If you think the “Before” picture above looks scary, check out the “During” picture. I pulled everything out — every single bottle, every single box, every inhaler, every little medicine measuring cup — and spread out the contents on the cupboard.

Wow.

No, the coffee wasn’t in the cupboard. I needed it for strength. Really.

After combining half-full vitamin bottles, storing extras in an accessible place (two-for-one sales are only a bargain if we can keep track of what we already own), checking expiration dates, and throwing away junk like the 6 inch stack of med cups, I could organize and set up the categories. On the top shelf are over-the-counter (OTC) remedies for illnesses. I get a little OCD about OTC because when someone is sick, I do not (repeat, do NOT) want to be making a pharmacy run. We have a good stock of that which we need, and nothing unusable or out of date. They’re sorted in three small boxes: cold/ allergy, tummy troubles, and pain killer/fever reducer/ anti-inflammatories.

On the bottom are the prescriptions and everyday needs.

All extras (mainly from Buy-one Get-one deals) are behind the boxes on the top shelf. Extra prescriptions? We order most of our daily meds by mail through our insurance, so we get 3 months worth in one bottle. It really saves time and space.

Not bad, really. Most of this chore was sorting and organizing. Now if we can maintain it… now that will be the challenge!