If you’re reading this article, chances are you’re someone who spends a lot of time in the kitchen. Researching recipes, concocting new creations, feeding friends and family- the kitchen is our home inside our home!

So here comes the real question- does your kitchen bring you joy, or does it cause you stress? If we’re spending so much of our time in the kitchen, hopefully it’s a place of peace that we long to be, and we thoroughly enjoy our time spent there.

But sometimes life gets busy and we let our busy lives take over and the kitchen can become a bit of a mess…. Or maybe a lot of mess! Cluttered kitchen counters, disheveled drawers, packed pantries- all these things happen over time, and when left unattended they become annoying little tasks that buzz around our subconscious (or maybe right in the front of our brain!). It’s hard to enjoy making dinner for the family when your cupboards are cluttered and spices are falling off the shelves!

I’m currently 32 weeks pregnant with child number 5, and while I have several projects on my to-do list before this little one gets here, I realized one of my top priorities was organizing my pantry. We moved into our home about 3 ½ years ago, and I’ve only organized the pantry once- when we first moved in! Since then, it has slowly become more cluttered and messy- to the point where walking into the pantry caused me immediate stress, and certainly didn’t bring any joy. I realized that this project needed to be a top priority because so much of my time is spent in the kitchen!

I dedicated a whole Saturday to the organization of my pantry. It literally took hours. I removed every single box, can, bag; wiped down the shelves, re-thought the structure of the entire pantry. I thought about the things I used the most, and grouped things accordingly. I moved things higher or lower on the shelved depending on if I wanted my kids to have easy access, or even me (being a little on the short side, the top shelf is not quite in my reach ;) ).

My hips and back were killing me by the end of the day- but I was thrilled with the results. Walking into my pantry is like a breath of fresh air now! I literally walk in and start smiling, seeing it so organized and put together! It’s sad to think of how many months went by with the pantry causing me so much stress and disorder, when after just one day of cleaning it’s now a completely different room. It’s amazing what a difference one organization project can make!

What’s something in your kitchen that’s causing you stress? Is it a messy pantry? A disorganized silverware drawer? A cluttered spice cupboard? Think about the one space in your kitchen that causes you the most stress, or that would make the biggest difference in your day-to-day routines. Dedicate an evening, a day, or even a whole weekend to getting the project done. While cleaning and organizing may not always be the most fun thing, the rewards are absolutely worth it. Especially in a space where you spend so much time! The kitchen should be a place of peace that brings you happiness, a place in which you feel calm. If there’s something in the way of that, fix it! ;)