Friday, September 7, 2012

Grab n Go Fridge Sandwich Bins and other Kitchen Organization Tips


It's been all about back to school this week on the blog!  Today's ideas work for any days not just back to school.  They're just a handful of quick tips for lunch time prep and organization...

To make it easier for school time lunch prep I bought a clear fridge bin and filled it with all the STUFF needed to make a sandwich.  It's annoying to do a million fridge runs when I'm prepping food.  I run in too many circles anyways, so I wanted to cut it down.  Instead of grabbing the mayo and mustard from the door, then opening the fridge again and grabbing the meat and cheese, then going back because I forgot the pickles, I put it ALL in one spot.  NOW, I just open the fridge and grab the bin and I'm good to go.  ((SIGH)) Life is rough.



Everything I need to make a sandwich is in the clear bin, ready to grab and go.



In our sandwich bin, I keep meats and cheeses, veggie toppings, spreads, pickles, and a cup of clear ziplock bags for the sandwiches.  You could also keep your jelly in the bin too. 


This makes lunch prep SIMPLE.  Pull the bin out on the cutting board, make yummy sandwiches, put the bin away.  No more running in mad back and forth motions all over your kitchen. 

 


I also keep a cabinet of our food containers in the doors underneath my lunch prep area.  I'm able to use these for extras and side dishes for the boys' lunches.  This may look basic and obvious (because it is!) but it took me SEVERAL tries to get a "tupperware" cabinet that worked without an avalanche of mismatched plastic crashing onto the floor everytime we opened the door.  I've been able to successfully keep our food storage containers neat and tidy just as you see for over a year.  (Ummm, I'm a housewife who celebrates these small victories...you should know that by now!)What worked for me is getting rid of any mismatched tupperware pieces and buying a complete collection:  all the same sizes and stackable.  The kids are even able to keep this cabinet neat and tidy.  It was worth it to clear it out and only keep a few stackable pieces.  Small, medium, and large.



And underneath, I keep our water and protein shake bottles, etc. Again, you don't need to keep every free bottle you've ever received.  CLEAR OUT your spaces and only save what you need and love.  Who wants to fill precious kitchen cabinet space with freebie water bottles and mugs that never get used?  I keep drink lids in a basket but I need a bigger one because they're spilling over!  My macho man muscle husband uses protein shaker bottles ALL.THE.TIME. so I must keep them all.  I store our blender that we use to make daily protein shakes right next to the bottles to keep it easy.



I {great big heart} our Vitamix blender.  It's one of my new favorite kitchen assessories.  It's almost like the diamond ring of the kitchen...almost, I think Kitchen Aid mixers still have them beat.  Do you have a Vitamix?  I would love, love your favorite recipes!  Thanks. :) I use it every day to make my husband's protein shakes.  Remember, I just mentioned how my great big macho muscle husband NEEDS these shakes to stay great big?  (By the way, you should check out his incredible Tough Mudder race if you haven't!) Okay, back to topic...well, I have a system I use to make the morning protein shake routine more effiecent.  I keep the oatmeal and the protein for his shakes in jars RIGHT NEXT to the blender.  The bananas are just an arm's reach away too.   



Oatmeal and protein powder on the counter, always ready to go.



To see more organizing ideas inside kitchen cabinets see HERE

In case you missed the other BACK TO SCHOOL posts,

 I shared some school days QUICK breakfast tips in a previous post
all about HOT CEREAL muffins and a list of recipes for make ahead freezer muffins HERE. 

and for lunch ideas,  MADE TO ORDER SANDWICH paper lunch sacks (with printables!) HERE.

and back to school pictures, giant pencils to record growth, and apple teacher baskets HERE.   





That's a wrap on lunch and kitchen organization.
I'd love for you to share your lunch time prep tips in the comments below!


I have a facebook page finally:





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This post is linked to: Under the Table & Dreamin, Nifty Thrifty, Seasonal Sundays, Made by You Monday, Met Monday, Tuesday Tutorials and Tips, HOMEWORK: Be Inspired, Tasty Tuesday, Tip Junkie, Get Your Craft On, Works for Me Wednesday, Organize and Decorate Everything, Celebrations at Home,Transformation Thursday, Tablescape Thursday, Strut Your Stuff, 36th Ave, Foodie Friday, Frugal Friday, I'm Lovin It, Tickled Pink, Friday Flair, Design Dazzle, eighteen25, Be Different Act Normal, Funky Junk Interiors, Weekend Wrap Up sew many ways Six Sisters Saturday

7 comments:

Lisa @ Fern Creek Cottage said...

I think your sandwich making bin in the fridge is a great idea! Makes life just a little simpler. :)

Unknown said...

I love it! My husband takes all of the sandwich supplies TO WORK WITH HIM instead of making the sandwich here and just taking that. Maybe this will help :) Thanks for sharing!
Kristen @ Trial & Error Homemaking

Julia Kendrick said...

I love this idea! I pack lunches for my son and my husband daily so this will be very helpful for us! Your newest follower from threekendrickblessings.blogspot.com

Mel@Mellywood's Mansion said...

Great idea, would help me with the kids whining about having nothing to eat - when the fridge is full! Love this

Michelle said...

I love the organization and sandwich bin idea! We have something similar! :)

Jen said...

What a great idea! Where did you purchase your bin? I found you over at tatertots and jello link up.

Jen
sewfabulous-now.blogspot.com

Mariel said...

I love it! I've gotten lazy about it, but I used to have a bin specifically for low calorie snacks. I would fill it with string cheese, applesauce, ziploc snack bags filled with easy to grab things...carrots, olives, things like that. I had the same thing in my pantry for items that didn't need to be kept cold. I loved it! ...I should do it again...

I would love to have you come share 'Your Great Idea' at my link party, hosted every Saturday and runs through Tuesday. I know my readers would love you! www.oneshetwoshe.com