Christmas is Over, Now What?

Dec 26th Plan: Christmas is Over, Now What?

Although the holidays are a very enjoyable time of the year, once Christmas is over most people turn their thoughts towards getting cleaned up and organized. This year, why not get a jump on the New Year by developing a “December 26th Plan?” By utilizing the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day, you might find that you won’t even need to add as many New Year’s resolutions to your list. Here are some great organizational tips you can use to develop your own after-the-holidays plan.

De-cluttering Your Home

Even though Christmas is over, there will likely still be a lot of hustle and bustle going on around the home. Even if you don’t have the time and energy to do some of the more thorough housecleaning chores, you should definitely work on de-cluttering. Many times simply removing the most obvious clutter around the house will instantly make everything look more organized. Focus on the areas that will give you the most “bang for the buck,” so that you’ll see quick results. Cleaning off horizontal surfaces can be a great place to start. Cleaning up any areas that have items stacked on the floor is also important. By keeping clutter under control, your house will remain presentable for holiday guests that may drop by. Then, after the New Year arrives, you can focus on the more intensive cleaning tasks.

Un-Decorating Your Home

Although taking down your holiday decorations is not usually as enjoyable as putting them up, it’s an important part of the post-holiday season. This year, focus on developing a plan for taking down your decorations that will make storing them and putting them up next year more efficient. For example, if you know you have a bad string of Christmas lights, throw them away instead of putting them back in the box to re-discover next year. If you bought some new decorations this year, donate or simply discard some of your older decorations. Purchase a few specialized storage containers if necessary instead of just stuffing your decorations back into the same old worn cardboard box. Wash all your holiday linens before storing them to keep them in pristine condition. Dust your ornaments and wrap cords neatly before packing your decorations away for next season. As a result, you’ll find that putting your decorations up next year will be even more enjoyable.

Focus on Family Time

The week between Christmas and New Year’s Day is a great time to focus on your family. Although you might have a desire to jump right in and get things cleaned and organized after the 25th, this might detract from your family’s holiday enjoyment. Using the week after Christmas for creating an organizational plan instead of immediately starting on intensive cleaning is usually the best solution. Start planning for your bigger cleaning chores, but make sure to devote plenty of time to enjoying the season with your family. After all, you can clean and organize all year long, but the holidays only come around once a year.

by Jessica Ackerman of http://www.walldecorandhomeaccents.com

Jessica Ackerman is a freelance writer and works for WallDecorandHomeAccents.com. She shares her wealth of knowledge on decorating with decorative door toppers and iron wall grille.