It’s just as important to decide what we won’t do as it is to decide what we will do, isn’t it? This past January, as I set intentions for 2016, I thought about my kitchen and what I wanted to accomplish.

As I brainstormed and dreamed, I also decided to give thought to what I wouldn’t do in my kitchen this year. Three things surfaced.

I’m not making everything from scratch

I’ve gone through phases where I’ve tried to make everything from scratch, be it bread and cream of soups or yogurt and crackers. Instead, I’m focusing on making things from scratch that I care about, and outsourcing the rest.

I’m not abiding by food rules I don’t believe in.

Like most Americans, I’ve been through phases of jumping on the fad diet bandwagon in hopes of solving some personal discovery, be it losing that magical five pounds or discovering a new secret source of energy. Every time, I end up falling off  (or jumping off) the bandwagon.

When I hear a new food idea that’s provocative, I’ll give it some thought and gradually adjust my diet if I deem it beneficial to my health and life.

I’m not living with messy cabinets.

This winter, I KonMaried my kitchen and found a place for (almost) everything in my cabinets. The payoff in my cooking and housekeeping has been immense. No longer do I delay baking brownies because I know I’ll need to find my 9×13 pan. Nor do I dread putting away my dishes because I’m not sure if I can get them all to go back in the way they came out.

Now that we’re almost two months into 2016, I’m as happy as ever about my decisions regarding what not to do in my kitchen. I’ve been able to embrace and enjoy my kitchen more than ever before.