Kitchens are the heart of the home, the place that everyone gathers. And for a busy family it can be a great place to organize your time and keep everyone on the same page. Creating a kitchen command center on the side of your fridge is the perfect way to organize and display all the information your family needs to get through each day.
Here are the top 3 must-have items to recreate this look:
The side of our fridge is fully exposed and happens to be right next to the walkway in and out of our kitchen. We’ve always used it for magnets and kid art, but recently I realized it was time to clear the clutter from this very exposed surface and turn it into something helpful (and a bit more orderly!)
I decided it was the perfect place to create a command center that has everything we need to keep our days running smoothly. A monthly calendar, grocery list, meal plan, and pockets for papers that are frequently referenced as we go about our busy weekdays.
What is a kitchen command center?
A command center is an information hub. It’s a central place of reference for a family and it includes all the information that might be needed in a week. For example, a calendar of the month with all activities and appointments, school lunch schedule, meal plan, and grocery list.
Really, it should help answer those questions you hear every week:
What’s for dinner?
Do I have karate tonight?
When is Easter?
What are we doing this weekend?
What’s for lunch?
And so on.
Why use the fridge?
The side of the fridge can be a bit, well, unattractive. It’s big and dark, but on the plus side it’s magnetic! Which means we can take advantage of hanging all things magnetic on it. And, you can feel OK about covering it because what else are you going to do with it?
What do you include in a kitchen command center?
Here are a few ideas based on what I used:
Monthly or weekly calendar
A large, visible calendar is a must! This is where you write all the events that are happening during the month. Be sure to write down all appointments, activities, events and trips. If each person in a family has a different schedule, consider using different colored pens to distinguish between each person.
I used a colorful calendar from Dollar Tree, but here is a similar one from Amazon. I love the two page versions because you have a lot of space to write in the squares.
I recently found this magnetic dry erase month and week calendar and am considering upgrading to this version. I really like the format of the weekly calendar since it mimics how we already plan our week.
Magnetic pockets
These are just the coolest! They are plastic pockets with a large magnets on the back and they can hold all types of paperwork, mail, pens and even kitchen tools. They are sturdy, yet don’t stick out far enough to be in the way.
I use the medium size for important incoming mail that needs to be opened (basically anything that doesn’t go right into the recycle bin). The large pocket is my reference pocket. Anything that I ned to look at frequently, like the school lunch menu or the school schedule goes in here.
Mini white board
A mini magnetic whiteboard is flexible and can be used for many things. It’s great for writing out a weekly meal plan, which is often how we use it. You could also use it as a notepad to jot down reminders or notes for other family members.
Magnetic grocery list
For all those times when you run out of mustard and need a place to write it down so that you remember when grocery day rolls around. I try to tell my family that when they use something up, or notice we are out of something, to write it on the list. If it’s not on the list, it doesn’t get remembered and bought on grocery day.
I like to use those little notepads with a magnet on the back, because that’s what we always used growing up. It feels nostalgic and just as practical as ever.
Magnetic shelf
This metal magnetic shelf has a super strong magnet on it and can hold a good amount of weight! I like to use it to hold a glass jar of pens, pencils, scissors and whiteboard markers. Also a pad of sticky notes and a small notebook. We always need a pencil or pen in the kitchen, as well as scissors. With all our kitchen drawers organized to max capacity with cooking and eating related items, we have no space for a utility drawer. This shelf functions fulfills that function and holds all the things we need in a pinch.
Magnetic clips
These are large clips with a magnet. I love how they can be used for all sorts of things, like hanging up an impromptu gallery wall, holding invitations, or even as a chip clip when you have a half finished bag of chips.
Having a central command center has helped our family tremendously. Honestly, I was just getting tired of keeping track of everything myself and constantly answering 5,000 questions a day about what’s for dinner, or when something is happening. It’s so nice to have a central spot for information in our house and way for people to be self sufficient in finding answers to their questions.
If your family could use a little help organizing information and time, consider adding a command center to the side of your fridge to see if it makes a difference. It might be just what you need!
Be sure to check out my Amazon Storefront to shop all my favorite organization and home finds, including everything you need to create your own ideal fridge command center.
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