Getting the House Back Together After Sending the Kids to School

If you are a mom of school-age children, then the impending start of the school year is probably feeling like Christmas. You’re so excited to get them back at school so you can get things around the house organized and cleaned instead of having a bunch of little ones camped out all day in front of the TV.

This is a time to restart your house now that it’s empty, and you can do a little bit of “spring cleaning” in the fall. Here are some top tips on how to get your house back into shape after a grueling summer with the kids:

• Clothes Clean-Up — One of the few things that kids get excited about when it comes to going back to school is shopping for new clothes. But if you’re going to make room for the new, this is the perfect time to clear out the old. Go through the kids’ closets and dressers and pull out all of the clothes that don’t fit anymore or are looking a little worn around the edges. Create a three-pile system—keep, donate, and trash. But don’t just do this for the kids. This is also a great time to get your own closet under control and pick yourself up a new outfit while you are at it.

• Summer Gear and Toys — If you have a pool or go to the beach quite a bit, then chances are you have lots of swimming toys lying around, from sand pails and shovels to floats and noodles. Now is the perfect time to put these away. Be sure to deflate the floats completely and fold them up and place everything in a tote (or two) so that you can unpack them when the summer comes around again.

• Refrigerator Maintenance — Now that the kids are gone, you should also take the time to get your refrigerator under control. Empty everything out and toss the expired foods. Be sure to clean all the drawers out with Clorox wipes to disinfect them. Also, pull the fridge out and be sure to clean off the coils to get rid of any accumulated dust. Now, you should have your fridge under control and be able to maintain it easier.

• Change the Air Filters — This is something that you need to do once every quarter or so. However, it’s really easy to forget to do it and let that time slip. So, take this as a reminder to change out the filters.

• School Supply Organization — If you have a home office or a desk that is used by the family for homework and computers, this is what you should use to get your school supplies organized. Extra paper, pens, and notebooks can be placed into bins and stored on or near the desk so that they can be pulled out when needed.

Now that summer is ending and everyone is heading back to school, it’s time to reclaim your home and get it back under control. This way, you can have some peace before the chaos of next summer arrives.

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