Houseworks + Holidays

Celebrate! The height of the season is here, so draw close to family and friends.

Only minimum maintenance is needed in the house this week.

Holiday prep centers on those few chores needed to make a smooth move between Christmas and the New Year.

Season's greetings!

Celebration Week Assignments

Two weeks before Christmas? It's time for a final finish cleaning at the Houseworks holiday plan.

We've decluttered and deep-cleaned; this week's goal is to bring the whole house into a ready state for the remainder of the season.

In holiday prep, we'll complete gift wrapping, plan Christmas dinner, mail Christmas cards and bring home the ultimate seasonal symbol: the Christmas tree.

Final Clean Week Assignments

This week in the Houseworks Holiday Plan, we'll open the door to the season, focusing on the front porch, front door, entryway or foyer.

Decorations come out this week, if they haven't already. We'll inventory and inspect decorations and begin to decorate for the season. Mail chores get a nod: we'll send party invitations and wrap domestic gifts for mailing. Finally, the first-of-the-month status check means it's Deadline Week for crafts projects and homemade gifts.

Entry Space Week Assignments

American Thanksgiving reminds us to be grateful for our bounty--and in most homes, that blessing is most clearly seen in the larder. Refrigerator, freezer and pantry hold a wealth of foodstuffs--and with holidays ahead, these food storage areas will be called into front-row service.

This week, we'll declutter, organize and clean food storage areas. Whether you have a single shelf and refrigerator-top freezer unit or dedicated areas for pantry and freezer storage, it's time to bring order to the larder.

Holiday prep chores run in harmony this week. We'll inventory the freezer and pantry, take advantage of seasonal sales to stock up, and build frozen assets to see us through December's busy evenings.

Food Storage Week Assignments

It's Halloween week! Along with the trick-or-treaters comes a new pace to the season. Thanksgiving is on the horizon, so we turn our attention to the public space in our home: the living room or great room.

In holiday prep, we'll celebrate Halloween, then tuck its decorations away, replacing them with Thanksgiving themes. We'll complete Christmas cards and buy holiday stamps, and start saving mailing boxes so that we can recycle them to send gifts.

Finally, we'll prepare for Time Change Sunday with a household safety check.

Public Space Week Assignments