Summer's here, hot, high and sweaty. Vacations beckon. The garden takes on a life of its own.

Busy families don't have much time for home chores these months. School's out, travel's in and it's easy to let life slide on the home front.  

These weeks will run more smoothly if you keep tabs on these important areas in the Summer Cleaning Chore Checklist.  This summer cleaning chore checklist list tackles hot-weather issues, summer health and safety.

Spring blows in with warm wind and the promise of ... spring cleaning?

Certainly, there's a lot to be said for the notion of spring cleaning. It's a good time of year to rout out the dirt, dust and disorder that's crept into the home since the holiday season. By doing a thorough clean once a year, no area of the home gets too far removed from the results earned by energetic mops, vacuums and cleaning cloths.

Longer days bring a new burst of energy for many of us, and using that bonus to deep-clean our homes seems like a good match for rising springtime spirits.

All good times must end; with the arrival of New Year's Eve, it's time to wrap up the House and Holidays Plan and move into an organized New Year.

In the coming week, we'll tie up the season's loose ends, make New Year's resolutions, prepare to store holiday decor, and set the stage for next year's celebration.

See you next year!

This Week's Focus: New Year's

Ring in the New Year this week, then make a good start toward an organized Christmas next year. 

It's New Year's week at the Holiday Grand Plan! 

We'll record Christmas memories, prepare for New Year's celebrations, and begin to look ahead to a new start in the new year. 

Sure, you love the holiday season--but just not so much of it! This year, you're hoping to cut the crazy out of Christmas: to trim the celebration back to one that is sustainable and calm.

Question is, just how do you do less--and enjoy it more--during the Christmas holiday season?

If you're aiming to simplify Christmas, take time to ponder ways to cut stress, save money and tame over-the-top traditions. Setting simplicity strategies in place early will keep you from being swept up in holiday madness.  Try these ideas:

Recently, I eavesdropped on an online discussion about teaching children to give. 

The original writer was a concerned, conscientious parent of a preschooler. This father shared his plan to teach his daughter about holiday giving. They would, he wrote, sort through the child's toys and set aside several toys "to give to needy children."

Autumn is here.  Look around the house. Does your temperature rise when you see stained carpets, smudged switch plates and faded window coverings?

With Christmas on the horizon, it's tempting to dive right in to a long list of home improvements. Stop! Wait! Biting off more than you can chew on the home front is a sure-fire recipe for holiday stress. 

Holidays ahead!  About this time of year, it's a good idea to contemplate the toy situation in your child's room.  Adding Santa's bounty to overstuffed kids' rooms is a recipe for January clutter disaster. Clear the decks and cut kid clutter with a pre-holiday toy clear-out.

It's a fact of modern life. Children's playthings have exploded in number, size, and complexity, while children's storage options have remained static. Just try storing a Happy Meal collection in the average toy box! Even the best-organized kid's rooms can easily drown in today's toy avalanche.

We’ve all experienced this seasonal panic: it's the night of the office holiday party and a good white shirt has gone missing!  Calm the chaos with a pre-holiday wardrobe check.

Assessing the State of the Closet for all family members before the holiday begins means never having to say, "It's in the wash!"