Organizing Tip of the Week - Cleaning After Your Thanksgiving Meal

Thanksgiving is a couple of days away, and you are either planning on going to a dinner or hosting one. A lot of preparation goes into planning holiday meals but in my experience, it is always good to have a plan, which leads me to today’s organizing tip: Cleaning after your Thanksgiving meal. So, here goes:

1) Before the meal (a couple days before), clean out your refrigerator and make space for leftovers. If you plan on having leftovers, buy extra plastic bags/containers.

2) When cooking, prep cookware with cooking spray or use foil (this will make it easier to wash the dishes).

3) On the day of, try to clean as you cook and leave the area tidy before the meal, this includes clearing counter tops, taking out the trash, washing dishes, emptying out the dishwasher.

The more you do before, the easier it will be to clean after!

4) Triple line the trash can, it will be easier to have a trash bag right away.

5) After the meal, handle the food first. Have the guests leave their dishes behind and ask them to carry one food item to the kitchen (don't worry, it is okay to ask! The goal is to finish quickly so you can spend more time with them and not in the kitchen).

6) Store food/offer guests the leftovers to take home and soak pans.

7) Do the dishes in shifts. At this point, all you should have left to deal with are the dishes (great job)!

8) Time to relax, have a drink, and enjoy time with family friends.