Simple Steps to Prep My Home For Vacation
Do you ever leave for vacation feeling frustrated because you left your house in an uproar just trying to get out the door? I hate that feeling. And then rather than feeling refreshed when you get home, you are greeted with the mess and all the fun you had on your trip just dissipates.
I have great news! It doesn’t have to be this way. Pre-pandemic we traveled a lot and travel is starting to pick back up. I knew I didn’t want to be overwhelmed trying to leave, but I love the feeling of walking back in the door of my home to a tidy house. So what is an easy way to do this? I want to share the simple steps I take to get my home ready for me to come back from vacation and not lose the relaxation.
I usually start a few days before with some of these steps. This is very similar to my Weekend Routine, which gets me ready for a fresh week.
Here we go:
Inbox - Do I have any paperwork that needs to be taken care of? This ensures that I don’t miss any deadlines. And also ensures that I only come home to deal with what is in my mailbox.
Errands - Do I need to drop clothes at the dry cleaners or a bank deposit on my way out of town? Is there a return I need to take care of before I go out of town? (This can be taken care of a few days before I leave.)
House Reset - The night before I leave I want to be sure that my house is picked up. Sometimes I don’t have time to clean the entire house before I leave, but I will wipe up the kitchen and bathroom and run the vacuum. Because I am diligent with my Weekly Cleaning Routine the house is ok to skip a week if I am gone. However, I do want to ensure that I come home to a clean house!
Laundry - I try to make sure that all the laundry in the house is finished. If I’m leaving early and don’t have time to do a small load that morning to finish it up, I hang all towels and washcloths where they can fully dry while I’m gone. Prepping for laundry is something you can start a few days before you leave. Try to only have one or two very small loads to do the day before you leave.
Trash - Don’t forget to take the trash out before you leave home! No one wants to come home to a stinky trash can.
Fridge - I clean the fridge out a few days before we leave. If we have things that are close to going bad or will go bad while I’m gone I either use them or freeze them.
Occasionally I am leaving town without my family. Because I am the one who takes care of food in our house, I usually make sure there are a few things in the freezer for easy dinners. I also place a grocery delivery order. This makes it easy for me and them.
If you are going to be gone a while, check with your local police department to see if they offer a “check-in” service. If we let our local police know how long we will be gone they will come by and check on your home to make sure everything is ok.
These are simple steps and because I typically know well in advance when I will be leaving for a few days, I have the time to get these things done. When I do these I am very grateful to walk into a clean home. Because I have caught up with laundry and my inbox before I left, I just need to empty the suitcases and get back to normal life.
I created a blog post last summer with some travel tips. You can find that HERE.
I hope you have lots of summer fun planned. But whether you are leaving home for work or fun, I believe these tips will help you feel great about returning home!