I am continuing on with my Organize Everything project and will be tackling the kitchen over the next couple of weeks. When we moved into this house nine years ago, I remember thinking that there would be no way that I would ever be able to fill up all of our kitchen cabinets. Well, let me tell you, I have FAR exceeded my expectations!
Since there is so much organizing to do in the kitchen, I will be breaking down the tasks into smaller jobs that I can actually finish in an hour or two. First up on the list is my medicine cabinet. This is the worst cabinet in the kitchen and I am very lucky if I can actually take something down from it without at least 10 other items coming down with it!
Sorry, I didn’t get any BEFORE pictures of my lovely cabinet. I actually wasn’t planning to clean it out when I did, but after a ton of bottles came tumbling down on me, I figured I better get to it. So here we go!
- Empty out everything from the cabinet. {Sadly, this isn’t even all of it.}
- Go through everything and discard any unused, expired or out-dated medication. {Yes, this bottle is actually dated 10/99!}
- I emptied all of the discard pills into a ziploc baggy along with the liquid medicine to take back to our pharmacy. Most of the empty bottles were recyclable.
- Many municipal or local trash services have household waste facilities where you can safely drop off your medications for incineration.
- If you need to deposit over the counter medication in the trash, crush solid medications or dissolve them in water. Then combine them with kitty litter or coffee grounds and place them in a sealed bag before adding them to your trash.
- Make sure that all medications are stored away from children and pets and kept in their original, tamper-proof container. You can actually purchase lock boxes {like the one here} if you do not have somewhere to store your medications out of harms way.
- Medications need to be stored in a dry, cool place that is away from moisture. This keeps them from breaking down and becoming less effective. This obviously rules out the bathroom! If you store your medication in the kitchen like I do, make sure it is away from the stove and other heat producing appliances.
I linked up with Modern Parents Messy Kids, The CSI Project, Org Junkie, Tatertots and Jello, Fingerprints on the Fridge, Whipperberry, House of Hepworth’s, Christina’s Adventures, Delightful Order, The Shabby Chic Cottage, Blue Cricket Design, The Stories of A to Z, Homemaker on a Dime, Tip Junkie, Today’s Creative Blog, Skip to My Lou, Embellishing Life, Ask Anna, Craft-O-Maniac, The Girl Creative, CRAFT, The DIY Showoff, I Heart Naptime, Thirty Handmade Days and Under the Table and Dreaming.
Well, we bought a new fridge last night so I will be organizing that when it arrives! Does that count Jenn? heehee!! Can we get together soon for coffee/tea and crafts? Miss ya!
It’s so funny I came across this, because I just did this with all the spices in my kitchen cabinet! Wonderful tips. 🙂
What great tips. I’ve been thinking that I need to get back on track for getting my house organized. I like that you break things down into smaller projects. I think you have inspired me. Now I just need to figure out where I need to start. I think maybe with my files. Thanks for the great ideas. 🙂
Ooh, can’t wait to see how you organize under the sink 🙂 Your medicine cabinet looks great!
great organization…my medicine cabinet could really use some help!!!
Thanks so much for linking up to “20 Below Thursday”! 🙂
I think we were separated at birth because I LOVE ORGANIZING! Your blog is awesome and I’m your newest follower. Thanks for the great tips.
Very nice – those containers are great!
Hi, I ran across your blog from The Shabby Chic Cottage. The sheriff’s department in our town recently had an old prescription “turn in” day. I got rid of a ton of my in-law’s old meds. (and a few expired over-the-counter bottles, too.) I told them I was so excited to be able to get rid of them, and they told me that we could turn them in during regular business hours any day. So that might be something for others to check out where they live, as well. Thanks for your post!
Yes, thank goodness someone did a post on organizing medicines, etc. Just the other day a friend on Facebook posted a question about how to dispose of expired medicines. So many people do not know that you cannot flush things down the toilet.
Oksana from http://www.ordermatters.com/blog
I am new to your blog and I am LOVING it. I strive to be more organized and I am drooling over all of your organizational posts.
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