If ‘Minimalism‘ was the word for the last 2 years, ‘Organization’ is my word for 2020.
I spent the last bit of 2019 in a huge organization whirlwind. I feel like in the lead up to the holidays the word ‘minimal’ was forgotten and discarded to the wayside. LIving minimally was definitely not happening.
But I was a fiend for getting my organization started and on point. I actually went through the whole house and started to put things that have just been lying around in their proper place. If it didn’t have a place, I either found it one or I decided if it finally needed to move on.
Honestly, I’m crazy proud of myself for getting this done. Andrew was travelling for work and I was home alone with the kids. Had to keep me busy somehow, right?
So I upped my organization game.
The Kitchen
I still need to do more here, but I’ve been downsizing again and making a place for everything. Tackling the whole kitchen (it feels like) was very satisfying and when Andrew came home he didn’t know where anything was!
I reorganized the two main “snack” cupboards. The barely used items got moved up to the top shelf. Snacks down to the main shelf. I made a tea/coffee shelf above the kettle and Keurig, along with mugs I’m ok with Andrew taking into work for his morning coffee. I went through the two bins of tea under the counter and tossed the really old stuff. No one needs that much tea.
I cleaned out the bottom of one cupboard and while I still need to install the pull-out drawer, I have it all ready for Kaiden’s use. I want him to have somewhere he can reach so he can get his own bowls and cups, etc. Especially since I don’t have any drawer storage in my kitchen.
I organized and cleaned off the countertop, which tends to become a holding space for junk. Compiled things better so it looks better too.
I found a plastic bag holder at IKEA for all the plastic bags just floating under the sink right now. I rarely get them from the grocery store and I now use reusable produce bags, but I’ll save any plastic bag to reuse for scooping cat litter. What a game-changer. I put all the bags in it and put it in the basement beside the cat litter.
The Closets Upstairs
I had made the decision that going forward I wasn’t putting away Andrew’s laundry anymore. I wash and fold it, I refuse to put it away. Well, that came back to bite me in the butt when after weeks and weeks it was still in the basket. The ever-growing basket. So, I asked him while he was away if he was ever going to put away his clothing or if he was fine just living out of a basket. He answered he was fine with the basket.
Andrew might have been joking. He definitely thought I was joking. But by the time he came home I’d taken his dresser out of our closet and put it in the basement. He now lives out of baskets and hangers. The mess is away and in the closet. I don’t constantly have to close his drawers (another bane of my existence) and it’s easy for Andrew to put away. Win-win, in my books.
Having his dresser out of our closet meant that I could bring in all the clothing from Kaiden’s closet that was being hung into our room. So now, all of our clothes are in our own bedroom! Where it should be! Amazing. I’ve hung up Kaiden’s dress shirts as well, in his room. Everyone’s closet has its own clothes in it. So novel.
The Closets Downstairs
I ordered a bunch of wire baskets from Kitchen Stuff Plus for the closets (hall and bedroom) to sort winter wear and for Andrew’s socks and underwear. I ordered another laundry sorter as well. It’s smaller than the one we currently are using but our’s is falling apart and takes up too much space! The new one should fit in the closet. I’m going to put the old one in the laundry room downstairs for Andrew’s work clothes.
The Kids’ Stuff
I finally got through all of the toys that live scattered across my living room floor, under the dining room table, in the kitchen… the mess is real. I got the soft cubes from Amazon and separated out toys. Emptying out my bookshelves in Kaiden’s room I put the cubes in there. I put all the stuffed animals in the shelves over his bed. Already the living room looks so much cleaner!! I can swap out any of the bins at any time so toys get used and see what he gravitates towards. Eli also plays with different things than Kaiden did at the same age.
Things Still Left To Organize
There’s still plenty left to get on top of. I did manage to get things out to the garage that needed to be out there and got all the important papers together to be filed properly (I ran out of filing space). But now that there’s a desk space in the garage, I’m going to be able to move that stuff out there soon.
Going forward through 2020
I’m looking to stay on top of it all. Keep putting this away immediately after use. Wash, fold and put away laundry all in the same day. Clean the kitchen before bed/after dinner so it doesn’t pile up.
It really is the little things. It makes such a huge difference to the overall mindset for my day and how I tackle things in the morning. Not having to do it in the morning means more 1 on 1 time with Kaiden and Eli.
Do you have a word for 2020? Is that something people still do? Have you been doing any organization hacks? Let me know!
J x
