Wrapping Paper Roundup

When I set out to organize our coat/game closet, it ended up [practically] forcing me into another organization project. In the coat closet, I found a couple roles of wrapping paper, leaning in the corner against my poor attempt at organizing my shoes...

I set them aside as I went through the rest of the stuff in the closet. I went upstairs to find a few various items in closets up there, and I found more roles of wrapping paper in two different closets. I also found a Rubbermaid gift wrap organizer, still in the package (I meant to get it out during the holidays, but obviously that never happened.). I thought, "Might as well!" so I grabbed all of my gift bags from another closet, and I was on my way to a detour: organizing my wrapping and gift supplies.  

Previously, my gift bags were housed in bigger bags with handles. I did have quite a lot of gift bags, but they were all mixed up. I had a variety of wrapping paper: christmas, happy birthday, baby, generic...and I managed to find a handful of bows leftover from the holidays as well.

I know our product of the gift wrap organizer is hard to find these days. When looking online for similar products, I found this one from the Container Store and this one on another site, which are both portable with handles. Another blog post I found had some other good ideas and links too. There were various options for bins and boxes that helped organize gift wrapping supplies from Walmart and Target, but they were not as customized. 

All of my wrapping paper (probably 8 rolls or so) fit just fine, and all of the compartments worked great. I put markers, tape and scissors in one pocket, scrap pieces of paper in another, bows in another, and all of gift bags fit in the pockets. Everything fit with room to spare! I even folded up my extra tissue paper and gift boxes (not bags, flattened boxes) and put them above the rolls of wrapping paper. After rounding up all of my gift wrap supplies that were strewn all over the house (unbeknown-st to me before starting my coat/game closet org project), I now have them in one, organized place!

 

 
 
 
 
 

Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day!!!

Sunday, November 15th is National Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day. It's perfect timing to clean out  the fridge before holiday food and leftovers start piling up!

Here at Rubbermaid, we are encouraging all bloggers to clean out their fridge but I was a little curious to see what was in there to begin with. Let's just say some of the photos below are gross and offer good encouragement to clean out those refrigerators and others offer some good advice for how to keep your fridge clean!

Betty's says: Here is my fridge. It’s driving me nuts because it’s usually very clean. Shelves are usually dedicated to certain categories of food. I have just the right Rubbermaid food containers to house my family of 3’s leftovers, but…

This week-end I had my parents visiting, had a chili party and then another dinner party and I’m over run with left-overs, specialty food and snacks that I typically don’t eat and nothing is where it belongs. I’m literally digging thru stuff to find things.

AAUUGGGHHH!

Brian says: I’m not sure what this is. Despite our armada of Rubbermaid Food Storage containers my wife sometimes reverts to old ways and wraps something in a combination of tin foil and plastic wrap. It’s as if she’s preserving a mummy for the afterlife. Needless to say I have no clue what it is……could be anything from meatloaf to ginger loaf.

Rob says: Baking soda helps to control smells in the fridge, but these pics are of my girl friend's fridge and she is strict about what stays in there…   she had nothing in there that was even close to being bad. Me on the other hand ….

Bo says: A normal person would put ice cubes in this container. Not me... Try year old bananas and some cut up apples that are so wrinkly they look like leather. Yummy

Megan says: As I was taking several pictures of the inside, I realized that the outside of my fridge is quite the mess with all of the stuff I have posted up on the fridge with magnets.

Ashleigh says: I have a bottom load freezer that drives me insane.  I can’t for the life of me find a way to organize it aside from just throwing things in and mashing them around till I can shut the drawer. 

Shannon says: This is a picture of chicken with potatoes and carrots in the crockpot.  It didn’t turn out that great to begin with, and then after sitting in the fridge for a couple of weeks – blah.

So how is your fridge looking? Take some time Sunday to clean out your fridge. Take before and after pictures and post them on your blog...leave a link in the comments or link back to this post so we can commiserate with your mess and celebrate your clean out achievement!!!! Don't have a blog? Twitter, Facebook, or Flickr it :)

Tis' the Season... for HEALTHY snacking!

With the holidays around the corner, I can nearly smell the baked goodness mayhem that will undoubtedly find its way to my hips.  As a method to ward off extra holiday pounds, I find that keeping healthy snacks on hand a great way to avoid sugar cravings.

The 2 cup Produce Saver,also known as my Pound Saver, keeps my grapes fresh and ready for me to snack on at work.  It seems that work is my weakness, as all my co-workers are fantastic cooks and love to bring in munchies to share.  Share the wealth, not the weight. HA!

Another Produce Saver awaits me in the refrigerator stuffed with celery for my mid-afternoon crash and burn that never fails to send me straight to the vending machine.  A little reduced-calorie/fat peanut butter to spread on my celery helps curb my craving and gives me a little pick-me-up to help finish the day.

It's the small things that keep me from feeling the guilt when I decide to indulge in a slice of homemade pumpkin pie. 

 

A website for other tips on healthy snacking at work: http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/easy-healthy-workplace-snacks

Halloween Spooktacular 2009

Today is the annual Rubbermaid Halloween Spooktacular. The office is buzzing with holiday spirit. I'm going to be taking photos all day long and posting them to our Flickr account.

Keep checking back throughout the day for updates. I'll try to keep this post updated too.

Below are just a few of the photos so far.

The Enchanted Candy Forest

Fire with real smoke

Jungle Explorer hiding in the bushes

UGA is dressed up in a safari outfit. Looks like a Gator is coming to get him ;)

@egentry, Shannon Joyner and Alissa Kuber

Decorating for the Holidays

Every first weekend in December my wonderful family and I spend the time decorating our house for Christmas. We put on some good music, light some sugar cookie scented candles and my son and daughter put on their Santa hats. Everyone is in the holiday spirit.

For many years we kept our holiday decorations in cardboard boxes in the attic. This was never a really good idea. Since the cardboard boxes with holiday decorations looked exactly like the cardboard boxes with old books which meant we had to open each box to find the ones with the decorations. Some of the time we even missed an entire box of ornaments.

A few years ago I became so tired of the cardboard boxes I decided to switch to Rubbermaid totes.  I journeyed to Walmart and purchased half a dozen totes all in the same style, size and color. I had not purposely planned to purchase all the same style totes but doing so resulted in some great unintended consequences.

All of my Christmas totes are now brown with clear tops.  Having all these totes in the same color allows me to very easily find them when searching the dark attic. Since they are all the same style and size they stack very well too. This makes storing them easy.  The fact they are durable plastic instead of cardboard aids in protecting the decorations inside.

In addition to the plastic totes I do also have a couple holiday storage cubes to hold our ornaments. The cubes work well because they have dividers so each ornament has it's own small compartment to keep it safe.

So, for all of you who are still storing your decorations in cardboard boxes. You may want to consider transferring your decorations into a plastic tote this year. I think you'll be glad you did.

Happy Holidays!

Getting your home ready for the New Year

Just today we posted a new Tips & Solutions article on Rubbermaid.com about how to prepare your home for the New Year. So we asked Certified Professional Organizer® Scott Roewer to share some helpful ideas to build a “back to order” plan.

You should check out the article. I think it will give you some good ideas that will get 2009 off to a great start.

Holiday Leftover Safety Tips

Below are just a few simple Holiday leftover tips.  If you have any additional tips please feel free to add using the comments button below.  Happy Thanksgiving!

• Use Refrigerator Thermometer to make sure refrigerator is set at 40 degrees F or lower.
  
• Refrigerate leftovers within two hours of purchase or use.
  
• Never defrost at room temperature. Thaw food in containers in the refrigerator. For quick thaw, submerge in cold water in an airtight container.
  
• Separate large amounts of leftovers into small shallow containers for quicker cooling.
  
• Avoid overstuffing your refrigerator. Cold air must circulate to keep food safe.
  
• Hot food can be placed directly into the refrigerator, but it must be divided into shallow to allow for quicker cooling.
  
• Refrigeration DOES NOT prevent bacterial growth!

Thanksgiving Tips for your Holiday Meal

It doesn’t matter if it is your first time hosting Thanksgiving or your twentieth, with all the food and family in one place getting dinner together can be stressful.  This is especially true when trying to impress your guests.  Here are a few tips to keep in mind when preparing for the big meal:

1. White turkey meat can be notoriously dry even if it is basted frequently.  A simple trick to keep the bird moist is to cook it breast meat down.  Since dark meat has extra fat, its juices will naturally sink into the breast area without the risk of drying out the thighs and legs.  This little change will turn dark meat enthusiasts into white meat fans.
   
2. Worried that your stuffing may not cook thoroughly inside the turkey?  Avoid this stress by cooking the dressing outside of the turkey either on the stove or in the oven, depending on the recipe.  To preserve the moistness without stuffing, cut apples and oranges into quarters (peels included) and stuff them into the bird’s cavity along with fresh rosemary, thyme, and sage.  The herbs will complement the flavor of the turkey, and the fruit juices will help keep the meat extra moist.
   
3. Run out of pumpkin for the pie?  Don’t fret, most any starchy, orange-colored vegetable like carrots or sweet potatoes can replace pumpkin.  Simply cook the substitute until soft, then place it in a blender or food processor to make a purée.  Line a colander with a coffee filter to allow the liquid in the mashed carrot or sweet potato to drain (about two hours).  It is now ready to use in any pumpkin pie recipe.
   
4. The food will taste so heavenly that your guests will want to take home leftovers.  Rubbermaid TakeAlongs containers are perfect for storing holiday foods, and they are value priced so you won’t mind if the containers go home with your guests!   

Thanksgiving Leftovers Safety

Let’s face it, the only thing better than Thanksgiving’s turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing and veggies, is the leftovers the next day (sometimes enough to last us through the week!).

While leftovers are a delicious holiday tradition, it is important to store and handle them properly to avoid contamination. Here are a few tips for healthy Thanksgiving leftovers:

1. It is unsafe to store food in large amounts that can't cool quickly enough. Immediately after your meal, remove stuffing from the turkey cavity and refrigerate stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy and other vegetables in separate shallow containers for quick cooling in the refrigerator.
2. Refrigerate or freeze perishables, prepared foods and leftovers as soon as possible after serving.
3. Do not over-pack the refrigerator. Cool air should circulate around the containers to keep food safe. Cut turkey into thin slices and store separately from stuffing, gravy, and vegetables in shallow containers.
4. Use refrigerated leftover turkey and stuffing within three days; gravy within one to two days.
5. Do not cross-contaminate. Never place cooked food in a container that previously held raw meat, poultry or seafood.
6. Check the refrigeration temperature. It is important to keep the fridge at 34 to 40° F degrees at all times.
7. Reheat any leftovers thoroughly to a temperature of 165 ° F or until hot and steaming.

Rubbermaid food storage containers are ideal for storing leftovers and eliminating kitchen clutter. They are available in a variety of sizes and feature adjustable capacity. Most Rubbermaid food storage containers are backed by a lifetime warranty and are safe for use in the microwave, freezer or dishwasher.

And what happens when you would like to send your guests home with food? Pick up Rubbermaid TakeAlongs food storage containers. Available in several shapes and sizes, you will find the perfect fit for every food, and every guest.

Festive Holiday Containers

Halloween has come and gone. So, I bet some of you are already thinking about the upcoming holidays - what to give, what parties to throw or attend and what tasty treats to bake for your loved ones.

I'm not much in the kitchen but I AM quite the planner. I've already ripped out my halloween costume "to buy" list from my planner and inserted a new list: Treats for the Neighbors. This year I plan on baking and packaging tasty (we'll see) goodies for my neighborhood.

You see, growing up my mom (who is MUCH more in the kitchen) did a fantastic job of baking tasty treats, wrapping them in festive paper and handing them out at the door when neighbors came to call. My childhood neighborhood was always very involved in exchanging goodies. By the end of the year we always had a different dessert from just about every neighbor within 3 blocks. Our counter was overflowing and "dangerous to your waistline" as my dad would put it.

And what did we give our neighbors? Peanut Brittle. Every year. It's a showstopper and has come to be expected of my mom.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup water
1 cup peanuts
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 teaspoon baking soda

DIRECTIONS

Grease a large cookie sheet. Set aside.

In a heavy 2 quart saucepan, over medium heat, bring to a boil sugar, corn syrup, salt, and water. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Stir in peanuts. Set candy thermometer in place, and continue cooking. Stir frequently until temperature reaches 300 degrees F (150 degrees C), or until a small amount of mixture dropped into very cold water separates into hard and brittle threads.

Remove from heat; immediately stir in butter or margarine and baking soda; pour at once onto cookie sheet. With 2 forks, lift and pull peanut mixture into rectangle about 14x12 inches; cool. Snap candy into pieces.

Since mom and I live in different cities, I figured it would be okay to use her recipe to spread joy in my own neighborhood. Only I'm adding a new twist: Easy Find Lids Containers. When wrapped in pretty ribbons and bows, they make excellent "packaging" for the holidays (also check out the color of the lid). They are also reuseable - for when my neighbors are finished DEVOURING my tasty gift.

I'll use the 2 cup container for my peanut brittle. It seems ot be just the right size for the goodies and for reuse after the goodies disappear. Extra small containers are really good for small mints, or maybe hot chocolate mix! Use larger containers for cookies and brownies. See another cookie recipe.