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Easy Access Cabinet for Kids Dishes

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August 29, 2012 By Jackie

To go along with my recent kitchen drawer reorganization, I started looking for other kitchen inefficiencies.  My oldest can get his own water at the fridge and set the table, yet he couldn’t reach any of the kids cups or plates.  Meanwhile, in the corner of the kitchen I had an underutilized lazy susan cabinet.  Who needs a whole corner base cabinet to store used baby food jars and random tupperware?

The kids dishes were stored in a wall cabinet near the fridge, directly above the old baby drawer.  This cabinet made sense for their dishes, because I kept all the baby bottles in the other half of this cabinet.  When they were younger it did not matter that they could not reach their own dishes…they had more important things to work on like walking and talking.  Now that they have almost mastered both of those, it seems like they should be able to get their own cup.

The lazy susan cabinet in corner of the base cabinets seemed like a perfect spot for the kids dishes.  I had also considered using some of my lower drawers for their dishes, but that would have involved me sacrificing pot and pan storage or platter storage (pieces too large for wall cabinets).  The lazy susan cabinet would not really impact any important storage in my kitchen, yet it would make a huge impact on accessibility for the kids.

I cleared out the lazy susan cabinet to make room for the kids stuff.  On the top tier I neatly laid out the kids plates, bowls, snack bowls, and cups.  With all the extra space in the corner cabinet, I was able to keep the dishes in individual short stacks, making it super easy for the boys to grab a plate or bowl.  Bonus, it is easier for me to grab their dishes, too.

All of the kids dishes are from Target.  They are all dishwasher safe, at least in the top rack.   I stick with non-breakable dishes for the kids.  I also try to avoid melamine, because it can break or crack in the dishwasher.

I refilled the bottom tier with the few pieces of tupperware and pitchers we have.  Sadly half of the ones you see here are from my mom, waiting to be returned to her.  Let’s just say I am not big on leftovers and we rarely make more food than we need for one meal.

I love this new arrangement, because both my boys, 5 and 2.5 years old, can easily open the cabinet with a push.  They can reach all their dishes to help set the table or grab themselves a cup of water.  The only issue we have had so far is the cups falling over when the cabinet rotates around.  I think I will find a shallow basket to help hold them in place.

The only other thing I want to do in this cabinet is add some labels.  I want the kids (and my hubby) to be able to put everything back in it’s place.  I want to make some sort of labels that have a combination of pictures and words to make it as easy as possible for the boys.  I am just trying to decide if I want to try to label the shelf bottom, which is bumpy, or put the labels on the wide shelf edge.

Can you tell turquoise is THE color in my kitchen?  The kids dishes have gone from crazy baby colors to turquoise and teal perfection.  My once random cooking utensils are now a matched set of turquoise utensils.  It all started long ago when I swapped our white dinnerware for turquoise stoneware.  All I have to say is thank heavens for Target, Martha Stewart and Kitchen Aid for making my turquoise kitchen stuff…keep it coming.

Do you have a go to kitchen color?

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Comments

  1. Maureen says

    August 29, 2012 at 4:55 pm

    Jackie,

    Very nice. To divide your lazy susan, have you thought about thin strips of vinyl to make sections? Then a picture could be placed in said section of what is stored there. Maybe? Also, if you turn your cups upside down, they won’t tip over as easy if at all. Try this before you spend money on a basket.

    Maureen

    P.S. The turquoise color is perfect for in your kitchen!

    • Jackie says

      August 29, 2012 at 5:02 pm

      Maureen, You are a genius. I adore the idea of dividing the lazy Susan like a pie…why didn’t I think of that? The lip on the shelf is big enough, so it seems like some short dividers would be easy to do and keep everything more orderly. Also, on turning the cups upside down…I am embarrassed I didn’t think of that one. Thanks!

      • Maureen says

        August 30, 2012 at 2:35 pm

        Jackie,

        No need to be embarrassed. Some times, in my personnal opinion, the creative engrams in one’s brain don’t always work or stay connected. This not only causes creativity burnout but also causes one to miss an occasional very simple explanation or solution. I have the condition quite often, unfortunately. So I just do the V-8 commercial hit in the head and take a nap. Sometimes one or the other helps. :)

        Maureen

  2. jessvii says

    August 30, 2012 at 8:51 am

    I was going to say the same thing about turning the cups upsidedown. Also, if you use a nubby vinyl liner for the entire surface (which you can label with marker if you like), then the cups might not move as much or turnover :).

    As far as my favorite kitchen color, that’s tricky. I have a light blue stand mixer, but have found it difficult/impossible to find matching tools. Therefore, I’m using Orka’s blue utensils when possible (a href=”http://www.amazon.com/Orka-All-Purpose-Silicone-Spoon-Spatula/dp/B000RYSPQA/ref=wr_it_dp_o_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=13ZNIIVHRLQDD&coliid=I29SQUPN69KAEM_” title=”example”>. However, I’m embarassed to say that my other items are red or black. Too much of a clash?

  3. Kismet says

    September 5, 2012 at 6:46 pm

    Ditto to turn cups upside down.
    When my kids were that age we also put the cereal on the shelf below their bowls so on sat mornings they could help themselves (we bought milk in smaller, easier to control for little hands size. Now u can even get shelf stable milk) and let us sleep a little later :)

    • Jackie says

      September 5, 2012 at 9:32 pm

      Kismet, Awesome idea! I would definitely love to sleep in a bit longer. If only I could feel assured my boys wouldn’t dump out all the cereal on the floor for the dog to eat.

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