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My new life passion is optimizing my car. For years I’ve treated my suburban like a trash can tornado, but I’ve officially put an end to that way of living. I spend a lot of time in my car and I finally got tired of opening the door to a rancid smell and random items spilling out. It’s a new day, friends! There is absolutely no reason that I should not enjoy climbing in my car and taking my kids on an outing. The trick is to add in a couple habits and buy a few items for full optimization.
Here’s what I’ve done:
Trunk Organization
A fellow Red Stick Mom writer shared about organizing her trunk and her tips have been so transformational for me. I’m not being dramatic, her advice has given me so much peace of mind and spurred on my desire for a clean car. Since organizing my trunk, I’ve felt both proud and prepared in a way I haven’t in a while. It’s the little things, y’all! Even my seven year old commented: “I feel so wiggly inside now that our trunk is organized.” Me too, girl. In my trunk, I keep the following items: a dollar tree organizing bin containing a first aid kit, a change of clothes for each child, beach towels, toys for the splash pad, a small bin with bug spray and sunscreen, extra packaged snacks, wipes, water shoes for the kiddos, a spray fan, and cold towels. In the winter, I plan to swap the summer items out for mittens, small blankets, and extra socks. I also have a cold bag, my gathre mats and rain jackets. I’ve had my trunk prepped for a few weeks and have already used these items many times. It feels really good to be prepared!
Trash solution
I bought this handy little trash can last week and have used it so much already. I also have started gathering all the trash in the car every time we get home and immediately put it in our garage trash can. Additionally, when I fill the car with gas, I throw away any trash.
Essential oils
My husband recently bought a new truck, and wow, that new car smell is absolutely divine. I realize I will never get to that point again with my ‘burb, but am aiming for a “non-rancid” scent. Reach for the stars, people. One way to do this is to keep a bottle of essential oil in your car, put a couple drops on a clothes pin and attach it to your air vent. It honestly works really well! For an upgraded version, I bought a car essential oil diffuser. It’s a cheap one from Amazon, so time will tell if it is worth it. You do have to make sure your kids don’t touch it. I also have my eye on this lovely Doterra version.
Free vacuums at Benny’s Car Wash
This has been a game changer for me! Those babies are powerful and can get a lot of gunk out of your car. I will say that one time I accidentally vacuumed up my daughter’s soccer sock and clogged it. Whoops! I also just bought this little guy to keep on hand to quickly take care of snack spills that inevitably happen, daily.
Bring it all in
Our kiddos love to bring all the things into the car. We’ve got books, stuffed animals, “treasures” etc. … Plus the things we actually need like water bottles and snacks. These are the items that can begin to fall out of the car every time I open a door. To help with this issue, I’ve started keeping a large empty bag in the garage and every time we get home, we load it up with any miscellaneous. Now does that bag end up living in our entry way for a while? Certainly! But having it indoors and in my line of sight helps me empty it and put it away much more quickly.
I’m only a couple months into my new life as an organized, ok-smelling car person, but I feel really good about these improvements. Join me!
