Saturday morning, while the Hub got the oil changed in his car and the kids played Just Dance 4 in their pajamas, I cleaned out the pantry. The Hub did it about a year ago, and I know we cleaned it out at least a couple of times before that (when we renovated the kitchen we went from two pantries to one and did a major overhaul then). So honestly, this time it wasn’t that bad. I forgot to take a picture of the worst part, which was the floor. Ew. Crumbs, dust, lost craft supplies, onion skins….It had also become the catch-all for empty plastic containers and anything that didn’t have a place in the kitchen proper.

The rest of the pantry just needed a good maintenance clean. The general organizational system has been working well for us over the past year, but things had gotten messy.

I removed every bin, rinsed out the crumbs, and threw away expired or empty containers. Everything that didn’t belong (gift bags, grill accessories) got put away elsewhere. Then I used my label maker to label the bins. I’m thinking about labeling the shelves, too.

The biggest change was that I removed the kids’ craft cart from under the lowest shelf and moved it to the basement. They have two tables and plenty of space to make a big mess create down there. I sorted through all the aprons and the giant bag of lunch bags that hang from hooks on the left side (just outside the picture), narrowing down the selection to those we actually use daily. The rest went to the basement with the picnic supplies. Suddenly there was so much space, I was able to slide in the extra set of counter stools that we use in the kitchen. Convenient, but out of sight. (I’d love to paint those stools a fun color. Suggestions?)

With that chore completed, the kitchen is in pretty good shape. The cupboards and drawers are staying organized, and there is a place for everything. Of course, now I really notice how much everything needs a good scrubbing. And I really ought to finish painting the trim inside the door frame.

Another day.