New Kitchen Here I Come

The listing photo for my new kitchen

Way back in March, we put an offer in on a new house! It's eerily similar to the one we are renting right now-and we all love it!

Sadly, eight days before closing (in MAY!), escrow let us know they couldn't meet the closing date and didn't know when they could. Long story short, we've been in limbo land for months since the seller didn't have the title recorded and it is a long sordid tale of misspelling mishaps.

Finally on September 1st, the title was finally recorded properly (after FOUR attempts!) and we are moving ahead to close this week (yay!!!)

I've been living in boxes for m.o.n.t.h.s. and in the dark about when we could actually move. I've been thinking more of the new house than the old and haven't had much inspiration towards tidying up here.

As we approach closing on the new house (FINALLY!), I've realized that I don't have a system for keeping my kitchen clean...and I want to! The kitchen today looks pathetically disheveled, messy and dirty and I want to keep a clean kitchen in the new house (and here, too)!

I've decided to challenge myself to a clean kitchen routine before we move (like I don't already have enough to do). I want my new kitchen to stay clean, so I better figure this out once and for all! On a different note, I've completely mastered my morning routine, which I've been working on for the past...well, really for my whole life! So I have a lot of hope I can master the kitchen too.

Starting with WDIS (What Do I See?),

(aside...WDIS has become this magical motivational catch phrase for me. Once I start with WDIS, I'm totally on my way!)

I start to identify problems. Once I see the problems I can start brainstorming solutions.

Here we go:

Left of Sink: WDIS? milk jugs full of water, kleenex box, stand with scissors and handwash, towel, groceries not put away where they belong, clean salad bowl, empty container, mailing envelopes

***I see a lot of stuff that hasn't been put away. Go put it away and then re-evaluate. Start putting stuff away. :) I'm my best cheerleader, ha!

Sink: WDIS? some dirty dishes, a sink that could use a little cleaning and polishing

***the current system isn't working, I'd like to NEVER have dirty dishes in the sink, need to think on that

Right of Sink: WDIS? dirty dishes, grocs not put away, blender, apples, house paperwork, crumbs!, garbage

***can we find a larger spot for the hot dog buns and bread!??! they need a bigger home so when we buy new stuff it can all fit and not overflow onto the counter until we eat half of it. This isn't rocket science people (I'm talking to myself here)!

Oven: WDIS? Why is there ANYTHING on the oven!? Oh, that's right, because the counters are covered with junk! I see dirty pans, garbage and a dirty cooktop! Eeegads!

***I like the idea of having a glass dish to use as a garbage can during the day. I toss in egg shells, cheese wrappers, etc and then at the end of the day it can be emptied and run through the dishwasher. I'm going to give it a try, since I cannot seem to use the trash can like a normal person!

Right of Oven: WDIS? Good grief. There's a pair of scissors on a used plate(!), condiments that can go into the cupboard at the new house and off the counter, spatulas, used utensils, oatmeal not put away, goldfish crackers not put away, plastic lid, cheese papers, garbage

***I am no longer willing to live like this. A while ago I think I "gave up" on the kitchen, on myself. No more. I am doing WDIS with the intent to identify and solve problem areas and come up with some reminders for myself in hopes of developing a repeatable daily routine. I know I can do this!!!

Bar: this is my main workspace and it seems to collect items that are parts of projects or things that don't have a home or I'm too lazy to put away. My goal will be to keep this CLEAN every single day. I guess that means dealing with it every night before bed, perhaps.

Next step: CLEAN THE KITCHEN