 |
| The BEFORE picture- scary, messy, cluttered, gross! |
 |
| A close up; happy to say that the top is so full because we have 3 gallon sized bags filled with green beans from the garden! |
 |
| Teddy Bear wasn't happy about me taking pictures of the messy fridge! |
 |
| TA-DA!! The after picture; clean, organized, completely edible food! |
 |
| A close up of the fresh fruit and veggie shelf. (I have to clean & cut the celery up!) |
Organizing Your Fridge- from YouTube.com
a video from HGTV
So, this wasn't on the agenda originally, but after picking beans in the garden and gathering some hidden zucchini and cucmbers, I decided it was time to tackle the mess in the fridge. And then that got me thinking that there must be other wives and mamas who are facing the same predicament: a messy fridge full of wonderfully fresh produce and some scary "science projects"! I admit I wasn't exactly thrilled with the thought of hauling everything out of there, especially since I have have an extremely sore back, so I looked up some articles online for some inspiration. The 2 video clips I shared above really helped. (BTW, the containers featured in the HGTV clip are from Tupperware and they were "new" about 8 years ago! I know this because I was a TW consultant at the time!)
As I was cleaning out, I was thinking how keeping up with the fridge inventory is an important part of menu planning and pantry keeping. (I'm sure this is not revolutionary to some of you, but I can be slow to implement sometimes!) Our fridge looks rather barren right now, except for the fresh fruit and veggie shelf, but for this time of year it's fine with me! I'm trying to eat what we have in the fresh area to save on the pantry items, and it's also healthier. For example, instead of having a potato or pasta for a side dish, I like having 2 veggies instead. (I didn't mention rice because Princess and I are the only ones that like it, so I don't make it very often.)
I have yet to get a menu plan for this week down on paper yet, but I have a pretty good idea in my head for the next few days. Menu planning is important for saving money, time and sanity! It can be a saving grace when you have a crazy day (or week) looming ahead of you, or even if your day ends up being that way. Instead of standing in the kitchen wondering what in the world you're going to make, you know ahead of time (and hopefully remembered to take out the pork chops to thaw the day before!) and can get going. I also like to plan because I tend not to have as many of those "I don't want to make dinner, can't we just get a pizza?!?!?!!" nights.
I am hoping to have more posts on pantry keeping and menu planning, as well as how they go hand in hand. For now though, I'm looking forward to that little thrill of seeing a clean (inside!) fridge every time I get creamer for my coffee!
Blessings,
Kelly
P.S. You can "friend" me on facebook now! Just look up Homespun Inspirations and send a friend request. Also, I'd love to hear from you in the comments section. Just click at the end of the post where it says "comments" and it should bring something up for you to add your comment. Thanks!
No comments:
Post a Comment