How To Keep Your Cup Cabinet From Exploding!

OrganizingLarge Family HacksKitchen Organization

Mar 22

*Each family member has a designated cup color.*

The problem:

When our first three kids got big enough to get their own drinks I knew I needed to come up with some sort of cup solution so everyone knew who's was who's. I don't remember where I got this idea, but somewhere I saw someone who color coordinated their families cups. BRILLIANT!

The solution:

So I grabbed some cheap plastic cups at Walmart for the kids, the hubby asked for an upgrade, and I needed a taller one. When we had another baby I discovered the silicone lids that slide onto a cup for babies and toddlers, they don't have any valves or hard to clean parts. Winning!

We don't allow cups to travel the house, so the silicone sippy cup lids work for us at home. We use a YaYa tumbler that looks like a miniature Stanley, but is leak proof, on the go. But even if you do allow cups to travel the house, a quick glance and you know who's cup is missing. And there's no more "Who left this cup on the coffee table?" arguments!

A breakdown of the cabinet

Top shelf:
Soup bowls, and cocoa mugs, and a set of 4 vintage glasses we pull out when we have friends over - my coffee mugs do not live in this cabinet.

Middle shelf:
Far left, pink and black, is the cups for my mom and sister who visit frequently.
Tall blue, my cups, I have 6 I believe.
Clear cups, my hubby's cups, he prefers a sturdier cup.
Short yellow vintage cups, the toddler's cups that we put the silicone lids on.
The next two stacks are the big kids cups, pink, gray, and navy blue, then the little boys have translucent blue and green, they each have 3 cups.
The ones second to the right are other guest cups for anyone else visiting.
The stainless steel ones on the end with the silicone sleeves we use as snack cups they also come with a straw and lid, I prefer the silicone lids for home use with no straw.

Bottom Shelf:
Supplement and medication containers, for daily use and a container of lids for sippy cups.

How to make this happen at your house

Guys, you have to be ruthless. No restaurant cups pass my doorway. The cute holiday cups, nope, they are relegated to either the sand box, the toy bucket, or the garbage can. We don't buy cups on trips, we intentionally keep it simple, minimal, and easy to manage. It's a mindset shift. It's not a stuff problem, it's a mindset shift. A 'we have what we need, we don't need that -insert your thing here-" mindset will help you keep things easier to manage. You can do it!

Now go get rid of some cups!
Melinda

HELPFUL LINKS – some may be affiliate links

Silicone Sippy Cup lids - here
Stainless steel elk and friends sippy cups/snack cups - these are not spill proof cups - here
Cups similar to our yellow vintage ones but they are bamboo - here
Set of colorful cups, comes in multiple colors and sizes - here