You’re at your kids’ soccer game and some well-meaning moms offer to help you carry equipment and snack tables back to your car. Oh boy. You already parked clear across the parking lot so no one would see the mess that is your car.
“Um, I wouldn’t want to put you out. I’ll just make seven trips.”
If this scenario sounds even vaguely familiar, it’s time to get your car organized.
There’s a difference between organizing and cleaning. When you organize your car properly, you’ll create a place for everything. This will make it faster and easier to put things away, so your car doesn’t get out-of-control messy.
Here are a few ideas for getting your chaotic car organized.
Organize fast food – If you’re tired of finding crumpled hamburger wrappers under your seat, you need this one. This is one of those cheap ideas that will completely save your sanity. Keep a shower caddy in your car for whenever you’re grabbing a quick meal on-the-go. Before you get going, pop the food into the shower caddy, and then hand it to your kids in the back seat. Your kids can eat directly out of the caddy, so they’ll be more likely to store their trash there when they’re done.
Organize your trunk – You can also use a shower caddy for car fluids like coolant or oil. And it’s a good idea to invest in a good trunk organizer and/or trunk shelf (if you have an SUV). This is a small investment that can help keep your trunk clear for groceries, sporting equipment, and snack tables.
Store plastic bags – You’ll find times when you have trash to bring into the house, but you also have kids and/or shopping bags. You don’t have enough hands for it all, so guess which wins? Anything and everything trumps trash. And this is how the garbage piles up. But if you have plastic bags handy, you’ll make it much easier to toss the trash in the bag. It’s much simpler to sling a bag on your finger than try to carry seven water bottles and thirty-two candy wrappers. Keep extra bags in an empty tissue box, so you’ll always have one ready.
Keep kid supplies tidy – Use a fabric remote control holder to keep coloring books, wipes, crayons and toys organized in the back seat. Even if you can’t get your kids to use the organizer, you’ll still have a place for everything when it’s time to clean out the seat. This handy trick will help you keep your car organized for longer stretches.
Most people spend more time in their cars than they realize, so this should be a place where you feel comfortable. Keeping your car organized may be easier said than done, but with a little-advanced planning, you can keep it from becoming chaotic. Get the entire family involved in your goal of keeping the car organized, and you’re more likely to have a clean car at any given moment.
