Lunch Station

This week I have been working on a project that I've noticed gaining a little popularity around the blogosphere lately.  Naturally, since all the little kiddos (and big kiddos like myself!) have been going back to school, ideas for streamlining lunch packing time in the morning abound.  I decided to set up our own little "lunch station" to make mornings easier on myself and my hubby.  This way, lunch packing will feel much more "grab-and-go" and much less "I'd-rather-hit-the-drive-thru".  I already had the bins (we used to use them to store DVD's) and they are a great fit for the space I chose.  We were already low on cabinet space as it is, so I set everything up on the bookshelves that divide our kitchen from our living room, right above where I keep our lunchboxes.

(As per usual...ignore the poor photo quality.  Someday I will get a real camera!)

The top shelf is for all things drink-related, the second shelf is for the baskets holding dry goods (crackers, granola bars, etc.), and the top of the microwave is where I set up the condiments and fruit. 

I drink a lot of coffee, so there is a whole basket for all of my coffee and tea needs.  It's spilling over into the other basket, which contains cocoa mix, protein shake mix, and lemonade mix.

Notice that stuff to the right of the baskets?  That's for all of the extras that we occasionally need in our lunches (wet wipes, medicine, juice cups, and a notepad and pen for writing each other sweet notes).

(Recognize those ceramic berry baskets?)

I always save our leftover condiment packets and napkins when we eat fast food, because they are great for tossing in lunches without having to mess with finding tiny containers and possible in-lunchbox-condiment-spillage.  I keep our lunchboxes themselves on and under the table where we have our microwave.  Yes...we have a lot of lunchboxes for two people.  I love lunchboxes almost as much as I love the storage containers I use to pack them. :)

Looks like I can check off one more thing on my long list of life-streamlining projects!