I’ve finally owned up to the title, OCD. Which my husband affectionately placed upon me years ago. Although I argue that I could be worse. It can always get worse, right? It’s just that I very much like things to be in order and organized. It literally makes me think better and my blood pressure lower. The other day I was discussing this with my friend how we both calm down when our kitchen counters are totally cleared off. It’s like the empty space on your counter is an exact representation of the empty space in your mind. Empty spaces = zen.

One small piece of advice that I've heard over the years: use your wedding China. Or at the very least display them and use them as often as possible. I never got official wedding dinnerware for my wedding but after unboxing all of my husband's mom's unused wedding dishes, it made me sad. There they sat all those years, never opened. I'm sure that she was using them for that perfect occasion or when her kids were a little older and wouldn't break them. But life comes at you fast and time slips and before you know it most of those occasions are gone while that box of dishes sat waiting forlornly in storage. I would rather have a set of dinnerware that is missing pieces but holds memories.

So here are some tips that I've gleaned from magazines and Pinterest through the years that I have actually applied (not just pinned and forgot about!) and am still using in my kitchen, especially with kids. 

1. Group your dishes. I have a cupboard for all of my practical plastic and melamine plates and bowls that little hands can hold and drop and it's okay. Then I have a separate cupboard for my "wedding China". It's not really wedding China and there's not even actually a set. Instead it's an eclectic pile of mismatched cream plates and one or two Blue Willow plates plus some old cracked, beautiful bowls and some glass ice cream dishes that if you coughed on them they would break. They're the prettiest dishes that I have and it feels nice eating from them so I have them in my sight and easily in reach so I can use them and enjoy them every day.

2. Use wire stands and dividers to create more space and organize. My cupboards are taller than they are wide so this lets me capitalize on space a little.

3. {My Favorite Hack!!} Use wide-mouthed mason jars in place of glass cups! I seriously think that this is the most genius idea ever that I saw in a magazine once. I donated all of our glass restaurant-style glass cups and never looked back. The mason jars are:

• cheap to replace

• make your drinks or snacks or dinners portable

• can be microwaved (or even baked!)

• always wash clean

• look really neat!

4. Organize and store your silverware in mason jars. You're basically doing a switcheroo with your cups and your silverware. Try lining up your teacups in your utensil drawer and trading that space for your silverware. Guests always get a little confused when they open the drawer to get a cup for milk, but it works surprisingly well!

5. Organize by stations. Coffee and tea is pretty important in my house so I set up little "stations". Most of what you need is in one tidy area so you don't have to walk back and forth every day for those habitual tasks. Surprisingly, it saves a lot of time!

Also, another tip for your coffee maker or other frequently used appliance- set them on ceramic tiles from Home Depot. Hot-glue a little felt on the bottom for easy-in, easy-out. They look pretty on the tile but can be pushed towards the back and out of the way when not in use.

6. Large  gallon jars: Invest in these. I got mine through a co-op for some bulk honey but they can be found on Amazon. These jars have been used for everything:

• Making sauerkraut

• Storing cold water in the summer months

• Punch for parties

• Cookie jar

• Glass terrarium

• Standard flower vase