The holiday season can be a hectic time of year with festive parties to plan, family gatherings to attend, and many hours spent in the kitchen. When all is said and done, it’s easy to feel under-prepared as you go back to your normal routine, but there are many ways you can avoid feeling stressed as you enter the new year.
One of the best steps you can take to ring in the new year stress-free is preparing an organized kitchen space that is ready for January 1st! Follow these 8 simple tips and your new year will be off to a fresh, easy start.
8 Tips to Help Prepare Your Kitchen for a New Year
Here are 8 simple guidelines you can follow to ensure your kitchen is well-stocked and organized for the start of a new year!
Grocery Shop Strategically
Shopping at your local grocery store during the holiday season can seem overwhelming, but if you have a strong strategy for tackling the hustle and bustle, your holiday shopping experience can be a lot less stressful.
Research holiday hours – The first step to take in order to grocery shop strategically is researching holiday hours ahead of time. Most grocery stores have special hours of operation during the holiday season, which can make planning your trip to the grocery store inconvenient if you’re not aware of the changes. But if you know what days your favorite stores are open during the holidays, you can easily plan your grocery trips to conveniently fit into your busy holiday schedule! Most stores post these special hours on-site, on social media, and on their website.
Plan your grocery trips – Scheduling the days you shop and determining what you need to purchase during each grocery trip is crucial for avoiding stressful shopping experiences during the holiday season. Pick your shopping days based on how busy your schedule is and when your favorite grocery stores are open. Before you leave for the store, make a list of everything you need and stick to your list as closely as you can. And one last tip – avoid shopping when you’re hungry!
Shop for the New Year – Make a point to schedule one shopping trip just before New Year’s Eve, and make sure that your shopping list includes all the foods you’ll want to eat on New Year’s Day. This way, you can ensure you have all the fresh food you need to start the new year off right!
Having a strong plan of attack is the best way to get your grocery shopping done stress-free during the holidays!
Organize Your Kitchen
Getting all the food you need for the new year is one thing – but making sure your kitchen is ready to store all that food is a whole other story! Keep reading to find a few of our best tips to help you organize your kitchen for the new year.
Eat your leftovers – Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cooked veggies – these are just a handful of our favorite traditional dishes from the holiday season! With so much food being cooked and enjoyed at this time of year, it’s common for fridges to be piled high with casserole dishes and plates full of holiday leftovers. To help free up precious storage space in your fridge before the new year begins, make a point of eating your holiday leftovers before making too many fresh dishes.
Reorganize your fridge – Even once all your leftovers are eaten, you should do a thorough clean and reorganization of your fridge before the new year begins. Toss expired foods, clean any spills, and organize your fridge shelves, doors, and crisper drawers. Discover more tips for properly organizing your fridge (and keeping your produce fresh) here!
Store your festive dishware – If you’ve been setting the table with festive plates and serving platters throughout the holiday season, it’s a good idea to clean them and pack them up so you can bring out your every-day dishware before the new year begins. After the holidays, placing out your normal dishware can be a good physical reminder for your family that a new year means it’s time to get back into regular routine.
It’s much easier to start a new year off on the right foot when you have an organized kitchen space! Cleaning and organizing can often seem like tedious tasks, but they will always help to set you up for a successful and stress-free start to a new year.
Plan Your Meals
One more important step you can take for avoiding a stressful start to the new year is planning meals. An organized plan that outlines what you’re going to eat during the first few days of the new year ensures you start the year strong and you’re making your health a priority!
Plan New Year’s Day meals – If you know exactly what you’ll be eating for breakfast, lunch, and dinner on New Year’s Day, you can truly enjoy the first day of a new year and avoid any last-minute stress or inconvenience! In the days leading up to New Year’s Day, decide what you’ll be eating, purchase all the ingredients you’ll need, and prepare as much food as you can.
Try meal planning – A new year means a fresh start, so if you’ve been considering meal planning or adding weekly meal prepping to your schedule, there’s no better time to give it a try than January 1st! Create a meal plan for the first few days of the new year, and if you find planning your meals helpful, continue planning and prepping your meals every week. Click here for some of our best tips for meal planning (and ways to save money while doing it).
Start a New Year Strong
The last thing you want to do is start a new year feeling stressed and unorganized. When the holiday season ends, make a point of preparing your kitchen for the new year by grocery shopping strategically, organizing your kitchen space, and planning your meals. If you follow these simple steps, you are sure to start the new year off strong!
For more tips to start a new year feeling organized and prepared, check out these extra resources:
11 Ways Your Family Can Build Healthy Eating Habits5 Easy Ways to Eat
