What's Holding You Back?

Photo Courtesy of Barn Images

It's almost halfway through December, and that means we're almost done 2017. Although there's nothing overly magical about the turning of the page to a new year, we seem universally to want to "start over" with each new year.

So what's holding you back?

Take a few minutes to think about what you want in the new year, and what you can do to make it happen. As nice as it would be to think that the changes we want will magically appear under the tree on Christmas morning, realistically speaking the changes we need to make are made up of the steps we need to take ourselves.

For example, I would love to wake up on Boxing Day and find out that our house is magically uncluttered and clean. Will that happen? Not overnight. But if we consistently make the effort together as a family to make that a goal for the new year- and take steps to ensure it happens- at some point it will happen. Slow and tedious, yes. Worth it in the end? Oh, yes.

Here are some suggestions to help you get a handle on your kitchens going into the new year. Tedious? Maybe. But if you really want to make the changes, you will make the effort.

1. Issue: Don't know what food you have?
Solutions:

• Clean out your spice cupboard- pull out all your spice bags, repackage in containers, label and organize- make them visible in a way that makes sense (alphabetical, tiered shelving, stack, etc) Throw out old or expired spices.
• Clean out your food pantry- pull out all your food items. Throw out old, damaged, expired options.
  Set up a food bank box for food that falls into the "never going to eat" category and donate.
  Group "like" foods together (spices, baking ingredients, beans and other legumes, pasta and rice, etc)
  Re-populate your pantry- find storage solutions that work for you to keep "like" items together- tiered shelving, boxes, bins, etc.- Keep things visible in a way that makes sense for you...often used items at eye level and in the middle, less often used to the edges and above or below

2. Issue: Don't know what's in your freezer?
Solutions:

• Clean out your freezer- pull everything out (defrost if required)
• Throw out anything that has been in there longer than a year, is freezer burned (full of ice, smells funny, looks dry), that you will never eat, or that you don't recognize.
• Group "like" foods together (meat, vegetables, fruit, bread, etc)
• Re-populate your freezer- find storage solutions that work for you to keep "like" items together- tiered shelving, boxes, bins, etc.  As above, keep things visible in a way that makes sense for you.

3. Issue: Don't know what to make for dinner?
Solutions:

• Google recipes using what food you have in your freezer or pantry (eg. recipes using green peas and pork)
• Ask your family for suggestions
• Go through your old cookbooks
• Try to build a meal plan around what you already own, and what changes you want to make to your diet (ie. more fruits and vegetables, meatless, ethnic, etc)
• Pay attention to the time you have to use- plot your meal plan on your calendar, choosing your quick meals for busy days and your longer ones for when you have more time

4. Don't know what to buy at the grocery store?
Solutions:

• Make a list! Look at your meal plan recipes, and figure out what you already own. Add the rest to the list
• Think about snacks- what do you want to have on hand when you're in a snacking mood?
• Think about lunches- what do you want to take to school and/or work? 
• Think about nutrition and skip the processed foods- just because the box says 100 cal/serving, how much of that food is useful for your body? 100 cal of something "real" will do more good for you, such as nuts, dairy, whole grains, etc.
• Think about cost- Pre-cooked meals in the freezer section look inexpensive until you consider how many servings they provide. Can you get better bang for your grocery buck if you cook something yourself?
  The best part of this is that many of the pre-cooked meals can be made cheaper and more healthy at home, and frozen yourself for nothing more in cost than a little time and the price of a couple of freezer bags or foil pans from the dollar store.

I hope some of these suggestions help fuel your new year thoughts and plans! Any questions please feel free to reach out!
​Have a good day, friends!
Stacy