Ooooh, so late on my March 1 Photo!

Yep, I'm late on taking that March 1 photo of my fridge. I do need to spend about 15 minutes of cleaning and then take the photo.

I'm still enjoying my fridge very much--the smaller size is keeping the "junk" to a minimum and very little is still going to waste. I still seem to think I am going to eat celery, however, and I throw one out every month!

When in Doot, throw it Oot

Do you have 2 minutes and 43 seconds?

Watch this "Decluttering the Fridge" Video from our friends up north at CanadianParents.com.

Those baskets are a great idea--I use them myself for condiments.

I'm still lovin' my counter-depth fridge and the fact that I can't lose much in the back!

February 1, 2010 Photo

Here she is in all her clean glory! I actually did a little cleaning a few days before this and then just straightened a few things for the picture. It was harder going a whole month instead of just two weeks like last time–which was good, because it meant I was more aware of the condition of the fridge and kept up the purging better.

I know it's looking a little empty. You might think we aren't eating! I think what we are doing is eating what we make and not just forgetting it's in there, since almost everything is in the front and little gets lost in the back.

I'm being convinced that fridges should be cleaned at least once every two weeks, in order to keep them from getting out of hand. And for larger families with larger fridges, probably once aweek.

My question today is...do families with teenage boys have cleaner fridges because they are always looking for something to eat? Let me hear from you if you are such a family!

The Gibson Fridge

I grew up with a fridge very much like this one. (We had it until my teens, and I am only 48 now. My parents took awhile to update their large appliances.) We didn't have the compartment at the bottom. I remember having to take an ice pick to clean out the freezer–the freezer that would barely keep ice cream solid or ice cubes frozen! Does anyone out there still have one of these babies still working?

ADD-Friendly Ways to Clean Your Fridge

Today's ADD-Friendly Fridge Cleaning Tip:

Overwhelmed by the whole messy thing? Just clean one shelf or drawer. That's it. Really. Maybe tomorrow you'll clean another one. Maybe not. If you can clean one shelf each day, by the end of the week the whole fridge will be clean.

How:

Throw out the gross stuff.

Wipe down the shelf or drawer with a warm sponge. Maybe use a little baking soda if needed.

You're done.

Go do something else now.

January 1, 2010 Photo

Here it is! I did manage to keep it pretty clean these last two weeks. Knowing I would be posting a photo of it made me much more aware of how it looked every day and more mindful of using food or throwing it out.

I did realize that no one else can post to this site, just comment on it. I would love it if people would e-mail me their photos and comments of their own fridge/room and I will post them. Just go to my profile and click "e-mail."

A fridge is bought...a blog is born!

The idea for this blog site came after they delivered my new fridge about a week ago. It's a shiny stainless steel 4-door LG with an in-door ice maker and water. It's a first for me on many counts. My first "fancy" fridge, first stainless steel, first ever with an ice-maker (of any kind), the first with ice and water in the door, the first with a bottom freezer.

I'm not known for keeping a clean fridge. I like to think I'm a scientist, I guess, conducting a number of experiments and hoping for another break-through drug like penicillin. Yeah, that's my story!

Anyway, since I had to clean out my old fridge and purge all the experiments, I started out with a beautiful, clean sparkling fridge. How would I keep it this way?

Well, in my coaching classes I learned that accountability is everything! How could I easily hold myself accountable for keeping this thing of beauty clean and sparkling past the first month?

If I published a photo of it once a month, that might help me, I thought!

So, here it is, in its first day of glory...

 

I promise to post a photo of it once month..trying my best to make on the first of every month.

Will I keep my fridge absolutely spotless every day? I doubt it.

Will I frantically be cleaning it out on the first of every month right before I take the picture? Yes, I probably will. But that's the point!

If I know I'll be posting a picture (and I've told the world I will), I will clean out my fridge before I do it! And, then, I will have a clean fridge at least once a month...which should last about a week, I suppose, but I'm hoping that after awhile, it will last longer, and each clean-out will get shorter and shorter since I will be maintaining it better than I ever have before.

Also, I bought a counter-depth fridge for the sole reason that it is not as deep and not as big, therefore, I can't "lose" as much stuff in the back, and more will be up front where I can see it. (And either use it or throw it out.)

I invite you, my loyal and new-found readers, to post your own pictures of your fridges (or whatever item, cabinet, room or area you are trying to keep clean for your own accountability.

Viva la clean fridge!

Margaret Pearson Pinkham, CPO-CD®

Certified Professional Organizer in Chronic Disorganization

Organize in Harmony