Getting Organized: Part I-The Deep Freeze

   I know organizing isn't something everyone likes to do. But here's the thing; I also know that a lot of people who don't 'like' to tidy,  often say they wish they could/would. 
   What's stopping them then? Usually, the fact that the mess seems overwhelming!    
   Whether it's your fridge, the garage, a closet or just your junk drawer, the trick to trying to get organized is to just do it. I know, so cliche, but honestly, the longer the mess stares at you, the worse it'll feel. If you know you can't tackle it alone, then call a friend who you know enjoys organizing, and ask if they could come over to help. 
   Before Christmas I was working on 6 new paintings, and some spots in my house really felt the lack of time I had! 
   My deep freeze, the kid's toys, my baking cupboard, and my closet really felt the chaos the most. So today, and for 3 more Tuesdays, I will take you organizing with me in these different parts of my house. And hopefully you'll feel inspired to do whatever it was you've you been putting off in your house. 
   And if you really don't care about being organized, then just ignore me! :)      
   Anyway, for today, the deep freeze! 

It was organized chaos....I could find most of what I needed...but there was stuff hiding in each section, and things I thought I had I couldn't seem to find.

    We (thank the Lord) have an upright deep freeze. Most people I know have the chest freezers, and I heard them all complain enough to know that when I ever got a deepfreeze, it would be an upright. 
    It was staying fairly organized for a while, but then Christmas baking, random sales, getting our deer meat share from the fall hunt. It was a disaster! 

Nasty, sticky freezie mess, also a loaf of pumpernickel which I forgot was there....

     To start in any organizing project, you need to get everything out and actually organize it! So, I just started pulling things out of the freezer, and setting them down in groups: meat, breads, gluten free, leftover/soup stocks, baked goods, and things that drip. And in this case, you need to work fast so your food doesn't thaw out! 

The breathable containers

     I used some breathable plastic containers to help get some things together. I find this useful because it keeps things separate and in specific groups.     

Looking good. Cleaning out the freezer reminded me we had that leftover indian curry from take-out, so we ate it the next night with rice. Easy meal. Forgot I had it.

   I grouped things together on shelves or in the door because then (for instance) if I grab a loaf of bread, I know what is still there and if we need more. One key is to make everything as visible as possible, and where it's not totally possible, things grouped together are easier to keep track of. If you're looking for meat, it'll be with the meat, not randomly stashed with the bread, etc.
    And, as for the "dripping" things I mentioned? In an upright freezer, put them in the bottom, that way if something happens (like not having Hydro), they won't melt and drip on everything. Put them near the front of a fridge/freezer for easy clean-up, and into a shallow container with no holes in it at the top of a chest freezer for easy access, and to just have a small thing to clean (instead of an entire, sticky chest freezer). It's all about containing potential messes! 

  I also re-contained some baked goods (a huge container half full with this, another huge one half full with that, ya know). I made sure to re-write on things so I knew what I had still. 

Some gluten free stuff in the door.

    So, whether it's a freezer above a fridge, a chest deep freeze, or an upright, it's important to do a tidy up every now and then to see if something got forgotten, do a mental inventory (or if you have a chest deep freeze, you could actually write out what was hiding in there like a real inventory, and tape it to the side of the freezer for easy referral), see if anything is so frost burnt it should't even be there at all, and give some sticky spots a wipe down.  
   This took me about 20 minutes, and it felt great to get done. Other jobs take longer, some shorter, but usually just starting with one thing helps to get the ball rolling!