a fresh start

i love the new year, not because i get to dress up and drink champagne and kiss my gorgeous man at midnight.. but because it's a true fresh start. and i'm not talking resolutions...

New Years Eve, i have this to-do list. it's not fun, but it helps me start the new year off on my best foot. here's how i'll be spending the last day of 2018. 

donate

everything i don't like, use, & doesn't fit. this applies to everything: Christmas decorations that i didn't use and won't in the future, furniture and pillows, home decor, bedding, kitchen supplies, anything that needs a new home. i put them in boxes and drop them off at my local Goodwill or Salvation Army. Books and games i always take to hospitals and libraries. 

organize

my closet, storage unit, pantries, under the bed, console cabinets... after properly stored, each box is labeled with exactly what it entails; for under the bed i try to match all the bedding and minimize what is under there. 

in my pantry, all flours, rices, oatmeals, sugar etc go into labeled matching jars

the closet is organized by item type then by color. most worn shoes are made accessible etc. 

my cabinets need to make sense: so all pots and pans in one, napkins and placemats and kitchen towels in another, food storage in another and so on.

clean

this is not the typical weekly sweep the floors, vacuum and wipe down surfaces cleaning job. i move all my furniture, get every corner, use cleaning products i haven't all year; thoroughly purifying my home. 

laundry

i always like fresh sheets, blankets, throw pillow covers on for New Years Eve. I empty the laundry baskets cleaning all the dirty clothes and put them away. we even wash the rugs in the kitchen (they are machine washable). 

flowers

i buy a bouquet of fresh flowers to put on my kitchen island

stock the fridge

cleaning (above) also includes the wipe down and the tossing of any old food. but i like to stock my fridge new years eve with some healthy produce, organic finds, lots of waters and some Kombucha. 

carwash 

i get my car thoroughly cleaned: waxed and vacuumed on the inside. i'll put a full tank of gas in & clean out any items that have been stored where they don't belong. 

meditate

this is huge, and i tend to forget to meditate everyday. it's something i'm always working on, each year. so on New Years Eve I always set an alert to meditate each morning at the same time. 

sage

once my home feels clean, organized, and fresh. i sage the entire space from the entryway to the kitchen, hallway, bonus room and bedroom. sage helps neutralize the energy in your home. another word for this is 'smudging' and it's an old Native American ritual.