Day 3: Start With Small Things
Crystal's example for today is the discipline of cleaning the kitchen before turning in for the night. I guess I sort of jumped ahead since I started this yesterday, but I love her discussion of why this is so important and why it gets the next day off to a great start.
This new habit is going to be a challenge for me. Like I said yesterday, I am usually exhausted at the end of the day so I am going to really have to push myself to be sure this task gets done.
My New Habit: Clean Up the Kitchen Before Bedtime
I found a small thing that really gives me the incentive to get the kitchen cleaned up before bed. Maybe something similar this or some other small "reward" will help you to push ahead too.
I recently discovered Mrs. Meyer's Countertop Spray
. I had read great things about the natural scent of these products and decided to give it a try. If a little thing like the scent of a special counter top spray can get me to get my counter tops clear and clean before bed, I'm all for it. (If you are interested in trying this, Vitacost has the best online price I have found.)Another incentive that works for me is that when my kitchen is clean, I treat myself to my favorite spicy ginger tea and relax before bed.
Mega Project Step 3
The third step in my huge pantry project is to organize my canned goods. My canned goods are currently scattered throughout the pantry in no particular order--often hiding behind other items so that it's not easy to see what I have on hand.
Today's project is to clear off one shelf and dedicate that shelf to well-organized canned goods. Here's what I did: I cleared off one of the upper shelves (not the top shelf since it has additional height that is better used for larger objects). Then I wiped down the shelf to start with a nice clean surface.
I collected all of my canned goods from throughout the pantry and grouped like items together. Then I neatly lined the cans on the freshly cleaned shelf, making sure that all labels face the front. The cans in the front have like items lined up behind.
This was such a simple project but, again, it is a small thing that makes a big difference. I can now tell at a glance whether I have tomato paste for my chili or whether I need to put kidney beans on the shopping list.
An important note about this project:
Have you ever googled "organized pantry" to get inspired about a project like this? While it's fun to get ideas from other amazing pantries, it can also stop you dead in your tracks. There are so many great ideas and so many beautiful pantries out there that it's easy to get overwhelmed.
My goal is to make small improvements to what I have so that my food storage is more organized. That's something I can do now that will help me to be more organized in other areas like food shopping and meal planning.
So whatever your mega project is, please don't be overwhelmed by possibilities. Just get started!
Continue with Day 4 here.
This series is based on the ebook 21 Days To A More Disciplined Life
by Crystal Paine. If you don't have a copy of the ebook yet, it is now available at Amazon.(Note: The links in this post are my referral links. Read my disclosure policy here.)
