The Week In Review

I'm reminded on week's like these why my blog is called Accepting Change. There have been so many changes in my life in the last couple of years, and I'm still learning to accept that life can change from one minute to the next. It's been a busy week full of changes, but I'm thankful that it's been good. It's been really good.

I started training for my new job this week. I'll be working in sales/customer service. The training this week has involved mostly learning about the company, what it stands for, what the processes are, etc. We had orientation on Monday in person, then we were given our computers and equipment and have been learning from home since. There's a lot of computer stuff to learn, which is what we'll be doing this coming week, and I'm excited to learn more. The team is great, the trainers are happy to answer any questions no matter how trivial...it's just a good environment. 

The big adjustment has been figuring out what's going to work for me as far as scheduling my week. I'm Type A; I like my lists and having everything very organized. Whenever I wasn't working I did everything during the week: yardwork, errands, everything was scheduled on the weekdays, and I rested on the weekends. Working 9:00 - 5:30 changes things. I thought I would have to do everything over the weekend now, but this past week I was still able to mow the lawn during the week. I just worked for about an hour or less on Wednesday and Thursday, and on Friday I finished what was left in about 15 minutes, so I didn't have to do yardwork all weekend. I'm hoping I can do that on a regular basis, but it really depends on the weather. We are smack in the middle of rainy season in Florida, meaning it often rains on a daily basis. My grass loves it, but it means I have to mow the grass every week. Yes, that's right, every week. In one week's time the grass will grow back to where it was, and if I don't take care of it I'll have a jungle on my hands. If I can do a little everyday it makes the task more manageable, but that will only happen if it isn't raining in the afternoon. I'm gonna have to play it by ear.

What I did on the weekend was laundry, vacuum, groceries, and a little food prep for the week. My job gives me two 15 minute breaks and a 30 minute lunch break. Now, I'm not the type to eat something small at lunchtime and then have a big supper. I cook one meal at noon, and I make enough for lunch and supper. Well, I can't get a full meal done and eaten in 30 minutes - even Rachael Ray doesn't do that - so I've been meal prepping and freezing meals to make my life easier. The Instant Pot and slow cooker are getting a workout! On the weekends I try to get as much done for the week ahead so I don't have to stress. For instance, tonight I grilled some chicken tenders, then sliced them and put them in the fridge. Tomorrow I'll boil some fettuccine noodles and we'll have chicken fettuccine Alfredo. I've prepared some ground beef, meatballs, and two meatloaves that are frozen, and I've got more chicken ready for the instant pot for teriyaki chicken. What I've been doing is getting it all set up during my morning break so that at lunchtime all I have to do is warm it up. It's worked so far.

Today my son and I got our second Covid shot, and this one hurts way more than the first one did. About 10 days after I got the first shot my arm started itching. The next morning I awoke to a hot, swollen, red, blotchy arm that freaked me out. I went back to the pharmacy where they'd given me the shot, and they explained that it's a phenomenon called Covid arm. The pharmacist told me it's very common and lots of folks get it; the internet told me it's rare and uncommon. Regardless, my arm was swollen for about 3 days. It's a "mild" allergic reaction, which didn't surprise me since I have sensitive skin that breaks out easily, but it was no fun and now my arm is so sore I can barely move it. I'm hoping the pain doesn't last.

So, that was my week. Work training and yard work. I have a strong suspicion it's gonna look like this for awhile. Until it changes. Because life is like that, always changing. Have a blessed week.

Organizing My Kitchen

The hub of the house. The center of activity. The kitchen is where everyone congregates, regardless of whether it's separate from the rest of the house or in the middle of an open concept living area. If you're like me, you spend plenty of time in the kitchen. We don't eat out much; once a month is a lot, and often times we spend months eating only home cooked meals. I like it that way; I know what's in the foods I'm eating because I'm preparing them myself. I can try new recipes or stick to the tried and true favorites. But to do this I need my kitchen to work with me, not against me. I need it to be organized.

Kitchens are broken up into three basic sections: food storage, food prep, and the cleaning station. Food storage includes the refrigerator and pantry, food prep includes the stove and microwave, and the cleaning station consists of the sink and dishwasher. To make the kitchen flow seamlessly, everything should be close to its corresponding station. For instance, dishes should be close to the sink and dishwasher; cooking apparatus, such as cookware, bakeware and cooking utensils, should be nearest to the stove; and the fridge and pantry should be close to each other and near the entryway so it's easy to put groceries away. However, kitchen layouts don't always accommodate the rules. The kitchen triangle, where the sink, fridge, and stove locations form a triangle, doesn't happen in a galley or a one-wall kitchen. Allowances have to be made sometimes, but it's still possible to have a kitchen that's well laid out and easy to maneuver.

If I were to label the layout of my kitchen, I'd call it a "modified L-shape". In a normal L-shaped kitchen, there are two stations on one side of the L and one station on the other side. The kitchen in my first house was a U-shaped kitchen even though it had the fridge and stove on one side and the sink in the middle of the U. The other side was a complete peninsula that was open to the family room. In my current kitchen the stove is on the long side of the L and the sink is on the short side, then on a separate wall there's the fridge and pantry. It's not a true U-shaped kitchen but it isn't a true L-shape either. But it does have the perfect triangle - that's a definite plus.

As I mentioned before, the kitchen works best whenever everything is close to its respective station. While I have a great layout triangle-wise, it falls short of station designation (like that rhyme? I did). Food storage works well; the pantry is right next to the fridge. The microwave is above the stove and there are cabinets on both sides along with a long drawer, so I can have everything I need for cooking and baking right at my fingertips. The sink and dishwasher are a different story. These are open to the living room, so there's only one small cabinet above that area - not enough for all the dishes. There's only a small drawer next to the sink, and it's not big enough for all the silverware. So, a little changing up had to happen. Since my dining area is right off the kitchen, it made sense to put the dishes and serving ware closest to that area, which is where it was going to be used. Once I had it all planned out, it was simple enough to put everything in its place.

In the upper cabinet closest to the dining area I have my dishes. These are our everyday dishes, and yes, they get used everyday. On the top two shelves are serving ware and a pitcher. The empty spot is where I put my fruit bowl whenever it's not in use. It's the farthest cabinet from the sink/dishwasher which normally is not ideal, but it still works for serving meals at the table.

To the right of the dishes is the food storage containers. This is conveniently between the eating area and the food prep area. I can bring leftovers from the table or the stove right below this cabinet and just reach up to grab a container to store them in. The two top shelves are wine glasses and another fruit bowl that don't get used often. I have 42" cabinets and I cannot reach the top two shelves easily, so I only use them for items I don't use frequently.

Above the microwave I keep my cookbooks and mason jars. I use mason jars for my homemade spaghetti sauce. I need a stepladder to reach these. 

To the right of the stove is my cooking/baking section. Here I keep my spices on a bamboo spice rack I bought years ago off of Amazon. I have a few lazy Susans that make it easier to find things like oils and vinegars or spices in larger containers. I also have some acrylic containers that I use for canned goods such as beans, tomato sauce and diced tomatoes which I use whenever I'm cooking. 

That one small cabinet above the sink area houses my mugs and glassware, which isn't a whole lot. I've also got my vitamins there, and a flour sifter at the top.

There are two large drawers in this kitchen, a nice change from my previous kitchen that only had two small drawers in the entire space. This one is below the dishes and near the dining table, so my silverware is in half the drawer. The other half is my "junk" drawer, which holds chip clips and a few odds and ends that everyone keeps in their kitchen.

Below the drawer is my small appliance cabinet. My waffle maker, cake holder, blender, rice cooker, and electric grill (behind the rice cooker) make their home here, along with my chopper and grater. I got the last two for Christmas and my birthday and I love them both.

In the next drawer I keep most of my cooking utensils, though I do have the most frequently used ones in a cookie jar on top of the counter, next to the stove. These also get used often, though not daily. I have one spot for all my knives, one has all my rubber spatulas, and the others are kind of scattered by what fits in what container.

Just below that and to the left of the stove are most of my pots and pans. The pans are stacked in a holder so they take up less space. 

The smallest drawer is between the stove and the sink, and it's where I keep my cleaning cloths. I like to buy microfiber cloths in bulk from Amazon. Blue is for the bathrooms, yellow for dusting, green and pink (not shown) for kitchen cleaning.

Below that is bakeware, and my cast iron skillets that can go from stove to oven (and are my favorites for cooking).

There's a skinny cabinet to the left of the sink that's perfect for my roasting pan, baking sheets, and cutting boards. Oh, and my pizza pan is in there too.

Under the sink is probably everyone's nemesis. It can get cluttered and messy with all sorts of cleaners and junk. To keep the area neat and tidy I use containers. The dark gray container is from Target, and the clear ones are from Dollar Tree. It helps corral all my cleaners so they don't go all over the place or drip onto the cabinet. I also make sure I keep my cleaners to a minimum; if it doesn't fit, it doesn't belong.

We mustn't forget the kitchen island! Because of the center brace in the cabinets, it's hard to get larger items into them (if you look at the picture of the under the sink cabinet you'll see what I mean). These larger items are stored in the kitchen island - Instant Pot, slow cooker, and my large bowls. I keep a few other items in here as well.

The island also has three nice deep drawers. In the first one I've got my measuring cups and dish towels.

The middle drawer just has plastic storage bags and tin foil that get used fairly often.

And lastly, the third drawer has a few items that aren't used as frequently, such as oven bags, wax paper, plastic wrap and plastic cutlery.

That's how I've organized my kitchen. There are areas that are sparsely filled, and the cabinets above the fridge are totally empty. I find it helps to keep things organized if I only keep the things I really use. The next organization post will be on the pantry. Come back soon! Have a blessed day.