De-cluttering the Counter

My kitchen counter has been the bane of my existence recently.  The mass amounts of papers pile and pile and pile right up.  You know what they are; birthday party invitations, papers that need to be signed and returned to school, outgoing mail, incoming mail, coupon inserts, birthday cards, coupons-AGH!  I’m starting to feel anxiety just typing all that. :)  Well life got crazy. Like reeeeaaaalllly crazy.  As it does from time to time.  Things just got thrown…wherever.  Not only did my counter get piled up, but my pantry, and my office, and…I just couldn’t take it anymore!!!!  One night I kind of had a break down.  Just a small one, didn’t even cry (I don’t think).  Enter wonderful husband.  He said, “We will work on it together”.  And we did.  We spent half a Saturday and got. things. organized.  Hallelujah.  Well at least the counter and the pantry organized. 

One of the changes made (I actually made this change a long time ago but want to share it anyway because I love, love, love it) is that I no longer have a small planner for my calendar.  I used to leave it out on the counter, “where I could always see it”. Ha!  It just got piled on by all the aforementioned crap of papers.  So every time someone would call and say, “would you like to so-and-so on such-and-such date?”  I would scramble to find my stupid calendar. “Um, yeah. That sounds great. Just give me one second…to find my, uh, calendar here…Yes! Okay I am free that day.” 

Well I got tired of that. So I got a BIG wall calendar and hung it in my pantry.  I hung it with a fine point sharpie marker that clips right on and NEVER LEAVES THE CALENDAR. Never people. Really.  Just try to move my calendar pen.  Really try.  ;)  Goodbye tiny calendar that I could never find and never had enough room to write all the activities on.  Hello big, beautiful calendar I can always see and have plenty of room to write all my activities. 
 

One of things I do with my calendar at the beginning of each new year is sit down for about an hour and write everyone’s birthday that I want to remember.  This includes all my family and my bestie’s.   If you’re on my calendar, you’ll know you’re one of my besties. :)  Anyhoo, I also write a reminder on the Monday before their birthday to buy them a birthday card. Why Monday might you ask?  Well, Monday is the day I do my grocery shopping.  So I know, (mostly) I will be going to the store that day and can pick up a card.  Oh how I LOVE grocery store Monday’s. They make my life, week and home oh so peaceful. (A blog post on that soon to come).

Another change we made was this hook:

My hubby hung up this hook for my son’s backpack and lunch box. I have taught my son when he gets home from school (after taking off shoes outside and emptying sand, wiping feet with a wipe and washing hands) to take the ice pack out of his lunchbox, put it in the freezer. Take his water bottle out of his backpack and put it on the counter. Then…HANG UP THE LUNCHBOX AND BACKPACK. In the pantry. On the hook. Out of my sight. Two less things to trip over, pick up and put away. Thank you beautiful, white, curvy hook that husband hung right at my little son’s level so it’s nice and easy for him. :)

One more thing we did under my lovely calendar, is put a hanging file box that my husband spotted at Target and suggested we get. (Oh how I love that man).  In it I keep “my notebook”. (Probably another blog post to come on “my notebook” someday. I think I would die without “my notebook.” It truly keeps me organized).  Whatever book I’m reading (still working on finding the time to read more). The Book of Mormon, so we can easily grab and read it as a family (still working on that too). And any other important papers that used to be on the counter.  The idea was to get this “stuff” off the counter. And it worked!!  Oh the peace I feel when I walk by and actually see my counter now.

I still need to file some of  the papers that got moved from the counter to the office. I’m working on that. It’s a work in progress.  I’m just so happy to know that everything has a place-and it’s not the kitchen counter anymore!!!  And you know what I think I’m gonna do with the newfound space on my kitchen counter???  Thanks to the brilliant suggestion of my good friend Jenny, I’m going to put a digital photo frame there.  There, where the pile of crap used to be will be a frame that rotates pictures of my children and other loved ones.  Isn’t that much better?  Ah, one small step to creating a home in order completed.  Many, many, many more to go. :)

Before and after pics: