Spring Cleaning: Freezer Cleanout

Well, I thought since I had given my fridge some love recently I should share that with my freezer!!  It was starting to get out of hand and things were getting placed and shoved anywhere it would fit...plus I was losing track of what I actually had.  So it was time to get that baby cleaned out and organized!

Before I get to the pretty pictures, let me show the state my freezer was in first.

One thing I noticed is I wasn't utilizing the side door as well as I should...sure it was nice to have a spot for the ice packs, but that wasn't the only thing I could use it for.  So although I had a bin for vegetables, I hardly ever went to it and couldn't remember what I actually had in there.  So I decided to move my veggies to the door.   I also moved our coffee beans to the side door...actually forgot those were hidden in the very bottom drawer of the freezer!

Some of the bins I had already purchased long ago, the purplish/blue ones and tall clear ones came from Garden Ridge.  Once I took everything out of the freezer and laid it out on the counter I decided to use my recently purchased clear bins from The Container Store since they held more and then the purple ones as well.

Since the various meats took up the majority of the shelves and bottom drawer, that left the top shelf wide open for my ice cream!!!  Don't judge...our grocery store was having a sale and I couldn't pass up some ice cream!! 

Here is a nice before and after shot of the freezer! 

What I loved best about this little clean out was it allowed me to actually see what I have in stock so hopefully now this will cut out any over buying!  I also love that it only took about twenty minutes!!  

With much love,

Kristin

Spring Cleaning: Organizing The Cleaning Supplies

Have you ever opened a door looking for something and then thought, what in the world is actually in there.  Well, I had this thought when I opened the cabinet door to my cleaning supplies.  So I decided no time like the present to clean it out.  Since I started making some of my own cleaners, there were quite a few things that I could get rid of...some were bottles that had barely anything in them and others I bagged up to give to my dad.

So after taking a survey of what was in there, I laid it all out so I could see what was actually in there and then make my piles to keep, throw away, or donate.  At this time I also gave the inside of the cabinet a good cleaning so I could literally start fresh!

Can anyone say I love to play BINGO!!!  Notice the four bingo daubers on the right side :)  I decided to put them to better use and put them in the girls' arts and craft bin.  I am not sure how some things actually ended up in this cabinet, but it was time to take them back to their original home.  After pairing down the essentials and taking out one of the shelves, here is what I have left.

Eventually, a few of these products will be replaced with a home made remedy like the laundry detergent and carpet deodorizer, but I wanted to use them all up first.

I did put a little hook on the inside of the door to hold my delicates bag, which I am loving!!  I used a simple command hook with double sided tape.

It felt good to take about 15 minutes to clean out this cabinet and finally remove the clutter that was filling it before.  How about you guys, anyone else tackling a little organizing project??

With much love,

Kristin

Spring Cleaning: Homemade Cleaners

Over the last couple of months I have been slowly transitioning our cleaners to homemade cleaners.  I love that I know what is going in them and love that the majority of the cleaners main ingredients are things I already have in my pantry.  And, I love that I am saving money!!!  I am still in the process of transitioning all of our cleaners, but I wanted to share with you a few of my favorite cleaners.

Most of the ingredients I already had on hand, like vinegar and baking soda.  A few ingredients I decided to order on Amazon like the essential oils.

After scouring Pinterest for different recipes and trying them out, here is my favorite recipe for an all-purpose cleaner, which I use to clean my kitchen counters daily.

All Purpose Cleaner:

2 cups of distilled water
2 tablespoons of distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon dish soap (Blue Dawn soap)

In addition to the cleaner, I use microfiber cloths to clean pretty much anything.  They are like my new best friend and I also ordered a multi-pack on Amazon!  I purchased a few spray bottles from The Container Store with the intent of using them for my kitchen and bathroom cleaners.  Unfortunately, the nozzles on this spray bottle kept sticking so I ended up swapping out the spray nozzle with an old cleaner bottle.

For the bathroom, I use two cleaners.  One is used to clean everything, but the inside of the toilet and shower.  Again, I use one microfiber cloth and my bathroom cleaner to clean the mirror, sink, and outside of the toilet.  I ALWAYS start with the mirror first and a dry microfiber cloth and end with the toilet, then that cloth gets thrown in the dirty pile to be washed.  I also use an old toothbrush to get around the faucet where all the gross nastiness seems to build up.

I used to clean the bathroom with several cleaners and paper towels, but by the end of each bathroom I had a pile of paper towels.  I felt that was a definite waste of paper towels (and money) and can't sing the praises of the microfiber cloths enough!!

Bathroom Cleaner:

5 ounces of distilled water
5 ounces of distilled white vinegar
10 drops of lemon essential oil

You can leave out the essential oil, but I like to "mask" the vinegar smell and love the fresh lemon smell that it leaves behind.  I purchased this 12 oz. spray bottle at The Container Store...tip, it is in the travel section and you can't beat the price at $1.99.

To clean the inside of the toilet and the shower/tub, I use a different cleaner that I call shower magic...mainly for its magic at making the grime disappear from the shower :)

12 ounces of blue dawn dish soap (the clear one works great too, I just like the color)
12 ounces of distilled white vinegar

I usually spray down the inside of the toilet with this first and then while that is doing its magic I clean down the mirror, sink and outside of the toilet.  Then I use the toilet scrubber to give the inside a good scrub down.  To clean the shower/tub I spray down the shower first and let set for at least 15-20 minutes and then use a sponge to wipe down.    

A cleaner that I recently started using and absolutely love the smell of is one I use to wipe down my cabinets, doors, and trim with a microfiber cloth of course!

1 cup distilled water
1 tablespoon lemon or orange castille soap
10 drops of essential lemon oil

Now let's talk about where all this is stored.  I have a cabinet in the pantry that holds the ingredients for my cleaners, which I will share in another post.  Once the cleaners are made I store them in a caddy that is kept underneath my kitchen sink along with my microfiber cloths.  I love my caddy and the ease that I can just grab it and go!  I purchased it from Target about a year ago when it was on clearance so unfortunately this one isn't available anymore, but they always have new options available!

There might be something wrong with me, but I get giddy seeing all the microfiber cloths all organized and ready to clean!!

What about you guys, have you tried any homemade cleaners?  Any tips?  I would love to hear any recipe that you use and love!!

With much love,

Kristin

Spring Cleaning: Cleaning Out The Fridge

My fingers have been itching to get started on building the closet in the nursery, but our plans have been slightly delayed and soon hope to be back on track to get that closet completed!!  In the mean time, I have put my itchy fingers to good use and got an early start on my spring cleaning.  One of my favorite bloggers, Jen at I Heart Organizing, has been doing a monthly clean home challenge and that has really been motivating me to get more done each day.

Earlier this week, I decided to tackle the fridge.  When I opened up the fridge, it was stockpiled with lots of containers for leftovers.  At one time I was pretty good at cleaning out the fridge at least once a week...at least cleaning out the leftover containers, but time has gotten away from me the last few weeks.

So for starters, I took out all of the leftovers and cleaned out the containers.  Then I cleared out the rest of the fridge so I could give the shelves a good wipe down.  To clean the fridge I use a spray bottle mixture of 1 cup of distilled water and 1 cup of vinegar with a microfiber cloth.  I have been wiping down my counters and cabinets in the kitchen with a microfiber cloth for a few months now and I love them!!!

Once the fridge was cleaned, I started sorting things and putting them back in the fridge and I noticed we had almost two shelves empty since the leftovers were cleared out.  We are very fortunate to have  two fridges, one is out in the garage, and we normally store our drinks, yogurts and some of the girls' snacks out there.  The bad thing, things weren't being eaten and basically wasting money :(  So I decided to bring some of those things inside and leave the garage fridge for the leftovers and extra drinks.  I do a weekly meal planning so theoretically I know when we will be having leftovers so hopefully they won't be forgotten out there!!

I purchased a few medium bins from The Container Store to store yogurts and the others are currently being used in the freezer.  Added bonus, these babies are currently on sale at The Container Store!!!

We are in the process of changing the girls' juices so typically there won't be two different brands.  Once they finish off the Fruitables, I will be able to put more of the Honest Kids or maybe something else in that spot.  (P.S. sorry for the iPhone photo)

Eventually I would like to get shallow bins for things like applesauce and cheesesticks, but for now I just used a few tupperware containers.  As for the side door, I cleared out the expired jars and wiped everything down.

Anyone else tackling some spring cleaning??

With much love,

Kristin