Clean The Pantry {Part Two}

Can I just start by sharing that I have absolutely no business teaching anyone how to organize anything? 🙂 To say I’m mortified to share this picture is an understatement, but now that it’s all cleaned up I’m hoping it’ll motivate you to get your cupboards cleaned out too. This is the cabinet in our pantry where all the “extras” go, and I don’t know that I’ve cleaned it out in at least a few years. Needless to say, it was time!

(Will you please remember as you see this that I have three crazy busy kiddos, run a small website, and am completely scatter-brained? Yikes . . .this is just awful but I’m running out of cupboards to clean so we must be heading in the right direction!)

Here’s the before (completely un-edited, obviously . . .)

And the after . . .

I donated a ton of cookbooks . . . there are so many that I don’t use at all, and it felt so good to get those cleared off the shelves. Like many folks I primarily hunt down recipes online, so the extra clutter isn’t worth it except for the books I really do love.

I did keep out a few favorites that I’d really like to use soon . . . 

Here are a few favorite cookbooks that I did keep (which I highly recommend. . .)

• Hershey’s Chocolate Lover’s Cookbook
• Hershey’s Recipe Collection in 5-Ring Binder (5 Ring Binder Cookbook)
• Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book: Food Gifts from Your Kitchen (Better Homes & Gardens Plaid)
• Weber’s Real Grilling: Over 200 Original Recipes
• Fat Free & Ultra Lowfat Recipes: Over 175 Delicious Guilt-Free Recipes–No Butter, No Oil, No Margarine
• Fat Free 2: More Fat Free and Ultra Low Fat Recipes – No Butter, No Oil, No Margarine
• The Claudia Sanders Dinner House of Shelbyville, Kentucky, cookbook

Your turn now! If your pantry needs it, determine to spend the next few days really getting it cleaned out. Take on bite-sized pieces each day, and I promise it’ll feel so good to have it all done. I can’t wait to hear how you do, and if you have any tips on cleaning out the pantry, I’d love for you to leave a comment to share!

Looking for more ways to get organized? See previous 25 Days to a More Organized You:

• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 1: Stop Procrastinating
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 2: Handling Paper Clutter
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 3: Set Up a Spot For Kids Artwork
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 4: Simplify Lunch Duty
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 5: Shine the Sink (I promise, it works!)
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 6: How To Make The Most Of Your Freezer Space {Day One}
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 7: How to Make The Most Of Your Freezer Space {Day Two}
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 8: Menu Planning
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 9: Create a Command Center
• 25 Days to a More OrganizedYou Day 10: What Do You Need In Your Kitchen? 
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 11: The Spice Cabinet
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 12: The Medicine Cabinet
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 13: Laundry Room Makeover
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 14: The Junk Drawer
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 15: Clean Out Your Car
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 16: Clear Your Inbox
• 25 Days to a More Organized You Day 17: Clean The Pantry {Part 1}