Holiday cleaning: get ready to host, and recover after

Hosting for the holidays is wonderful and exhausting. A little planning on both ends, before and after, keeps the focus on the people instead of the mess.

Before the guests arrive

Focus on the rooms people actually use: the entrance, living room, kitchen and the guest bathroom. Those four make the whole home feel ready.

• Clear surfaces and clean the guest bathroom top to bottom
• Deep clean the kitchen, it is about to work hard
• Fresh towels, empty trash, and a quick floor pass

After the party

The dishes are the easy part. It is the sticky floors, the overflowing bins, the spills you did not see and the bathroom that took the most traffic. Tackling it tired, late at night, is the worst.

Let someone else do the reset

Many families book a clean the day before to prep and the day after to recover. You enjoy the season, and your home is ready both times without you scrubbing at midnight.

Planning to host? Book your holiday clean early before the calendar fills up.