Winter season can be cold, gloomy with months of stormy weather, but it can also be a time for bold beginnings inside the home. Make the most of your month by clearing space in your home after the Christmas season by boosting warmth and dreaming up plans for the year ahead. Here are 12 to-dos to give your home a little mid winter boost.
Refresh Children's Play Areas
Entice your little ones stuck indoors to have creative play. Try adding a chalkboard/whiteboard wall, a play tent/tepee fort, or an area for messy art, a “stage” for acting or a tumbling mat. Useful simple ideas, such as arranging furniture or rotate books and have your little one join you in making change.
Check Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors
With more heater use and wood fires in the fireplace, it is especially important during winter to make sure those smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are working. Stock up on flash lights, candles and emergency items for the cold months ahead. Test the alarms, or change batteries if needed. Smoke detectors should be replaced very 10 years.
Give Potted Plants some extra TLC
If your house gets very dry in the winter with the heater on, you may need to add a humidifier to the home space & around some house plants. If a humidifier isn't available, spritz them with water occasionally.
Organize the Toys & Games
When you are stuck indoors and looking for an alternative to couch sitting and screen time, board games and cards are a fun, witty and pleasing. Pull it all out and check that each set has all of the pieces. Put games your family no longer enjoys and give away, and colour code your top favourites and put away neatly.
Clear Home and Wardrobe De-cluttering
Make a fresh start with the new year and clear out the clutter. If dealing with the whole house feels overwhelming, focus on just a few categories of items, such as clothes, books and children’s toys.You can organize your wardrobe by colour or by the types of clothing for fun.
Organize Cold-weather Accessories
Stay toasty warm with plush, thick socks, comfortable hats, scarves and gloves. Sort through your sock drawer, entryway baskets and closets or anywhere else cold-weather accessories are hiding, and take stock of what you have.
Clean out the Kitchen and Pantry
Remove everything from the pantry, toss out stale and expired foods and wipe down the shelves before putting everything back. Clean out the fridge and freezer, and clear off countertops. Let the refreshed space motivate you to stick with your health resolutions for the new year.
Protect Pipes from Freezing
Why? Because frozen pipes can burst, leading to costly repairs. If you haven’t done so yet, be sure to insulate any exposed outdoor pipes. And if you’re planning to be away from home, ask a friend or neighbor to turn on your water to clear the pipes and keep them active. Also, find out where your home’s water shut-off valve is so you can cut off the water quickly if a pipe does burst — and be sure to show your house sitter where it is.
Knock heavy snow & Icycles from Tree Branches & Roof tops
Heavy layers of snow and sharp icycles or ice dams can cause tree limbs to break — roofs can collapse and drain spouts can break, and water leakage, which can be especially dangerous if positioned near your home and entryways.
Organize your Holiday Decorations
If you haven't already taken down the Christmas decorations, now is the time to re-organize them for next season. Take the time to do it with care and you will be thankful later. We all know what its like at the beginning of decorating and being at a loss of where mom's favourite mantel piece is. Consider giving away ornaments that didn’t make it onto the tree this year, and repair or toss broken items. Wrap delicate ornaments in tissue paper, and wrap string lights & garland around cardboard to prevent tangling. Organize them by colour, or by room, boxing them into containers that are specifically labeled.
Tip: If you are feeling at a loss of what to do, try hiring a Professional Organizer to help. Use local Victoria professionals, such as Space in Your Place
Disclaimer:
The information provided in these posts are for general purposes only. It is not written nor intended to provide legal advice or opinions of any kind. No one should act upon, refrain from acting, based solely upon the materials provided & recorded, or through any hypertext links and other general information, without first seeking appropriate legal and/or other professional advice.