Think it’s possible to combine a WIAW post with a kitchen organization update? Guess we’re going to find out! I wanted to share both because at this point in pregnancy, almost 23 weeks, I feel like baby girl is hitting a serious growth spurt. I find myself wanting small meals every 2 hours or so. It always starts off first thing in the morning.
Last time I made French toast I froze some in half slices. I’ve been popping them into the toaster in the mornings, then topping with peanut butter, honey and chia seeds. It’s the perfect quick bite to start off my mornings at the computer.
By the time Hailey is eating breakfast, I’m ready for the next meal.
Yesterday it happened to be homemade vegetable barley soup. I attribute my choice to the fact that it was 9 degrees outside.
If second breakfast is around 8:30, I’m ready for my next meal by 11:15 or so.
I’m on a leftover kick! This leftover black bean burger with avocado, tomato and jalapenos hit the spot.
Then, it was go time. I combined days 6 & 7 of the organization challenge and tackled both the upper and lower kitchen cabinets at once. You would think with as much as I love being in the kitchen, it wouldn’t be that much of a disaster. You would be wrong.
It was quite…
a sad state…
of affairs.
I hadn’t reorganized anything in my kitchen since moving in almost 4 years ago. By now, I have fine-tuned what I use on a daily basis. Where I had certain items stored made absolutely no sense.
I spent Hailey’s nap time working on the kitchen and it nearly killed me. I pulled everything out, wiped everything down, collected a giant box of unused items to donate, threw away odds and ends and then restocked things into their new locations.
Sounds dramatic, but now looking at the pictures, it doesn’t look like a huge change. How sad. However, it FEELS like a brand new kitchen. Clean and organized, plus my fear of opening certain cabinets and being buried in an avalanche of pots and pans is gone.
I realized I wasn’t using 80% of my top shelves. I grabbed a chair to move items rarely used up, to make the lower shelves less cluttered.
I tossed old, damaged Tupperware, neatly stacked mixing bowls and organized our drink ware, including all bajillion juice glasses that we never use. Wedding registry FYI- you don’t need 40 juice glasses. You will never have 40 people over for breakfast wanting juice at the same time.
Despite looking the same, I organized all our coffee mugs and they are less cluttered and easier to access.
I again decided to take advantage of unused upper shelves and finally was able to declutter Hailey’s shelves. Down below, I separated serving dishes from appliances and made items I use often much more accessible. Now all my appliances are neatly grouped together!
After 2.5 hours of kitchen chaos, I kicked my feet up with home-popped popcorn.
and chocolate.
I was sent a box of Active D’Lites to sample. They are chocolate bars, sweetened with stevia, that are low calorie and packed with pro (and pre!) biotics. The best part? It simply tasted like delicious chocolate and caramel. Mmm.
It was enough to power me through an afternoon workout, which I didn’t have high hopes for after the kitchen project. However, when dinner time rolled around, I was ready to crash.
So I retired to the couch with two bowls of chicken tortilla soup and called it a night!
I fully admit that this organization challenge is trying to kill me. However, admiring my work at the end of the day is ridiculously satisfying and somehow gives me enough oomph to attack the next challenge.
Is anyone else organizing the house this month?
What has been your most satisfying cleanse and organization thus far?
Mine is a toss up between having Christmas neatly labeled and put away and having the kitchen not making me cringe anymore!
Erica says
I moved a few weeks ago so even though everything has been ‘put away’ I don’t feel like it’s organized very well. I keep telling myself I’ll start reorganizing things but …. that just doesn’t happen!
danielle says
My family just moved too. We’re starting to get everything organized and put away. Our kitchen was the first thing to get done, but after a couple weeks we reorganized because it wasn’t working. There isn’t a huge difference in our reorganization, but it made a huge difference in the function of our kitchen.
Heidi @ Idlehide says
haha yup, you’re nesting too! Your place looks great, I should tackle the cupboards next, they are in a state in my house. I’ve purged on our closets and dropped a big bag off at Big Brothers/Sisters.
The frozen french toast sounds like a great idea.
Kari says
I also tackled the kitchen and it feels so good to have everything in it’s right place. It was amazing how much stuff I had that wasn’t getting used.
Rachel says
You are motivating me! I have organized our bathroom cabinets/shelves/bins, etc. So much old and unused stuff to throw out. I organized our shoes and filing cabinet too! Thanks for the motivation. 🙂
Courtney @ Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life says
I would LOVE to get organizing in our house, and I get motivated to do it all the time! But then when it comes down to it, I almost always have an excuse or something better to do… 😉
Brittany Dixon says
Oh I feel ya! I think that’s why I posted about it- to force me to follow through. It’s pretty daunting, but afterwards, it is awesome! I guess a lot like working out 😉
Elizabeth @ My Neon Running Shoes says
We are also trying to get organized slowly but surely! P.S. Have you tried black bean sweet potato burgers? They are also yummy!
Brittany Dixon says
I haven’t tried them, but I have a sweet potato and black bean chili that is AWESOME. Great combo 🙂
Kathy says
Great job Brittany! That was a big task and looks great! And that vegetable barley soup looks delish!!!
Mary says
If you are looking for a place in the Charlotte area to donate kitchen items, check into The Bin in Huntersville: http://www.test.the-bin.org. It’s a great local organization!
I recently moved so I am with you on the closet and home organization!
Brittany Dixon says
I have heard about the bin! I don’t know much about it though, so I’ll go check it out. Thanks!
Parita @ myinnershakti says
We are cleaning up and organizing this month as well. I’m hoping to make it a quarterly thing. Last weekend we tackled the refrigerator, pantry, and spice cabinet. And this weekend, we tackle our bedroom. Vishnu is a pack rat when it comes to clothes and random junk (haha), so it’s going to be a painful process. Hopefully by the end we have bags of things to donate. That’s my goal!
christina says
I am loving these organizational posts. You’re so inspiring!! Excuse me while I go clean out my desk. 😉
Ali says
Good job on tackling the kitchen. That’s definitely a big job and when it’s done, oh so satisfying.
Marjorie says
I sooo need to organize!! I always have the best intentions, but clutter just builds up more and more. I am loving watching you 31 day challenge. I need to do this, but maybe the slacker’s version…with the bar set lower. Like maybe a task per week. 🙂
Jen@Twenty-Something&Starving says
Oh yum! That black bean burger AND soup look sooooo tasty! I currently live with my in-laws and I look forward to having my own kitchen again and organizing it as I see fit!
Ashley D says
Way to go! I am falling a few days behind on the organization, but will try and catch up over the weekend. The vegetable barley soup looks amazing. Is the recipe on your blog?
Brittany Dixon says
I don’t have the recipe posted, mostly because I switch it up and throw it together each time. Maybe I should work on a legit recipe and write in down. Thanks! 🙂
Sabrina says
I’m really enjoying following you along this challenge.
Ashley @ My Food N Fitness Diaries says
Great job! We recently cleaned out our basement and it felt SO good! We had a whole SUV full of things to donate.
Kitchen is next on my list. Our pantry, freezer, and fridge need some major attention. One thing I have struggle with organizing in the kitchen is TUPPERWARE! Do you have any secrets?! We have so many mismatched and random tupperware that it’s impossible to stack them. I guess I could just throw them all away and buy a new set that all stacks neatly, but not sure I want to put the money into that right now.
Avery @ YoungAspirations says
Nice job! I hate clutter so I feel like I do this sort of house organizing all year round, constantly trying to get rid of things we don’t use and organize what we have (my husband is always trying to blame me for tossing out things he can’t find, haha). I think growing up with a mom who was a pack rat has made me the opposite – I don’t want to keep anything we don’t use consistently. It’s a blessing and a curse 🙂
Laura @ Mommy Run Fast says
Our eating habits are so similar- and I just finished popping homemade popcorn! Yay for the kitchen overhaul- it feels SO good to complete a job like that.
Maria says
You are totally speaking my language with these organizational posts! My tiny apartment kitchen is filled to the brim right now and if I don’t keep it organized on a regular basis, I go crazy.
Amazon sells some amazing kitchen cabinet organizers for pots, pans and lids. When we get into a more permanent living situation, I’m investing in those babies!
Did you really register for 40 juice glasses? That is awesome!
Brittany Dixon says
I guess I must have registered for them… what a rookie!!
I have considered venturing into the container store to find some organizers, but am afraid at what the total would be after finding all the incredible options they have!
Kristen@Change of Pace says
Ahhh toasted French toast! Yum!!!
Melissa @ Fit 'n' Well Mommy says
I’ve been nesting, too! I’ve re-organized some of our kitchen drawers, our hall closet and my office. Next up is cleaning the whole house tomorrow and then organizing the baby’s room this weekend! It feels so good to get everything organized and neat!
Leah M says
Your eats look good! My pantry is always in need of organization. I tackled the kitchen before Christmas and it looks so much better! Now I need to do the kid’s closets. Thanks for posting.
Matt @ Runner Savvy says
Ugh. I need to organize my kitchen!
Giselle@myhealthyhappyhome says
We just moved in last month so we are pretty organized around here. Although I feel like I could do a little reorganizing in the kitchen now that we’re in and settled.
Julie says
There’s so much good stuff in this post from the frozen French toast sticks, tortilla soup, and oh my gosh, your kitchen is gorgeous. I noted that the changes are even huge, but it makes such a difference.
I love getting rid of things. We are waiting to hear about a house so when we get it, I’m excited to start organizing!
Sarah says
I have been reading your blog for a few years now and finally posting! I love love your organization “challenge.”
I’m a few days behind as I just started on Monday, but I’m loving that it’s tasks that I can complete during my 1 year old twin boys nap time or shortly there after and also passing the time while my husband is gone for 6 weeks straight. So far, the master closet and fridge have left me the most satisfied! Looking forward to the pantry re-org too! Thanks for the great idea.
P.S. I started following your blog for healthy eating, but have gained much more info from munchkin meals, workouts, and overall healthy living. Thank you!
Danica @ It's Progression says
You saw that I completely organized (and cleaned, of course) my kitchen last weekend. It took me over 3 hours but it feels great to have done. That was my first time doing that since we moved into our house, too 🙂
elise @ little miss fit says
I just love organizing and tidying up. Sometimes I just get this need to organize and it’s such a sense of accomplishment when I finish up…so rewarding!
P.S. that tortilla soup looks amazing!!
Nicole says
I have been organizing too. I have hit the top of the fridge, the top of the dresser, the small pantry area in my kitchen, and the bathroom. The bathroom was the most rewarding so far and that took me 2 hours.