2023 - HHP - Week 4 - Close to Home

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Holiday_Mom

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We are finishing our first month of cleaning and preparing for the holidays with a session either in the children's rooms or another room.

Week 1 - Planning and Paperwork
Week 2 - Calendar and Creativity
Week 3 - Me & Mine
Week 4 - Close to Home
Week 5 - House Room
Week 6 - Wardrobe
Week 7 - Bed & Bath
Week 8 - Family Space
Week 9 - Public Space
Week 10 - Cooking Space
Week 11 - Food Storage
Week 12 - Dining Space
Week 13 - Entryway
Week 14 - Storage
Week 15 - Final Clean
Week 16 - Nearly There
Week 17 - Celebration
Week 18 - New Year’s

Children's rooms and play spaces are the focus this week in the House & Holidays Plan. Be ready for Santa ... and Grandma!
Here come the small fry! This week in the House and Holidays Plan, our hearts are close to home as we tackle the children's rooms.
Empty nest or child-free family? Use this week to deal with any bonus rooms or areas in our home--or take a free week!
This is also the week we bring a little bit of reality to our dreams of a holiday house, with the Seasonal Spruce-Up exercise. Designed to get our head out of the clouds and our pocketbooks firmly anchored, the exercise cuts through Furniture Flyer Fog and brings sanity to preparing the house for the season.
Finally, in holiday prep, we'll start on stocking stuffers, plan Halloween costumes, and begin working on Christmas cards or letters this week.

This Week's Focus: Kid's Room or Bonus Room

With school in full swing, what better time to turn attention to children's bedrooms? Clearing clutter, assessing wardrobes and creating space for holiday gifts will mean a calmer, more centered life for your little one.
No children in the household? Use this week to work on a bonus area or room in your home ... or just play catch-up (or hooky!)
In holiday prep, we'll address the "state of the house" with a home spruce-up exercise. It's designed to help you identify realistic and attainable home improvement goals around the house as you prepare for Christmas.
And don't miss the last clearance sales in the back-to-school aisle! Heavily discounted craft supplies, gadgets and school goodies make great stocking stuffers!

This Week's Household Checklist

  • Declutter, clean and organize children's rooms. A pre-season toy declutter makes room for gifts to come--and with fall's cooler weather at hand, children will need space for indoor play and homework. Once the room is decluttered and cleaned, work with your child to create efficient storage for pared-down possessions.
  • No children in your household? Tackle any bonus room or area this week--or take the week off!

This Week's Holiday Prep Checklist

  • Seasonal Spruce-Up exercise. Complete the seasonal spruce-up exercise to plan any pre-holiday home improvements. It'll help you make a realistic list of home improvement chores to complete before the holiday season gets underway.
  • Declutter children's toys. Work with your child to reduce clutter in the toy closet. Assessing the remaining toys will help you make good choices as you shop for gifts--or give Christmas gift recommendations to Nana and Grandma!
  • Begin collecting stocking stuffers. Print a stocking stuffers inventory to remind you about stocking gifts on hand.
  • Hit the back-to-school clearance sales. After-season sales are a great source for stocking stuffers and crafts supplies. Check your wrap and mail checklist, too; don't forget to load up on tape, mailing supplies and scissors at bargain prices!
  • Consult the kids and decide on Halloween costumes. Schedule any sewing sessions in good time to be completed by October 10. Halloween is closer than you think!
  • Think ahead to family Advent celebrations. Look for creative ways to make the season come alive at the library or on the Web. Order any day-by-day materials or Advent calendars now.
  • Start working on Christmas cards or letters. Divide the Christmas card list into five sections. Complete one section this week. Goal: to be finished writing, signing and addressing cards by November 15.
  • Take note of birthdays and anniversaries. While addressing Christmas cards and hunting for gift ideas, it's natural for thoughts of loved ones to come to mind. Add a Birthdays and Anniversaries Calendar to the House and Holidays Planner. As you write cards, note your loved one's special days. It'll remind you to send cards and letters throughout the year!
What do you hope to get done this week?
 
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Holiday_Mom

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This week marks the beginning of looking around at colleges with our youngest child. How did that happen? Having done this with our four other children, I've gotten better at juggling the HHP and college visits on the weekends. This year, we only have four scheduled. My focus this week will not be on a room but rather on a rather large pile of papers and photos that need to be filed away.

Household Checklist

  • Declutter, clean and organize paperwork.

Holiday Prep Checklist

  • Seasonal Spruce-Up exercise. I have an ongoing list but I'll go through each room to see if there are any quick fixes that can be done.
  • Begin collecting stocking stuffers.
  • Discuss Halloween costume ideas.
  • Check for pink and purple Advent candles.
  • Start working on Christmas cards or letters. Make note of those who lost a loved one this year and pull out the special Christmas card for those families.
 
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luludou

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Dec 28, 2007
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Yay! I deep-cleaned both basement bedrooms this weekend (dd and ds' old rooms), so that is done.

I need to order some ribbon to finish the crafts ornaments I made for friend and family this Christmas
Also need to work on stuffing stuffers. This year only the grandkids (4) and they are yound so should be much easier.

I just invited my whole family for Canadian thanksgiving so I need to plan that
 

happy2bme

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My Happy Place
This week I will work in my spare room.

HOLIDAY CHECKLIST:

vacuum & mop floor, clean light fixture, wash walls, window & curtain
clean shelving unit and closet - done

HOLIDAY PREP CHECKLIST:

create stocking stuffer list
seasonal spruce up exercise -
done
assign storage tote for gifts
 
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Holiday_Mom

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This week was a rough week at work. It turned out to be one of those weeks where I had more work and less time than I thought. I had two evening meetings and spent a few hours another night working on things for work. The paperwork didn't get done. That will be a project for another time.

I didn't get to shopping for stocking stuffers but I made a list and will pick up items as I see them or as they go on sale. I also didn't get to the Christmas cards. Maybe next week?