Things to do now for HGP 2017...

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AuntJamelle

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Just a few thoughts for those of us that are planning on doing the HGP this year :)

Do you have the cleaning supplies you need? All stocked up on your favorite cleaners? Magic Erasers? Swiffer duster refills? Silver polish? That special cleaner you love? Rubber gloves? Steel wool?

Sometimes there are particular cleaning items that we use for special jobs that we might not keep in stock all the time. Try to think of those now and add them to your shopping lists between now and the start of the HGP.

I browsed the cleaning pages for each room on the HGP to jog my memory on what I might need/want along these lines...

How do you want to handle meals on heavy cleaning days? If you work outside of the home like me, you'll be trying to get things done on the weekend and during the evenings. Weeknights are crazy enough for me, so I usually hit tasks hard on Saturday and Sunday, finishing up little bits as needed on weeknights.

Getting dinner taken care of on top of the extra work can be a challenge. Give some thought to easy meal options you can plan ahead for on your heavy HGP days. Frozen pizza? Crockpot meals? Cold cuts from the deli, cheese slices and bakery bread for sandwiches? And I'm sure our family will be ordering pizza at least once so I'm just going to budget for that now, lol!

Couldn't hurt, might help, to brainstorm about this now :)

Optional, but fun: Your HGP Soundtrack

Are there songs/artists that you might enjoy listening to while cleaning? Create that playlist or locate those CDs now! Swing music can be fun to clean to - nice uptempo beat to keep you moving with a smile!

Prepare the family!

You guys probably already do this, but I make sure I remind DS more than once as the HGP approaches. Especially in regards to certain things I will need his help with - taking screens off windows, moving in the tall ladder so I clean the high up places, etc.

I schedule my HGP weeks via Google Calendar and I invite DS to the ones I need his help on with a note. Simple, but it helps us!

What else can you guys think of to get prepared or just get our thoughts in gear for this year? HHP folks chime in too - regardless of the plan - the intent is the same!
 

luludou

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AJ you always have the most inspiring posts! I know last year I did take a note to have some food prepped for those intensive chore days for which I do NOT have the time to cook.
 
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Minta

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I think this is where the make ahead meals may come in very handy: casseroles or meals I can toss into my crock pot for sure. Soups and sandwiches would be good too.

Umm maybe even the night before make a breakfast casserole.
 
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sweetpumkinpye

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AJ once again thank yo for a great post. I need to sit down with my planner and make sure that I have all these things in place. Will need to prep a few meals for the really big cleaning days, as I know that I will be tired on those days.

Will make a list for the cleaners for this weeks shopping list....all the stores are full of "Spring cleaning" items right now.
 
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Skippy1707

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I agree - I think meal planning is going to be my main one so I will make sure to have plenty of things I can put into the slow cooker and just let it cook itself all day long whilst I crack on with the HGP.

I dont use a lot of cleaners in the house apart from the obvious bleach, dettol, lemon juice and vinegar which I keep in as standard - although I will probably need to stock up on clothes and scourers before than as well as binbags! Also recycling bags will be picked up before hand too since most of my excess clutter is paperwork
 
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jollykelly

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Great thread AJ!

I usually do HHP, but this year I will sprinkle in some aspects of HGP but here are some things that I do to prepare (In additional to what you have listed about the cleaning supplies and preparing the family)

  • Get printer supplies ready - I use a three ring binder to say organized, so I always make sure that I have enough paper and ink on hand before the plan starts
  • Dig out my Christmas thingys - I like to drink from my Christmas Mug, write with my Christmas pen, make lists on my Christmas stationary, etc when working the plan. I dig these all out ahead of time so I am ready to go.
  • Start a pantry box - Nothing fancy here. The pantry box is the box I use to put in the extra baking supplies I buy each week. I keep it separate in the pantry so I can easily inventory and then just take out that box when ready to bake.
  • Check my calendar - I have 2 days each week off of work, they quickly get filled with my daughters softball games, church stuff, etc. As the plan approaches I literally will block off time in my calendar and simply label it HHP. Everyone else will know that is when I will be working on this, and I tend to not get behind when it is on my calendar.
 

tanya

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Kelly,
I also like to plan with my Christmas thingys. Last year I had the inspired idea to put them all away together in one box so that when the time came i could just pull them out and start. Its just a large shoe box that I tucked into my pantry. I covered it with Christmas paper- its got Christmas mug, pens, stationary, CD, stickers.
Pattting self on back for this... lol
 

AuntJamelle

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Great ideas, you guys! I'm loving it!!!

This girl is so, so sad - I was looking for my Christmas CDs and the HORROR - they are missing! Can. Not. Find. Them.

No clue where they are. I know they are all together in a small box. Where that is... Maybe Santa knows :(

So as we approach the HGP one of my new goals is to keep searching for those! I have this really bad feeling they got put inside a larger box that got stuck who knows where in the North Pole storage area. I just can't see me doing that because I KNOW I listen to those more than just at Christmas-time.
 

Skippy1707

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Well I am sat now making a list of things we need for he HGP
- bin bags
- clothes
- antibacterial cleaner
- bleach
- polish
- pegs
- recycling bags
- storage boxes
- bill Filofax

Food in for slow cooker meals
Easy to grab lunch things
Things to keep the kids occupied
 

HouseElf

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Excellent idea! Adding a new list to my weekend shopping to get ready for HGP :)
 

sweetpumkinpye

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Have picked up all the cleaning supplies that I need and they are in the cupboard ready to go.
I still need to prepare a few quick dinners for in the freezer but am trying to get that done this weekend. I still have some soup and a few things left from the winter so I can use those if needed.

I think that the planner is ready to go...
 

Miss JoDee

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I have to get a planner ready yet, am off work Wed. and Thurs. so should be able to print it.
 

AuntJamelle

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I picked up a box of Swiffer duster refills last trip to the store. Will get some Kaboom cleaner this next trip - I'll use that to help deep clean the walk in tile shower and the tub surround in the other bathroom on the main floor.

I have plenty of Magic Erasers - we ordered a bulk pack of the generic melamine foam blocks. They work great! I have a new box of steel wool too so should be good there.

I do need to pick up more silver polish, I'm almost out.
 
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HouseElf

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Okay I am a little pumped to clean now ;)

Made totes for kitchen, bathroom, living spaces and bedrooms!
Purchased baskets, new dusting cloths, cleaners and printed off labels for each.
Added gloves for the bathroom tote, and a new toilet brush to the bathroom cleaning arsenal.

Purchased an extra set of ink cartridges, just in case - as I never seem to know when I need them until I am half way through a big printing job!
 

sweetpumkinpye

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Tam, never thought of stocking up on the printer cartridges, what a great idea. While I am at it I will need to check how I am going for printer paper.
 
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AuntJamelle

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Got my Kaboom and silver polish! I think I'm going to start my cleaning on the front porch on Saturday. DH will be at work and DS will be playing so it should be a good stretch of uninterrupted time. At least until DS decides he wants me to play with him :)
 

sweetpumkinpye

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I am just holding off one more week to check the weather and then I am starting!!!!
 

aggy

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Taking notes from you ladies. I am going to pick up my cleaning supplies next week (pay week). The weather has been awesome these last few days. Would have been a good time to get some cleaning done.
 

MinnieCo

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I was going with the HHP plan this year, but you're making me what to do the HGP..lol But I just kinda did my own this summer and really cleaned up, so I'm going to try something different.