home organization: pantry

Knowing that I will probably have to go back to work full time in September, I'm already trying to prepare myself by decluttering, organizing, and coming up with easy and organized ways to get things done in limited time at home. I haven't worked full time since Celia was born, and haven't been at work at all since Henry was born so this is going to be a really big change. I can't even imagine what it will be like. Well, I can but it doesn't look pretty. Ha! Which is why I need to get myself ready. I've gotten started on going through problem areas in the house, getting rid of things we don't need and organizing what's left. I thought I'd write about each little project, and I'll bet you guys will have ideas too based on  how you do things.

Here are the topics/areas of the house I plan to work on:
-Kitchen (Done!)
-Laundry Area
-Front Hall Closet (A messy disaster guaranteed to make anyone late for work or school)
-Celia's Closet and Clothes
-Upstairs Linen Closet
-My Work Wardrobe/Closet (Since I haven't worn non-maternity work clothes or worked full time in a very long time, it needs an overhaul)
-Meal Planning/Freezer Cooking
-Organizational Helpers

The first thing I've done is the kitchen. I spend the most time there, and was tired of having things be cluttered or stored in inconvenient spots. I don't have any before pictures, but did take afters of the pantry. The first thing I did was go through the cupboards. I didn't actually throw out much, but there were duplicates of a few herbs and spices that I consolidated into one bottle. I did ended up with a big box of things to get rid of. We'll either try to sell them locally on eBay, or I'll save it all for yard sale. Next, I did a lot of moving things around. My mixing bowls got moved to the cupboard with all my baking supplies. I moved things that rarely get used out of prime cabinet space, and moved things that are used more frequently into convenient spots. This will make it much easier to access the things I use most. 

The biggest job was the pantry. Our pantry is deep and narrow, so it can be hard to see what's there if it gets too cluttered. It looked like it was filled to bursting with packages of food, and I was sure we weren't using half of it because I rarely had the energy to sift through and see what was in there. One by one, I emptied the shelves and went through it all. I was pleasantly surprised to find that there really wasn't any waste in there. It looked much worst than it really was because things like grains and beans were kept in their bags, which are awfully hard to keep looking neat. They just get jumbled together and look a mess, and I never feel like searching through it all.

Moving things around, sorting, emptying and filling containers are some of Celia's favorite things to do. She was the perfect assistant for all these pantry tasks! Pita helped take things out of the pantry, and we put like items together. Then we headed out to Target for some containers. Canning jars are everywhere in the summer, and not very expensive. I got a pack of those along with some larger containers for rice and beans. I wanted all glass to avoid any chemicals leaching into the food. Celia helped me fill the containers and made a nice mess on the floor in the process :). Then we put everything back in the pantry, using the same organization for the shelves that I had all along.

Henry supervised.

It doesn't look like something out of Martha Stewart, but I don't care. It's neat and organized. 

The top shelf holds cooking pots that I don't use very frequently. I went through the cabinet holding my pots and pans, and removed the ones I don't really use. When I thought about it, I realized that I really only use a few pots regularly. Also, see that duct tape at the bottom of the pantry? It has been there since we moved in, and I finally got around to trying to remove it. I figured it was just holding up the molding because the previous owners had done something dumb with it. Turns out the tape is covering holes in the drywall. What in the world?? We discover the strangest things in this house.

The next shelf down holds a few snack things for Celia, baby food, and canned/jarred goods.

Oats, cereal, nuts, popcorn, dried fruit.

And pasta, beans, and grains.

The jars look pretty, too.

Now there's no excuse not to use up what's in the pantry.