From Frosty to Functional
By Eazy Peazy Downsizing
As the last bit of snow finally melts and while you’re planning which vegetables to grow in your garden this spring, now is the perfect time to declutter an often-forgotten but hard-working appliance – your freezer. Speaking from experience, for me, these great inventions become a time capsule containing my last year’s surplus holiday turkey and those extra rhubarb muffins I baked for a summer picnic. Together, let’s confront the leftovers we promised ourselves we would eat one day and the mystery packages of I-don’t-know-what.
Begin by unplugging the freezer and pulling out all the contents. Discard expired food and mystery containers full of contents we have no idea what is inside. Allow any ice build-up to thaw and wipe that chest freezer down completely inside. Now comes the best part: group remaining freezer food into like items together so we can visually see the quantity and inventory in each category. For instance, cluster categories of baking, fruit, vegetables and meat. You might discover you have seven frozen bags of shredded zucchini.
As you add items to your freezer in the future, mark the date on each container. Green painter’s tape works great for this purpose. Consider creating a checklist so you can add items to it as you freeze them and mark off items as you use them. Bravo! Together, we’ve just set ourselves up for a fresh new start to our spring by knowing what’s on hand in our frozen section, reducing buying of duplicates, and now, our deep freezer is significantly more energy efficient, too. Your model might just last another 50 years!
Eazy Peazy Downsizing is celebrating its fifth year in business. Founded by Nicole Skiba, a Professional Home Economist and Trained Professional Organizer, the company was inspired by Nicole’s experience helping her own dad through the downsizing process. Today, Nicole and her dedicated team, Nancy, Lindsey and Dee, support older adults and families with practical, respectful help during life’s transitions. Contact Nicole at 587-598-6123 or eazypeazydownsizing.ca for more information.
