This Week's Tip Sheet: Kitchen Counters and Coffee Bars

Hello beautiful friends and welcome to Week 10 of the Simplified and Organized Home Challenge.

This week we’re decluttering the kitchen counters and organizing the coffee bar area.

These spaces can be kind of tricky because they’re two of the most used areas in our households.

What makes them tricky is that if you leave the spaces wide open, they can easily become an invitation for clutter to pile up.

If you don’t leave the area open though, you risk not having enough space to meal prep.

While I try to keep a healthy balance throughout the day, I’m also very careful to make sure the countertops and our coffee area are neat and tidy before we go to bed.

That way, we’re not waking up to a messy kitchen and can fully enjoy that first delicious sip.

Now, on to this week’s Tip Sheet!

9 Tips for a More Organized Kitchen-The Crowned Goat

This Week’s Tip Sheet…

Quote of the Week:

“Every sunset is an opportunity to reset. Every sunrise begins with new eyes.” ~ Richie Norton

This Week’s Big To-Do’s:

Declutter Kitchen Counters and Organize the Coffee Bar
Commemorate Fat Tuesday, Ash Wednesday and Begin Lent Season
Prepare for Daylight Savings Time
Check the Batteries in Smoke Detectors, Alarms and Change Filters

This Week’s Tidy Tips:

Keeping the counters neat and tidy is not always easy, especially if you have a busy household with littles and lots of extra activities.

I’m always amazed at how quickly things pile up on our conversation bar and kitchen island.

So, I wanted to share a few tips that help us keep that area under control in case it’s a pain point in your household too:

Unless you use it daily, have a designated zone or specific cabinet in your kitchen for small appliances. This will help keep them all together and off the countertops.
Set up a station around the appliances you use daily. For example, a breakfast station around the toaster, a cooking station by the stove, a drink station around your coffee bar, a snack station with fruit or a cleaning station around the sink.
Use trays, stands, turntables, crocks, containers and hooks to help keep items corralled.
Get rid of things you don’t need or aren’t using on a regular basis.
Safely store spices and oils in your kitchen drawer, cabinet or pantry if you can. It will help free up countertop space.
Keep your kitchen cabinets and drawers organized. That way, you’ll be able to put things away as opposed to keeping items out.
Create a landing zone for mail and a drop zone for backpacks near the entry. It will help keep paper clutter from piling up in the kitchen. Especially, if you go through them every day.
Use a designated charging area for devices.
Keep your cookbooks on a kitchen shelf or in a cabinet.
Clean up as you cook. Keep a compost bowl or container for scraps, warm soapy water in the sink and the dishwasher empty so you can easily drop in meal prep items.
Likewise, keep a small trash container near your coffee station if you use sugar, honey, pods or tea bags every day. It will help keep them off the counters.
Limit vignettes and decorative items so your kitchen counters can stay practical and pretty.

This Week’s Wellness Tip:

Over the years, I’ve learned that preparing for the time change is vital for our household.

Especially, given the success of our morning routine largely depends on our nightly routine.

While it’s always best to talk to your doctor or healthcare provider about how to make the transition an easier one, here are a few things that have helped us make the transition more manageable over the years:

Continue to prioritize sleep and a healthy nightly routine
Gradually shift your bedtime in the days leading up to the time change. The American Heart Association recommends 20 minutes.
Go for a walk on Sunday morning
Don’t drink coffee after lunch
Limit blue light exposure and screen time before bed
Have your work life-home life activities and meals planned in advance. That way, you’ll be able to get yourself back on track easily.

As always, I hope these tips have helped!

Cheering you on as you create a life you love,

CoCo

PS: You can find last week’s Tip Sheet here if you missed it.

This Week’s Tip Sheet: Kitchen Counters and Coffee Bars