New Year Home Checklist

The beginning of the year may be cold and dark, but it can also be a time for bold beginnings. Make the most of this time by clearing space in your home, boosting warmth and dreaming up plans for the year ahead. Here are 10 to-dos to give your home a little midwinter TLC.

Give potted plants some TLC. If your house gets very dry in the winter with the heater on, you may need to add humidity to the air around some plants, especially citrus trees and ferns. You can use a humidifier or simply spritz them with plain water occasionally.

Check smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. With more heater use it is especially important during winter to make sure those smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are working. Use the test button on each device, and change batteries as needed.

Organize the board games. When bad weather has you stuck indoors and you’re looking for an alternative to screen time, board games and cards are a crowd-pleaser. Pull out everything you’ve got and check that each set has all of the pieces. Put games your family no longer enjoys aside to give away, and put the rest back neatly.

Clear home and wardrobe clutter. 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.

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.

Rotate your mattress. Before you put on a fresh set of sheets, take an extra minute to rotate the mattress if you haven’t done so recently. Rotating your mattress every few months will help it wear more evenly and extend its life (and comfort).

Cook to stock up your freezer. A few hours of cooking on a weekend can produce major dividends if you focus your efforts on big-batch suppers that can be frozen and reheated later. Knowing that you have homemade soup, stew, chili or casseroles in the freezer makes facing weeknight dinners much less stressful. Just add crusty bread and a simple salad and dinner will be ready in no time.

Boost warmth. Stay toasty and save on energy bills by blocking drafty doors with door sweeps or door snakes and warming up with rugs, throws and duvets. For even more energy savings, shut doors to unused rooms, move furniture away from heating vents and close the chimney flue when it’s not in use.

Start planning for a spring or summer home sale. If you’re considering putting your home on the market this year, it’s a good idea to start the process now. Set a timetable, interview potential real estate agents and make a list of projects that need to get done to help your home show well.

Give in to the urge to hibernate. In winter, it’s natural to want to spend extra time at home, just relaxing. Make yourself a haven for snuggling up to watch a movie or read. Layer on warming textiles, pour some hot tea or make cocoa, and settle in.