You know me, I love my organizing! I think the garage is pretty much done. I reorganized some more areas and swept.
It’s amazing what you’ll find under garage leaves:
A petrified leaf
A Spanish penny!?
Evidence of car troubles (should have checked here sooner!)
Once those beer supplies are gone the garage shelf will be totally clear sans some tools!
The pantry is very much thinned out of anything I don’t see us eating between now and summer (By the way, the Indian meal moth // spider evidence came from our outdoor pantry not the indoor one!
Boxes all lined up
Loose things in $1 bins I found at Target
Party supplies in a crate instead of just stacked
Baking supplies contained
Nut butters and jams contained
Reusable bags……..
….will never look neat.
Next stop lunch!
I needed to use up two items in our pantry: brussels and pineapple!
Before…
After 20 minutes at 400* plus olive oil, maple, salt and pepper. LOVE the crunchy burnt leaves!!
The Guy Fieri Dragon Dagger was perfect for a pineapple when you need some serration!
To serve I had brussels
Toast with jam
And an Oikos with a cup of pineapple, coconut and a bit of Crunchy Coconut Granola
Wish I could say this was filled with spiked egg nog but sadly it was only water
Very filling! And I think I got in all the food groups too 
Once my tummus was nice and full, I set to make bourbon balls!!
Things I Used To Hate But Now Like
- Bourbon balls
- Pineapple
- Tomatoes
- Pimento cheese
- Mushrooms
Onions- Marzipan (<– still don’t really like that)
My mom used makes bourbon balls every Christmas and I always ate one at the big Christmas party they would throw and be disappointed every year. And then once I formed a happy memory with the taste and smell, I loved them!
I made a special recipe page of the whole process (more for me to remember next year because they turned out great!)
Here it is —-> Bourbon Balls
I did pretty well not nibbling. I credit that to baking right after a satisfying lunch. I really didn’t want to eat too many. I did let myself lick my fingers (after rolling!!) and ate a ball when I was all finished to test ‘em out.
And drank the fumes from the end of the bottle!
I’m going on a walk to the ATM and then getting geared up for some evening vinyasa yoga!
{ 60 comments… read them below or add one }
I have never had a bourbon ball, but they look delish!
I absolutely love Christmas cooking…it’s one of the best parts of the holiday season. 
Your garage/house organization is making it clear to me that i REALLY need to organize areas of my house!
The bourbon balls are beautiful! Great lunch, too, by the way. I also love my brussels sprouts with a little bit of dijon mustard and Worchestershire sauce…mmm mmm mmm!
Those bourbon balls do look really yummy. I still don’t like brussell sprouts. However, I love the hell out of marizpan!
I’ve never heard of bourbon balls, but they sound great!
I hate how reusable bags never look neat, too.
My family drinks mainly bourbon – they LOVE bourbon balls.
I made some peanut meltaways recently that are similar in structure to those bourbon balls… but lacking in booze! Will need to figure a way to incorporate some… maybe rum?
Wow that is some serious organisation – love it!
ooooooh and that lunch looks great – pineapple and brussels – what a wonderful combination
Bourbon Balls and Brussels. It’s alliteration and taste bud heaven.
I love the organization. I need to do that with my pantry at some point.
Kath I would hire you in a heart beat for your superb organizational skills. Ughh, I just have no patience for that stuff! Sooo incredible how you do things
The balls look scrum-diddly-upmtious! ____ ( you KNOW what goes there…)
Love the crispy burnt parts of brussels sprouts, yum! I made a version with bacon, dried cranberries, and caramelized onions for Thanksgiving and happily ate all the leftovers
wow, way to go organizing! looks like you have plenty to get you through the winter months!
Wow, I’m always impressed by your organization. Try as I might, things somehow end up falling into disarray…
I love organizing. And I also love your lunch, it looks fantastic!!
I still need to get a liking for mushrooms.
Something about seeing a neat pantry that gives me the warm fuzzies – I love to organize mine whenever I need some motivation in my life!
It feels so satisfying to have things organized. It’s amazing how quickly it can become a mess again
I LOVE the burnt parts of Brussels sprouts, too!!!
Hooray for organizing! It always feels so good!
I’ve tried to like bourbon but just can’t do it… I only like it in baked goods… so maybe I’ll like the bourbon balls
Doesn’t it feel great to be organized! Love your talent with that.
Those brussel sprouts look amazing! Enjoy yoga this evening!
I always roll my reusable bags up and put them inside the biggest one. Then I just keep that big bag full of bags in the trunk of our car. Could I say “bags” one more time? Bags.
your organization is a constant inspiration to me. i’ve never had bourbon balls…but i don’t like bourbon., so i’m guessing i wouldn’t like them? they look good at least!
OMG OMG OMG kath – i used the same mug at my parents’ this morning!
http://theactorsdiet.wordpress.com/2009/12/22/lynn-this-used-to-be-my-playground/
i was WONDERING why it looked familiar!
Hahaha
Love me some whiskey!!!!
I love how organized and clean your house is! I’m inspired; maybe I’ll work on straightening up my chronically disorganized and extremely messy apartment tonight. Glad the spider was in the outdoor pantry, ’cause spiders inside the house=bleh.
I can’t say I’ve ever had a bourbon ball, but they look yummy!
I would never get to the making of the cookies…I would just drink the bourbon! I guess you have all that stuff in your outdoor pantry because of Costco access? I can’t imagine getting through those oats…but I guess if I had the storage space….
Ah, bourbon… made right here, locally (I live in KY). I guess by drinking bourbon I am doing my part in consuming food-related products from local workers, right?
As for your reusable bags… could you fold them and stand them up in a crate or other box? That would organize them and take up less space.
Yummmmm. My mother-in-law always made burbon balls. I should make some in her memory.
Pineapple and coconut is such a great combo!
That petrified leaf looks really cool!
Enjoy yoga!
i loooove brussel sprouts!!
I’ve tried to like brussels sprouts, because all you food bloggers make them look so tasty roasted, but no luck.
I also don’t like raw onions, ick!
I fold up my reusable bags and put them all inside one bag. Then I store them in the trunk of my car so I don’t forget to take them along to the store. Though, I guess that doesn’t help when you bike to the store, lol!
everything looks so tidy and clean!!!!!
First I am so jealous of all your space. You saw my house and my storage-’nuff said! Second, that’s Elaina’s recipe almost exactly too except she uses rum instead of bourbon
I agree about the bags…roll and stack! Great job on all that organizing. I did my closet today and it is soooooooo liberating.
Fabulous organization! Doesn’t that feel good? It’s almost as great as buying something shiny and new.
Thanks for the recipe for the bourbon balls! Ya’ll are saying they’re so good, perhaps I need to get baking.
Hmm, I may need to make some of those bourbon balls for Christmas…
I have been jonesing for some brussel sprouts all week, you just did me in, so going to get them tonight, on the menu for tomorrow!!
Bourbon balls make me think of my deceased grandma, but sadly I never great to like them. They sure look yummy though.
*Check out my Heart Thrive giveaway @ MonicaOnTheGo.Com*
Yay for organizing! I love it too
lunch looks great as well as though bourban balls! never heard of them before!
You’re reminding me that I so need to organize the basement. Also, love roasted brussels – I’m making them for Christmas dinner even!
I used to hate pineapple and tomatoes too! Now I love them!
Those bourbon balls look fantastic!
wow I love that you have a special bin for loose objects! i need to get that.
mm love me some roasted brussels sprouts!
I love spanish money. I have kept some from my Spain trip so that I can look at it.
gah, those balls looks so ridic good! twss. cant wait to make ‘em.
i know you probably get this allll the time, and i’ve been meaning to ask forever now, but where are those amazingly adorable reindeer mugs from? (vixen, blitzen, etc) i will die if i can get my hands on them. thx!
Pottery Barn!
THANK YOU!!!
You and your awesome organizing, Kath! I need some of that same inspiration to get my pantry tidied up. It keeps yelling at me to clean it up, but I keep plugging my ears and not listening…
your organization is amazing. i put my plastic bag in an empty trash bag bo (or something that has an opening- like a tissue box). it keeps them from exploding out everywhere, and i can stack them. i’m a stacker!
yum for bourbon balls!!!
Kath I fold up my reusable bags and tuck them in a straight line all in one bag. In other words, I fold them into a long skinny rectangle and then stack them side by side in a bag. That way they are so neat and there is only one hanging bag, and it is so easy to just grab the size/amount I need (I stack them smallest to biggest). You should try it! It really works for me bc I have about 12 of them and we live in a small condo.
Okay, you TOTALLY have to check at least one post-baking to make sure it tastes yummy! And I love the pineapple/granola combo….am craving pineapple now
Look at those boxes. I need to stockpile some, so I always have some on hand!
And those treats look yummy!
Organization heaven, I love it! And pineapple + coconut is such a great idea, sounds very tasty!
your garage is so organized! I need to take some pointers from you – you should do some type of tutorial, haha! I love how clean and organized you always are. bourbon balls look ammmmazing ! =)
Your lunch looks yummy! I could totally go for that today.
Happy Holiday’s!
Hi – new reader here! LOVE the garage org. That’s what we really need to do. We need to build in the storage areas first.
Never thought to add maple to my brussels sprouts – genius. I have a whoel bag at home waiting to be maple-ized. Thanks for the tip.
Have a great holiday!
We just organized my mom’s kitchen yesterday and it was so nice to know where everything was. I love organizing!