8 Simple and Practical Things You Can Do to Organize and Prepare Your Home for the New Year

With the holidays just around the corner, your schedule is sure to get a lot busier preparing holiday feasts and attending virtual family reunions. Although it would be nice to have one last binge before starting a new diet or exercise regime, you don’t have to wait for the new year to start making improvements to your lifestyle. In the same way, it’s never too early to start cleaning and setting up new ways of doing household chores in preparation for the coming year. We’ve all been there and can agree that cleaning the entire house is a daunting task, especially when constantly interrupted by kids, so we’ve broken it down into smaller, more workable tasks that will hopefully make tidying up a much more approachable chore. Keep on reading to find out how you can work some KonMari magic before ringing in the new year. 

8 Simple and Practical Things You Can Do to Organize and Prepare Your Home for the New Year

Refill alcohol dispensers and check other sanitation supplies.

Staying at home is the best defense, but if you need to go out, sanitize with alcohol often and disinfect as soon as you return home. We all know the drill. Whether your household uses automatic alcohol dispensers, shoe sanitation mats, uv-disinfection boxes, or all of the above, it’s important to ensure they are functioning properly and are sufficiently filled. Also take inventory of the household’s supply of face masks, shields, and other sanitation supplies and place an order should you need to restock anytime soon.

 

Clean up the closet and prepare donation boxes.

There is usually a ton of surprises that await when a closet clean up is in the works. From new clothes you forgot you bought to old clothes you can hand-me-down to a younger kid, there’s usually a lot of good that comes our of cleaning up the closet. Try not to be overly sentimental when sorting through the clothing. It may sound like a good idea to keep an old sweater because of the memories, but doesn’t it sound even better to share it with someone who needs the extra warmth?

 

Set-up a self-clean up system for the kids and their toys.

In order to teach kids to clean up after themselves and appreciate their assortment of toys, try storing their toys in transparent storage bins and only allowing them to open and play with one bin at a time. Should they want to play with another set of toys, they must first neatly put back all the toys in the first storage bin and only then can they trade it in for a new one. Not only will this system encourage them to tidy up, it also teaches them to plan out their day so they know exactly which bins they want to play with and for how long they can have them open.

 

Change the sheets and other beddings.

There’s just something so comforting about the smell of freshly laundered sheets and linens. Experts recommend changing the sheets every week or two, but we know this is a chore often put off. Don’t slack off this time because it’s a simple enough task to do with a little help. Make it a family affair by having everyone help out to make the chore a little bit more entertaining, although not always quicker! If you’re up for it, why not also turn over the mattress to even out the wear and indentations.

 

Sanitize and disinfect all high-touch surfaces.

Your family’s health and safety is the most important blessing you have been given this holiday season. Continue taking care of them by continuing to be vigilant and following safety protocols and procedures. Disinfect your home regularly with expert-approved disinfecting products, most especially high-touch surfaces like door knobs, light switches, tabletops, faucets, and the like.

 

Prepare a cleaning basket to keep in each room.

 

 

Different floors and surfaces require different types of cleaning supplies and equipment. Instead of storing your assortment of cleaning needs in one space, prepare cleaning baskets per floor or per room depending on the needs of the area and store them nearby. The accessibility and convenience of these cleaning baskets provide one less excuse when it’s time to clean up.

 

Practice your New Year's resolution before the year even kicks in.

Trust us, it will get easier if you start a little earlier than the rest of the pack. Whether it’s resolving to put everything back in its place before bed or doing the dishes immediately after every meal, building the habit before the New Year starts will help give you the momentum needed to continue with a strong start. Just remember that it’s okay to make mistakes sometimes and to continue despite them.

 

Empty all the trash bins.

There’s nothing extraordinary about this last one. It’s actually a task so mundane it’s done by every household every single day, but we included it in the list for its symbolism—to get rid of the garbage and start the year fresh. With so much challenges and negativity brought about by the past year, it would take a weight off your shoulders to let go of toxic influences, to forgive broken promises, and to move on from old relationships. Attract positive energy and uplifting people in the coming year and notice the world of difference it makes.

 

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