Kitchen clean up

 

My kitchen has always been the place where we throw stuff into corners, every cupboard is full and we just live with it that way. Lately I have been feeling the NEED to purge and clean and simplify.

One night after the kids were in bed, I decided to tackle the kitchen and I am so thankful that I did!

 

Here is a before from one of the corners:

{I didn't take many pictures because I jumped right in}

This is where we kept Wyatt's bottles and formula, miscellaneous baby feeding supplies, our most often used cookbooks, CD's, and whatever else ended up there.

 

Here is the top of the fridge: Our place to store big items, extra goods, random items that have no where else to go. 

 

AND NOW... for the good part:

 

SO much cleaner!

What a concept...moving the utensil holder closer to the stove where I use those items.

Putting the cookbooks in a cupboard {and getting rid of a bunch that I've never used a recipe out of}, moving those Christmas CD's to the Christmas boxes and deep cleaning the counter.

I feel less stressed just looking at this picture!

 

And a shot of the entire kitchen after it was cleaned:

 

I wish I had taken a before picture, because it is a huge difference! Chris came home from work and was surprised at how good it looked. I love being in the kitchen and having it clean really makes cooking and doing dishes and keeping it clean easier!

 

I also cleaned out and moved our "junk" drawer:

I tried to shop our house to find ways to keep this drawer organized. It's narrow and shallow so I found small Tupperware and a long basket that work perfectly. I am much happier knowing that all of our pens/pencils/tape/rubber bands/coins/etc. are all in one place and organized.

 

I have definitely began purging, organizing, donating, and really deciding if I'm keeping items for a real purpose, or to have them just to have them. I've come to realize that having a cluttered/disorganized/overstuffed home makes for a cluttered/disorganized/overstuffed mind.

 

Now, onto the next room!

 

What is your favorite organizing tip?