Like many of you, January for me is all about a new beginning with a clean slate.  Come January, I kick into high gear organizing anything that isn’t nailed down.  Well, maybe a few things that are nailed down! I find that it saves me time, money and really does simplify my life.

If you read my New Year’s Resolution or what I now prefer to call a “commitment”, it is all about health.  Therefore, I am challenging myself to prepare healthy meals that are easy and inexpensive.  Having a well organized kitchen is half the battle, so I will start there.

My kitchen is small, like many of yours, so we have to be creative.  Make the most of the inside of your cabinets and drawers.  You can purchase wire racks with legs that gives you another layer.  You can purchase sliding shelves, one on top of the other to give you more storage.  I use a Lazy Susan in my cabinets to organize my spices and baking goods.

With food prices up, many of us are trying to cut the cost with great sales, coupons and buying in bulk.  But if we are not properly freezing that food, it is a waste of our time and money.  Here are a few helpful tips:

Your personal records and valuables may include letters, photographs and mementos, newspaper clippings, report cards, etc.  Or birth certificates, passports, insurance policies, etc.  You want to protect them all from harm. You can keep a safety deposit box in your home for many of your valuables, or you may choose to keep a safety deposit box at your local bank. Many of us have both.

Our refrigerators or as my Grandmother affectionately called hers, the “icebox” is one of those appliances that we could not live without. We plug them in and let them do their job. But do you know how to get the most out of yours? Do you know how to care for it? Many refrigerators are now divided into four zones for different food types such as:

• 0 degrees for the freezer
• 40 degrees for the refrigerator
• 32 degrees for storage of meats
• 50 degrees for storage of vegetables

These temperatures vary with the different makes and models as well as the different companies. If you kept your manual, read it and find out what is suggested for your refrigerator. If you cannot find your manual, call the company with the make and model for such information.