start the organizing...

As the holidays are fast approaching it's time to get this new house up to snuff before guests start arriving. I'm starting with the basic of basics- the refrigerator....

First I gathered my supplies...
*rags and paper towels
*glass cleaner
*label maker
*label tape
*permanent marker
*stickers (optional)
*ruler
*grip liner
*scissors
*grocery list
... and my tea (must have caffeine)....

Next I removed all of this...

Then I cleaned the whole inside of with the glass cleaner. I threw out any food that was expired, spoiled, or food we bought but no one liked it. I ended up removing...

*8 fast food ketsup packets
*old apricot preserves
*5 cucumbers
*1 serving of orange juice
*old ricotta cheese
*2 mandarin oranges
*applesauce jar with 1 serving left (my daughter had a snack while I cleaned!)
*large bag of kale

I began returning items to the top shelf. The hubby's beer stayed right just where it was. I moved the lazy susan to the top shelf because I'm short I can never see what's in the back up top. This way I can just spin to see what's hiding up there. This also left me with just enough room for one bottle of white wine. You know- just in case...

Oh, and if you look on the very left you will see the popcorn. I keep the special cup with the popcorn and label it with how much popcorn and how much oil. This way I don't have to drag out the instructions out when popping popcorn. So much easier. I highly suggest this if you have any thing similar. I also love the type of baking soda that hangs on the side of the refrigerator with a built in replacement indicator. They are more expensive than the plain box, but this frees up shelf space and eliminates any guessing as to when it was placed in the refrigerator. Because, some how I always would forget to write the date on my baking soda box.

The leftovers were labeled with contents and date prepared and then grouped in one area. This eliminates searching all the way to the back of the refrigerator looking for last nights pizza.

The fruit, veggie and pantry drawers were measured for grip liner. The liner keeps your food from rolling around when you open the drawer. My children care not that gentle when opening (more like slamming) the drawers.

Finally, the doors. I decant all liquids that I can. My pitchers fit better in the doors. I also try to save those rubber mesh sleeves to put around the glass containers. This eliminates the noise of them clanking together every time someone opens the door.

The finished product...

Guidelines...
*decant all beverages less than half full
*label everything (I even use stickers since my youngest child still cannot read.)
*use a grocery list to jot down items that need replaced

So do you like? Can you tell I was always obsessed withe seeing celeb refrigerator's on Mtv's Cribs? Still miss that show. Anyway, do you have an organized refrigerator or one that needs a little help? Send me photos or questions. Let's make all our refrigerators look as good as the ones on Cribs.


Next time....
the freezer and maybe the pantry.