November's To Do List

from Better Homes and Gardens

It's "go time" people!  Thanksgiving is two weeks away and you might have company coming, so here's a few things you can take care of NOW to help things go more smoothly LATER. :)

• Go ahead and prep your guest space.  Make sure there are clean sheets on the bed, the room is dusted, vacuumed and straightened.  It's much easier to give it a once over right before guests arrive than to try to do a full cleaning.  Add a few recent magazines, a small vase with fresh flowers, and some bottled water at the last minute to help your guests feel right at home.
• Get your yard work caught up.  Run the mover, rake and bag leaves, trim the lawn or hedges.  Anything you can take care of now will help things look better later, even if there's a fresh layer of leaves on the ground.  If you're really short on time, simply blow leaves off the driveway, sidewalks, and back deck.  Keep your pansies, mums, and other winter annuals watered sufficiently so they look healthy, too!
• Make a list of meals you plan to make and baking you intend to do. Use your calendar or daytimer to help you out; do you need to bring dishes or treats to any work or school parties? Will you have overnight guests in the next couple of weeks? This will be 30 minutes well-spent!   Have your recipes handy so you can note what ingredients you may to need purchase.
• Stock your pantry and freezer.  Most grocery stores are running wonderful specials these days so stock up on sugar, flour, baking mixes, butter, rice or pasta, jarred sauces, broth for soups, frozen rolls or biscuits, frozen vegetables, coffee, snack foods... anything that will keep or can be frozen.  Make sure you can pull together a quick meal or whip up a batch up muffins in case unexpected company arrives. If you buy only perishables around the holiday your grocery shopping will go much faster!
• Pull out any linens and serving pieces you plan to use at your big meal.  Make sure the linens are clean and pressed and you have plenty of napkins, too.  Go ahead and wash your serving pieces so they're ready to go.
• Polish your silver.  Enlist the kids or hubby to help get this onerous task done.  When your table is gleaming you'll be so thankful you invested the time.
• Reload your candle supply.  Nothing creates holiday ambiance like flickering candles, so don't be caught short.  I try to keep a variety on hand-- pillars of varying sizes, tapers, scented, unscented.
• Stock the bar. Try to keep several bottles of wine, red and white,and some beer handy. If you know in advance what your company's favorite cocktail is, go ahead and add those supplies to your liquor cabinet.  I also keep a couple of bottles of champagne chilled in my outside refrigerator.  Sometimes we just feel like celebrating!
• This last one may sound crazy, but go ahead and purchase those Christmas or holiday cards AND STAMPS.  Shutterfly is running sales and the selection of boxed cards is quite good in the stores now.  It's so much easier to tackle the task of sending out your cards, if you've already bought them.  Buying your stamps now will eliminate the post office crunch during the month of December.  We purchase a roll of 100 early in November every year.  If we don't use them all, we're already ahead for the new year.
• Count your blessings.  Write one down and post it on your refrigerator every day.  Keep the reason for the THANKSgiving holiday front and center as you go about your tasks.

When the holiday arrives and your home is full of family and friends, simply enjoy.  You will have earned it.