Kitchen organization

Last January I gave some attention to organizing the areas of my kitchen that I used the most and were in need of some help. I shared easy organization tips for snack foods, spice jars, pantry items, the junk drawer, and papers, papers, and more papers. Not to be dramatic, but having these things tidy has changed my life for the better!

Scarves

I made this super cheap and simple scarf organizer about four years ago and it still works great for me. If you have spray paint and screws in your house already it’ll cost you less than $10 per bar to get all your scarves organized! This easy organization idea has worked so much better for me than having them folded on a shelf or in a drawer.

Earring organizer

I made this super simple earring organizer shortly after moving into our house six years ago and much like the scarf organizer, I’m still using it now. It’s the ultimate easy organization idea – you can make it in about five minutes and requires no special DIY skills or tools. If you can use a pair of scissors, you can make this.

Spice jars

It took me years to figure out how to organize my spice jars in a way that made it easy for me to find the one I was looking for at a glance. If you have a spare drawer and about a half hour, this is a really affordable and easy organization project that will seriously improve your life in the kitchen!

Kids’ art supplies

I just posted about the storage cabinet I added in my kitchen recently, but even if you don’t have a cabinet like this, the way I organized my kids’ art supplies with transparent bins and a simple label maker has finally been the thing that works to keep those things both easy to find and easy to clean up and put away.

I hope you’re staying well and that these affordable and easy organization projects give you some ideas if you want to get your house shipshape while you’re spending all this extra time at home!

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You need a few fresh items to make this Italian bean soup – onions, carrots, and celery – but otherwise it’s entirely made up of things from the pantry or the freezer. In the freezer, you can keep packages of diced pancetta, spinach, and parmesan cheese you’ve either grated in the food processor yourself or bought pre-grated. I’ve started buying big packs of fresh basil, washing it, and separating the leaves into containers for the freezer too. The color and consistency change from those of fresh basil but the flavor is exactly the same when you’re using it in a cooked recipe like this Italian bean soup. Everything else you need for this recipe is a pantry item – white beans, tomato paste, chicken broth, and pasta.

Sometimes I pop an immersion blender into the soup at the end and give it a few buzzes to add a little creamy texture to the soup but you don’t have to do that. It’s a totally flexible recipe too, you can add any veggies you like or have on hand and it’ll work. Fennel, kale, chard, arugula, mushrooms, zucchini, and parsnips would all be great additions, though I would still keep the onions, carrots, and celery as the base.

This Italian bean soup is a little creamy, a little meaty, a little acidic, a little nutty, and all of those littles come together for big delicious flavor that is ready to eat in a little over a half hour. I hope you give it a try and that it becomes a favorite pantry recipe of yours too! And if you’re looking for more soup recipes, try my light creamy mushroom soup or curry cauliflower soup, yum!

Italian Bean Soup (Pasta e Fagioli)

A quick and healthy soup with veggies, beans, and pasta

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 oz pancetta (diced)
• 1 large yellow onion (diced)
• 2 large carrots (diced)
• 2 ribs celery (diced)
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• pinch crushed red pepper flakes
• 4 c chicken broth
• 1 c water
• 2 15 oz cans cannellini beans (rinsed)
• 8 oz small pasta ((ditalini, elbows, or orzo))
• 2 c fresh spinach (or 1 c. frozen) (chopped)
• 2 oz Parmesan cheese (grated)
• 1/4 c fresh basil (chopped)

1. Add the oil and pancetta to a large pot and heat over medium heat. Cook until the pancetta starts to crisp and darken in color, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the onion, carrots, celery, and salt and pepper to taste and stir to combine. Cook until the vegetables are softened, 7-10 minutes.

3. Add the tomato paste and crushed red pepper, stir, and cook for 1-2 minutes. Stir in the broth, water, and cannellini beans and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

4. Increase the heat to bring the soup back to a full boil and add the pasta. Then lower the heat to a simmer again and cook until the pasta is tender (follow the time listed on your pasta package). Add the spinach and cook just a few minutes until it is wilted.

5. Take the pot off the heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese and the basil.

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For about the past week I’ve been trying to figure out what to write about here. I’ve gathered some ideas of what I hope will be helpful to you in the coming weeks – pantry and/or easy meal ideas, reading lists, easy home organization tips, simple and inexpensive home improvement projects, and more.

Today, I wanted to share a list of things I’ve bought to supplement COVID-19 homeschooling. My girls’ school sends about two hours of work per day and we’ve been adding lots of play and free time to that.

Here’s a look at the basic schedule we’ve been following every day. I totally realize that a schedule doesn’t work for everyone. If it makes your day more stressful, good gracious don’t do it. If you need your kids to be on devices or watching TV a lot of the day, I really believe everyone needs to do what works for them right now to hold it all together. But for us, the schedule has been keeping the wheels on the bus and it helps all of us to basically know what to do next in the day when we have so many hours of being home stretched ahead of us.

Here are a few things I’ve ordered to help with some of our new normal, COVID-19 homeschooling daily activities, including school work, free time, and exercise. I focused especially on easy, fun games that my girls could play together without my help.

Lined paper – Literally did not have a single piece of this in the house.

Clipboards – Great to protect tables from markers leaking through paper and for doing schoolwork outside on nice days.

Chromebook – Three of us were sharing one laptop and I could see after one week that it was going to seriously affect my ability to get any work done. Even after the pandemic passes it will be nice for my girls to use for math, reading, and coding games so I know this is something that will be useful for us long term. I spent around $150 on the one I bought. This link will take you to new chromebooks (not refurbished) that are under $200.

Rummikub – I loved this game as a kid! Similar to Gin Rummy. 2-4 players.

Monopoly Deal – A way to play Monopoly in about 15 minutes. 2-5 players.

Sequence – Great for building strategy skills. 2-12 players.

Scrabble Slam – Builds spelling and vocabulary skills. 2-4 players.

Sidewalk chalk – We were all out! Great as a quiet time, fresh air, artsy activity that doesn’t make a mess inside.

Mandala chalk stencils (option one, option two) – Got these as a supplement to the sidewalk chalk.

Micro Mosaics (mandala pages, sticky beads) – No mess craft activity. There are lots of different patterns to choose from but my kids really liked the mandalas.

Phone armband – Probably seems random, but my kids are more likely to go outside and play lacrosse or softball or tennis if there’s a little competition involved. With this armband, my phone, and the SNYPR app, they can track wall ball reps for lacrosse, softball, or tennis. If you don’t have a good wall to use at home (which we don’t), this rebounder is what we use.

Muffin cups – Maybe even more random than the armband, but these muffin cups have 10g of protein and are ready in 60 seconds with nothing to add but water. I bought them because they’re an easy breakfast option that my kids can make themselves. Some mornings we’re making pancakes or waffles or scones together and some mornings I need my kids to handle breakfast themselves!

Good luck to you as you start a new week, and I hope you stay safe at home.

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