of the kitchen:

Kitchen tools: She advises where to keep them, and suggests that we really don't need multiple can openers, wine bottle openers, nutcrackers, garlic presses, etc. This is generally not an issue for us because I have regularly weeded through our gadgets.

Take-out stuff: She suggests discarding any extra chopsticks, soy sauce, etc. I think I have a few of these in my fridge, and when I clean my fridge today, out they will go! Also, she suggests keeping takeout menus in a binder.

Large equipment: She suggests storing large, seasonal, or rarely used appliances in out-of-the-way areas. As I've previously written, I've already been following this philosophy.

Countertop items: I do not like having a lot of crap on my counters, so the only items we regularly keep there are (1) a tea kettle, and (2) a compost container. When I clean out the cabinet under the sink this weekend, though, I think I'm going to look for a way to move the compost container. The tea kettle is used SEVERAL times a day, so it makes sense to keep on the counter.

Baking gear: I already moved my Christmas cookie cutters (as she advises), and have weeded through my baking equipment.

Food storage containers: This is another area I've stayed fairly well on top of. We don't have tons of Tupperware or other storage containers...and the ones we have, we use regularly. (I often take leftovers in my lunch.)

Paper and plastics: We do buy paper products in bulk, but we keep them in the basement out of the way.

Dishtowels, potholders, and aprons: I weeded out the dishtowels, potholders, and aprons when I cleaned the linen drawer and one of the kitchen cabinets, and consigned the older dishtowels to rags, as Leeds suggests. She also suggests rolling the dishtowels to save room.

The pantry: She suggests organizing the pantry into categories and using shelf dividers.

Pet food: I skipped this section because we don't have any pets.

The refrigerator: She has some suggestions for refrigerator organization, but nothing that I hadn't already thought of.

But here is one thing that made me think: Leeds says that "refrigerator poeple come in two basic types: those who cover theirs with magnets, notices, and photos, and those who like an unadorned refrigerator. I would urge you to either join the latter group or at least pare your items down to a minimum."

Now this is radical notion for a busy family with three kids. Our refrigerator was adorned with magnetic poetry, various types of adult and kid magnets, notes, grocery lists, reminders, kids' drawings, and photos. No longer! This morning I took down all the photos and notes, got rid of a lot of the magnets, and consolidated the remaining items to the sides of the fridge. (Because we live in an old 1938 house, our refrigerator is a stand-alone item and is not surrounded by cabinets.) Finally, I took down all of the magnetic poetry that we've had up for over 15 years. Now that was quite a task! Do you know how long it takes to remove magnetic poetry? I haven't yet cleaned the front of the fridge yet, but when I do it will be very exciting. I really like the cleaner, bare look! Leeds is right that a cluttered fridge "looks messy and feels chaotic."

Shopping lists: Leeds keeps her own shopping lists in three sections, for each store at which she shops. I love the shopping lists on Cozi, because I can create one for Trader Joe's, one for Costco, one for Fred Meyer, and one for New Seasons.

Under the sink: I'm going down under today!! I don't think it's too bad under there, but we shall see!

The junk drawer: Check--I did this last night while Mike and I were watching a movie. I'll post photos later.

The kitchen counter office: Don't have one of those, but we do have a kitchen nook, which attracts a lot of clutter!!!

Leeds ends the chapter by talking about creating new habits and reminding us that she had said at the beginning of the chapter that it takes 21 consecutive days to form a new habit. I do feel that Mike and I are both much more focused on keeping the counters clean and cleared before we go to bed. And each time I open a cleaned cabinet or drawer, I feel such a great sense of satisfaction!!

Top of Refrigerator, Check!

I didn't get as much done last night as I had planned, because of the TRUE TIME WASTER that is Facebook! Mike had been out at a meeting, and by the time he arrived home after 10:00, he saw the kitchen dishes still not in the dishwasher, and he said "Poor you!" because he thought the kids had kept me going for so long, I hadn't gotten around to my cleaning and organizing!

Can't blame it on the kids. I had them in bed in record time. The younger ones by 8:30, and the older one by 9:00. It was that nasty computer calling me to be unproductive and find out every possible inane detail about my friends that I might want to know. Does it help me to be more organized, or to be a better person? NO!

At any rate, after loading the dishwasher and CLEANING MY COUNTERS! (Mike was doing the laundry downstairs), I did have time to strike one more task off my kitchen list: the top of the refrigerator.

Can you say: "DUST"???

Ugh.

Here's what it looked like precleaning:


With all the various vitamins, calcium supplements, medication, pills, and potions for five members of the family, we had ended up with quite a clutter. The last time I cleaned the top of the fridge, I decluttered through this collection and put what was left in a plastic tub. Clearly we had outgrown it. I also discovered other various items that could be put elsewhere.

Here is my result, after reorganizing and scouring the top of the fridge to get rid of all the dust!



Maybe someday I can figure out a way to have a completely clean top-of-the fridge, but right now it's a pretty safe and convenient place to keep medications out of the reach of little hands, and it's accessible for bedtimes.

I'm running out of January, and I still have some items to do left on my kitchen list--the junk drawer, utensil drawers (which aren't in too bad of shape), and the inside of the fridge. The kitchen nook will have to overflow into February, I'm afraid...