It All Began With Coffee

I'm not exactly sure when we started preparing our coffee each evening. It's been awhile though, because we do like hot coffee when we start our mornings. I realize I may be old school with a drip coffee maker, but we are a little too frugal to pay for a high end Keurig type. And I know those are very fast, so your evening habit may not start with coffee.

Actually, I should maybe go back farther than the coffee. Only on very rare and busy nights do we not clean up the kitchen right after dinner. One of us puts leftover and refrigerated items away, while the other one of us is usually cleaning off dishes. This involves putting as many that will fit in the dishwasher and hand washing the rest. We let the dishes air dry. 

I've been getting the air dried dishes put away and off the counter during my final round in the kitchen. It is so nice to not have them in the way in the morning while we are making breakfast and preparing lunches. 

After the coffee is prepped, and air dried dishes are put away (which only takes one small minute), I start the dishwasher. Sometimes I put it on a delay so that the dishwasher starts after those that take evening showers.

Next up is washing out the cat's bowl. Our cat Liberty now eats wet food several times a day. By morning the wet food has become dried on the bowl. I didn't realize this was a problem until my husband (who often feeds her in the morning) was out of town for a week. I found myself listening to a demanding cat while I cleaned her bowl. Not so much fun. So much easier if I take a minute to clean it the evening before. 

And finally why not clean up the sink at the end of the day? 

That's the new habit I've decide to add.

I'm currently out of my usual sink cleaner, so tonight I used a little baking soda and dish detergent along with a Scotch Brite pad. After it was all rinsed away I wipe it down with a dry towel, so it is shiny! 

See those towels on the left? Those are what I used today. They are going into the washing machine; ready for the next time I do laundry. And then notice below, I set out two fresh towels and a washcloth. I'm all set for tomorrow!

Do you have a nightly kitchen routine? Does it include replacing used towels or cleaning your sink? Do you set any machines to run, such as a dishwasher or coffee maker?