Be Ye Separate

Reorganzing in a new place

Blessings!

   It's that time of year again, when we begin to get cabin fever. We begin to look at what has happened over our winter when we seem forever sequestered into our homes. All the indoor activities that we've done including, but not limited to, cleaning, crafting, tasking, projects etc. now need reorganizing. Our go-downs are emptying because our winter is nearly finished and it's time to start planning to restock it for the next winter, not to mention our summer:) At least it's the way it is for me:)

   Having moved to a new house in the middle of our winter upset the fine balance I have in my routines and organization. Not that it's insurmountable, but it's definitely something to keep me busy for awhile longer. The comfort of our winter time activities was seriously offset by these disturbances to our life and lifestyle. We are, however, recovering nicely and now for our new organizing endeavor:)

   I have always had a go-down. Well, until we moved here, that is. We have no such thing here and so we must utilize what space we do have. It's a challenge but not one that we cannot overcome.

   My jars no longer have a tidy place to be and so I must figure out what can work without looking like I am cramming things in. I am not so fixated on cute but I do like to avoid things being an eyesore. Asthetics is partly what helps us all to enjoy our homes and makes it inviting to our guests. It is important to me that my rooms are not "noisy".

   What IS important to me is utility and functionality. I like to have things in an orderly way and easily reachable. I like to have useful things rather than just decorative things. Not that I don't have decorative things mind you, but most of my decorative things are useful as well as nice to look at:)

   Often, folks tell me that my cupboards are more like a "store shelf" than a kithen shelf. I think it's mostly because I have like with like. For instance, my canned goods are organized into categories and within those categories are specifics. Keep in mind that these are not my bulk, dry goods.

   For instance, canned beans! Beans is my category. Within that category are black beans, kidney beans, refried red beans, refried black beans, pork n' beans, and the list goes on. I have a minimum of a dozen cans on hand most times. Each can is dated on the day of purchase and as others are purchased when there is a need those cans are dated and put to the back so as to use up the oldest ones first. Same with corn...creamed corn, whole kernel corn, hominy and so on.

   This way I can keep track of all our canned goods at a glance. This then leads to my shopping lists which I keep in a convenient place where I can mark every day what I've used. Then when it's time to shop, all I have to do is grab the list down and write down how much I need of each item. I'll go over my shopping list in another post.

   Organizing my kitchen is very important to me. I have done many things over the years to accomodate my desire to keep things orderly and at arms reach. Not just for me but for my family. They all know what and where everything is. If there's an empty space, then we definitely don't have it. There is no searching to see if it's among other things because it's always in the same place each time. So if I want creamed corn for a meal or receipt and all I see are whole kernel then I know I have none at all. There is no sense in tearing apart cupboards (and thereby disorganizing everything) because I know it's not there:) I can then choose to make creamed corn or I can choose to wait and purchase it.

   This also brings me to my quarterly menu planning but again, I'll save that for another post:)

   I don't know that anyone is interested at all in how I organize things but I would be more than happy to share it. It's really rather easy and once it's in place it's easy to follow and stay organized:) Many folks want a quick fix to organizing but that's not realistic. Organizing is a step by step process that has to fit in your schedule, your lifestyle and your temperment. What works for one doesn't necessarily work for another. It is entirely dependent upon space, time and desire.

   Well, I suppose it's time for me to get back into that kitchen and do a bit more. After all, it's important to me that it be user friendly:P

God be with thee!

Sister Lori

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{ 14:02, Wednesday, March 26, 2008 } { Posted by Kitty }

I too have been in that "organizing" mood lately. I want to declutter so much. My dd suggested that we have a garage sale very soon, and I'm all for that. I have so much "stuff" and have no clue where it all comes from, yes I do, ME. lol
I also keep my shelves very organized, especially my can goods. My dd often laughs at me b/c everything is in "special" order. But she doesn't laugh when she asks for something and I know exactly where it is and how many there are of it. LOL Have a great week...........Kitty

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{ 19:40, Wednesday, March 26, 2008 } { Posted by Sara }

We are on a journey similar to yours. We're moving from a bigger house to a smaller house. I'm a little nervous as to how things will work out in our new kitchen because it is so much smaller than the one we have now, almost one quarter of the size of my current kitchen. It's going to take some serious decluttering, and then organizing along with some special storage solutions. I also don't like my rooms to be noisy, just useful and simple. I'm glad that you are getting settled into your new home.

Blessings, sara

SPACE

{ 18:39, Saturday, March 29, 2008 } { Posted by savdn4gvn }

Oh Sister Lori, I do share so many interests with you. It is so nice to see. :-) As you know, I do not have much room here at all. I do not have the option of storing things from one room to another as each room barely fits it's on needs. It is very frustrating for I would love to be able to store more food thus making less trips to town for food needs.
HUGS!
Carrie