Operation Organization, Take 9. The Car Rescue.

A while ago, we had an “auction” at church as a fundraiser to send our teenage kids to summer camp.  Among a few other things, I purchased a head to toe car cleaning.  Obviously the two boys who put this one on the board had no idea what they were getting themselves into.  Unfortunately, I felt like my car was just TOO messy to allow anyone in the universe to see it.

(Side note.  This post may, nay, most likely WILL, change your opinion of me.)

Enter: my organizational task for the week - tackling my car.  I feel like it was yesterday that I cleaned my car out, and I’m pretty sure it was more accurately a few weeks, but it’s amazing that in a few weeks a car can go from clean to this.

OK, in my defense, it isn't really this bad.  I had had to move a bunch of stuff to the front seat to make room for some thrift store finds... And yes, I realize I just showed the entire universe what I swore was too disgusting to show.  It’s hideous, I know.  I’ve only got two kids, sometimes three... and yet my car is a pile of old cheese roll-ups, hardened fruit snacks, discarded shoes, papers, stickers, leaves, rocks, toys, and diapers (clean, thankfully).  Yeah, that’s a pack of chocolate donut holes in my console from two weeks ago.  What of it? (makes “wanna go?” gestures and looks tough.) 

And so.  I cleaned my car.

At the risk of making this a very boring post, I’ll fill you in on my system.

 All set.

I open every single door there is.  (including console and glove box)

I start with an overall trash pickup, beginning on the driver’s side and moving counter-clockwise from door to door.  I don’t dig or separate items.  I simply pick up the visible, disgusting garbage.

When I’m done with that, I go back to the driver’s side and empty everything from the car, no matter what it is, and seperate it into the hampers and garbage bag, proceeding conter-clockwise yet again and ending with the console and glovebox.

(and the stroller makes a handy place to keep the essential Pepsi).

After this is over, I have three piles.  Things that go in the house.  Things that stay in the car.  Garbage.  And this time, I actually had a fourth pile, called things I just got at the thrift store that haven’t even been taken inside yet.

I now go through the things that stay in the car and put them where they go.  I start with the console - which is my little portable pharmacy essentially.  (Good thing my kids are never in the car alone...)  I move to the glovebox, which holds all paper necessities - car manuals no one ever reads, unless you are mr, registration, maps, receipts that we need to keep, etc.  

Then I grab the car caddy I made - remember this? - and stock it.  The handy pockets of the blazer car caddy will store bug’s pad of paper and pencils.  Then we have the kid’s car toys, emergency kid things (suckies and sippy cups), and the baby carrier/toddler leash (I’m not ashamed to admit I’ve used it...).  

When this is securely in place behind mini’s seat, I work on the pockets on the back of the seats.  In one I put bug’s summer items - an extra swimsuit, socks for McDonald’s playland (because we usually wear sandals, and I don’t want to have to buy those huge cheap ones for a buck), and a hat.  The other one has mini’s stuff - an extra suit, a hat, a scarf to use as a nursing wrap.  Then I stock the back.  Yes, there is still an ice scraper in there.  If I take it out, I’ll forget to put it back in next September and then I won’t have it when I need it in early October.  Plus, with the weather in the frozen tundra, who knows what could happen?  It’s been known to snow on Mother’s Day.  Towel, blanket, bungee cord, the normal stuff.

And now it looks PERFECT.  Phew.  The worst part of cleaning the car?  Now I have to put all that stuff that goes in the house away.  

What’s that?  Well, of COURSE I didn’t vacuum.  I’ve got to leave SOMETHING for those church boys to do!