11 weeks 'til summer cleaning and organizing challenge--dresser drawers & freezer

11 5 weeks until the official beginning of summer!  whoohoo, we are getting closer, and we are getting cleaner!

this is week 5/6  in the milestones and memories 11 weeks 'til summer spring cleaning challenge


last week's challenge was dresser drawers (they are mostly clean, but no pictures, sorry!)  it's been way too nice outside to spend much time in my dark bedroom)

this week's challenge was the freezer.

BEFORE:

 crowded,

disorganized, 

and dirty! 
i honestly don't think i've actually "cleaned" it out since we moved in.....4 years ago!

(hey, just keepin' it real, people)

AFTER: (this took no time at all.....i really shouldn't have waited so long)

now there is actually space to put more food

(who knew!) 

ahhhhh, now tell me that doesn't make a person feel better!
hurry, go clean out yours and come back and tell me you did.
i said, hurry!
go,

get,

skaddadle!

you'll be glad you did :) 

milestone monday--creating a cleaner and more organized home: may

for those of you who are new to milestones & memories, every monday i try to do a post on one of my milestones (goals) for the future.

today's milestone is "creating a cleaner and more organized home." 

i started the cleaning/organizing calendar last month and wanted to give an update on how it worked for me:

1.  let's just get this out there......i did NOT do everything on the calendar...i was actually doing well if i got 1-2 extra things done (black words) each week.

2.  i liked the checking off of things....there's my type A coming out again...

3.  i did do the 11 weeks 'til summer challenge tasks and it's really amazing how an organized pantry or clean garage can really make a person feel better......it's almost better than chocolate.....well, i said, "almost!"

junk drawer

 pantry

under sinks

garage

here's may's calendar:  i made a few tweeks and added some Make-Up Days for just getting a bunch of stuff done that didn't get done on the specified days.  (basically, it gives me permission to not follow the calendar)

here is the word document so that you can download it and make changes that work for your own home.  (to download:  click FILE--DOWNLOAD AS--WORD--SAVE FILE, then tweek in Microsoft Word and save into your documents)

the red tasks are things i will do on a weekly basis (like every monday i will do laundry and change our bedding--clean sheets every week make a girl feel better, too.....who knew!!)

the black tasks will be done monthly and can be moved around as my schedule permits.  i will try and get them done sometime during that week though. 

the yellow, highlighted tasks are part of my 11 Weeks 'Til Summer cleaning series.  it focuses on organizing and cleaning those things i probably do only once or twice a year and is my attempt at "spring cleaning." you can still join and link up your spring cleaning projects, here.

if you used the calendar last month or use it this month, let me know how it is working for you!  

11 weeks 'til summer cleaning and organizing challenge--under sinks

11 9 weeks until the official beginning of summer!  whoohoo, we are getting closer, and we are getting cleaner!

this is week 3 in the milestones and memories 11 weeks 'til summer spring cleaning challenge



this week's challenge was under the sinks (kitchen and master bathroom)


BEFORE (kitchen sink):

every time i opened this door the explosion of plastic bags attacked me 

 

found this!  handy in the kitchen, right?

and this helped reign in the bag problem--really nifty contraption! 

i fit over 35 bags in that little thing!  want to make your own?  check out Ashley's tutorial at Make It and Love It.

AFTER (kitchen sink):  

ahhh, much better!


BEFORE (bathroom sink):

seriously, who came in my house and made this mess?

 

 found these little beauties---

i forgot i even ever had them!  it's like christmas for me!  i really love philosophy and these are brand new!

 
AFTER (bathroom sink):

i can fit so much more in these areas now and that little bit of time and effort sure has a way of making this girl feel better!

11 weeks 'til summer cleaning and organizing challenge--pantry

11 10 weeks until the official beginning of summer!  whoohoo, we are getting closer, and we are getting cleaner!
can i get an "amen, ladies!?"

this is week 2 in the milestones and memories 11 weeks 'til summer spring cleaning challenge (if you are participating, don't forget to grab my button and join the link party i would love to see what you are doing to spruce up for spring!)


so this week's challenge was the pantry:

BEFORE:  i know, embarrassing!

i realized i have a new obsession and love for the quatrefoil pattern (it seems to be all the rage these days, and i'm jumping on the band wagon as per usual).  i loved house of smith's pantry redo and was going for the look without all the work and money.  granted, this was definitely not as beautiful, but definitely easier and basically FREE.  gotta love that!

i printed this pattern on regular paper, cut it out, taped it together to fit the dimensions of the backs of my pantry shelves, and hot glued it to the wall (yes, i said, hot glue.  don't tell the hubs!)

i may or may not have used a highlighter to fix any "white" spots left between the seams--how totally cheap and lazy am i!

from a distance you can't tell, and it will be covered with food, etc anyway!

used a whiteboard sign i already had lying around and attached it to the inside of the door (yet again with hot glue).  i plan to use it to keep track of which pantry items i am running low on so that i can add them to my grocery list.

i got these little beauts from ikea last saturday!

and filled them with pretty foods!

these little crates are also from ikea and great because i filled it with the little things like packets, 

and food coloring and can just pull the whole thing out easily!

a little trick with the cans:  categorize them in rows with like foods, (all the green beans in one row, etc) and then put one on the top so you know which row is which.

AFTER!

 

heck, i even have room to add more food from my other pantry/food storage area.  getting rid of all those cereal boxes and bags of flour, etc sure opened up a lot of space! 

who knew organizing and cleaning could make a girl so excited!  i sure have used a lot of exclamation points in this post!!!!!.................  there's a few more for good measure! :) 


what have you been up to in the "spring cleaning" arena this week? 

11 weeks 'til summer challenge week 1: junk drawer

week 1:  junk drawer

we all have one, and it probably looks like this:

BEFORE

what is it about pens, rubber bands, (at our house, guitar picks), spare keys, and apparently large bladed knives that can only make their way into the messiest, most unorganized part of my whole house?  of course, everybody needs a place where they can just "throw" everything when company comes over (mine is this drawer and on top of my washer/dryer---now you know my secret!).

i thought that this would be a small first step in our journey to "spring clean" and that's why i picked it as our first week's task in the 11 weeks 'til summer cleaning and organizing challenge.


here's what mine looks like now.....

AFTER

what i did:
1.  took everything out
2.  wiped out the drawer
3.  tried out every pen and threw away the ones that didn't work anymore (there were quite a few!)
4.  threw away all "trash" items (quite a few of these too)
5.  lined the bottom of the drawer with some pretty scrap fabric
6.  used a plastic food container and old wicker square to house the smaller bits and pens/pencils
7.  arranged the tape/scissors toward the back so that little kiddos can't reach them


taddaaa! 
now.....if only it would stay this way.......
show me yours and don't forget to join the linky party!