Dealing with Paper Clutter

How do you deal with paper clutter? You know - mail, bills, receipts...that stuff that just keeps coming and piling up? If you're anything like us, there are times when we have piles of that paper clutter all over. It's hard for me especially, since I can be a bit of a neat freak sometimes. And I have to try very hard to fight the urge not to throw everything away. (Sorry Trent, I love you!) So I'm sort of baring all today and showing you just how bad this can be. Especially in the kitchen. I've tried to contain this clutter in multiple ways:

A magnetic mail sorter stuck to the fridge....

A tabletop letter organizer...

Yet, piles and piles of papers still seem to form ALL OVER our kitchen!

On the microwave....

On the table....

And on the counters...

Really, any surface becomes a place to drop papers. So clearly, the solutions we do use aren't working for us! I'm tired of seeing them everyday and trying to look past them all the time. I even straighten the piles to make them look neater..but that, folks, just doesn't solve the problem! I am still in need of an organization solution that works for everything. 

So, I'm currently looking for new solutions! Scouring Pinterest and the internet for something that works for us. Here are a few I've found so far that look kind of promising:

(source: left, right - found on Pinterest)

(Source - with some good tips!)

I like the idea of vertical storage with a calendar right there to mark all of the bills that are due. If the section of the wall in our kitchen by the hallway ever gets finished, I plan on putting a chalkboard there where we can write bills due, groceries we need, etc. But that requires finishing of mudding and sanding....

Please tell me you have something better and that I'm not the only one this happens to? I'll keep you posted! :)