Organizing your Car

The day you get your minivan.  The day that elation and depression collide.  A mixture of excitement and resignation.  Your chances of coolness have fled forever.

The thing is…they are SO darn practical that you knew it was a matter of time before you caved in.  You are a minivan owner.

So here she is…look at those clean lines…those curves…that exquisite paint job that screams…P-R-A-C-T-I-C-A-L-!!!!

The truth is that I LOVE IT.  The storage that a minivan offers is unmatched.

How to keep it clean:  I try my very best to avoid eating in the car.  If we are in a time crunch or going on a longer trip we do it but we (we means only me) try to avoid it.  You have to be flexible with kids but I find that if I set the standard that we don’t eat in the car I end up having to clean up so much less.  Even with “the standard” I end up picking up a bowl of Cheerios from the backseat every two weeks.

Here is the interior.

I keep a box of wipes and an umbrella in the front.  The box of wipes fits on the floor in the very center and doesn’t move about because the umbrella keeps it put.

I basically don’t know what I did before baby wipes.  I don’t recall my life before them.  I am pretty sure I was miserable.

I put these hooks on the passenger seat to hold my purse while I drive.  I flip them towards the back when I need them to hold groceries.

I have spilled the contents of my bag so many times after breaking hard.  No more.  You can find the hook HERE if you want to try it out.

Here is my favorite feature of this minivan (Chrysler Town & Country).  The latch on the floor of the second row opens up and there is a world of storage under there.

On one side I keep a TON of grocery bags and a beach towel.   In the next picture you can see the full size of this storage space because here it is only half-open.

Here is the other side fully open.  Isn’t this space huge?!

There is a wagon full of toys, rain coats for the whole family, and large first aid kit under the tool kit (just in case I have to fully assemble my car roadside although I have AAA and a number of other roadside assistance programs).

Now the trunk.  I only keep a small stroller in there since my 2-year old rarely uses a stroller when we are out.

I line the bottom of the trunk with a blanket that I can wash if it gets dirty from a spill or dirt from when I buy plants.  If you ever need a blanket for the park, it’s there too.

On the side of the trunk I keep a roll of paper towel, cups, sunscreen and a bottle of water.  I realize that you shouldn’t drink water that has been sitting in a car getting hot but I like having one there just in case someone starts choking while they are assembling the car roadside.  Am I the only one that thinks of these things?

Don’t answer that.

So you have a minivan.  You now make a new commitment to yourself.  “I will never wear mom jeans.  The minivan is as low as I will go”

This gives you hope for the future.  You may still have a chance at being cool…when you are not driving, of course.

Share with me what else you store in your car.  Do you have a minivan?  Do you love it too?

Happy Organizing,

Maria