17 Nov Twelve ways a housekeeper can help with your holiday to-do list

If you’re looking around your house in a moment of high stress and wondering if you should hire a housekeeper to help, the answer is probably yes. Working full-time jobs and taking care of the holiday cooking and cleaning while also keeping up with your children’s busy schedules can be overwhelming, to say the least. If you have the means to pay for an extra set of hands to help reduce your holiday stress, hiring a housekeeper or asking your current one to take some of the weight off of your shoulders may be the perfect solution to your problems.

The key to entertaining holidays is preparation. Certainly, you can’t predict what will happen once your friends and family walk through the door, but you can welcome them into a clean and organized home. A housekeeper is really supposed to be trained in doing everything that pertains to cleaning, including holiday cleaning jobs. But before you start looking, you’ll need to know what types of seasonal tasks a housekeeper can handle. Read below to get the lowdown on how a housekeeper can help with the holidays.

1. Touch up the entryway

This is the first place your guests will see. Ask your housekeeper to dust all surfaces, polish the doorknob, and decorate with seasonal items to immediately put your guests in the holiday spirit.

2. Ready the living areas

You may ask your housekeeper to vacuum carpets, tidy up any clutter/put everything back in its place, wipe and polish furniture, plump sofa cushions, and dust and vacuum the new furniture — especially if it hasn’t been used in a while.

3. Prepare the guest room for any overnight guests

If you’re expecting holiday company, a housekeeper can help you get a room ready. This might involve clearing closet space, cleaning a mattress, laying out fresh linens, dusting the fan, or cleaning the curtains. The housekeeper can also prepare the guest bathroom by stocking it with extra towels, toilet paper, and travel-size products. During the visit, the housekeeper can freshen guest areas as needed.

4. Give the kitchen special attention

The kitchen is the center of holiday preparations, so it could use extra attention in the days leading up to the big celebration. Ask a housekeeper to clean the freezer and oven, wipe down the tops of cabinets, sweep under the stove and the refrigerator, empty/fill the dishwasher, clean countertops, sweep, and mop floors, and clean the sink.

In addition to organizing the pantry, ask if the housekeeper is open to assisting with holiday food preparation that can be done ahead of time, for example, sauces, stuffing, vegetable preparations, and baking.

5. Clean out your refrigerator to make room for leftovers

To make sure you have adequate storage containers and space for the extra food before the meals begin, ask your housekeeper to clean out the refrigerator to make some extra room. You can ask them to leave an open box of baking soda inside to absorb any odors your holiday goodies might leave behind.
To cut down on odors, ask your housekeeper to chop up a whole lemon and let the disposal go to work as well as toss in several ice cubes to sharpen the blades.

6. Give your garbage disposal some extra attention

A housekeeper can also help you clean and disinfect the inside and outside of trash containers with warm, soapy water and a neutral disinfectant. Drop several extra trash liners inside each container before relining for a quick and easy way to remove future trash when it really starts to pile up.

To cut down on odors, ask your housekeeper to chop up a whole lemon and let the disposal go to work as well as toss in several ice cubes to sharpen the blades.

7. Freshen the bathrooms

Your housekeeper may help you restock toiletries, clean mirrors, clean countertops, replace towels, and empty bins, and clean inside cabinets and drawers, and shower screens. As well as help with cleaning the following:

• Toilet
• Sink
• Bath and shower

8. Decoration prep (and later, cleanup)

Asking a housekeeper to be your holiday decorator can be an unreasonable request. Not every housekeeper has the capability of doing that. That’s an art, not a natural part of training for being a housekeeper. However, getting the decorations out of storage, unwrapping them, dusting/cleaning them, and then packing them away after the season, are areas where a housekeeper can help out. Every home can use a good cleaning before holiday decorations go up and after they come down.

There is no better feeling than decorating your house for the holidays without having to worry about cleaning the house as you are bringing in the decorations from storage. Request your housekeeper to come in and handle all the cleaning, so your family can enjoy a peaceful day decorating the tree and hanging the stockings.

9. Get the table ready

A housekeeper can also get the table ready for a fancy holiday dinner. It might mean going through the cupboards, getting out the crystal, and washing it. A housekeeper can also polish silverware, inventory candles, iron tablecloths, fold napkins, wash serving trays and arrange place settings.

10. Rearrange the kids’ room

A housekeeper can also organize the room to make space for new toys and gifts. This can include putting things back in place, cleaning inside cabinets and drawers, and dusting surfaces.

11. Maintain a festive look

Talk to your housekeeper about some additional holiday chores to keep an eye on:

• Sweeping pine needles around the Christmas tree
• Watering the tree or any holiday plants like poinsettias
• Tidying the fireplace log pile
• Changing the bedding to holiday bedding
• Dusting the holiday card display

12. Post-holiday cleanup

When the holidays are said and done, it is always hard to get motivated to put away all the decorations and to get rid of the many Christmas tree needles that have been pushed around your entire house. It is the perfect time to get things organized, but you never know where to begin. Request your housekeeper to step in and organize everything from your wrapping papers to your pots and pans.

Keep the chore list reasonable

Of course, there are some jobs you shouldn’t ask your housekeeper to tackle.
Don’t ask housekeepers to:

• Move or rearrange heavy furniture.
• Climbing high ladders.
• Hanging holiday lights.

Ask — don’t demand

Always ask if your housekeeper would mind helping out with these areas — don’t demand extra chores. Remember, housekeepers want to enjoy the season, too. If you’re going to need additional help, mention it early. Planning ahead always helps, so the housekeepers can reserve extra time for the tasks.

Pay extra for extra work

And if you’re asking for extra help, don’t forget to pay more for that work. If you’re working with a new housekeeper or not sure of your housekeeper’s rates for certain tasks, make sure to ask in advance. Plus, if you have a housekeeper you work with regularly, don’t forget a holiday bonus. That means a lot to them.

Your holiday to-do list might feel unending, but with the help of a housekeeper, you’ll tackle it in plenty of time to enjoy a relaxing cup of eggnog by the fire with the ones you love. If you’d rather spend time cooking the family’s favorite dish or visiting with relatives, Riveter Consulting Group can help you get the house ready for guests (or for rest after a gathering!). Our housekeeping professionals will dust, mop, wipe, and vacuum until the whole house looks great. Whether you’d like a one-time cleaning or a weekly recurring cleaning plan, our hiring services are designed to work around your schedule and budget.

Need an extra hand around the house to prepare for the holidays? Contact us to hire a housekeeping professional

Sources –
https://www.care.com/c/stories/3639/ways-housekeeper-can-help-holidays/
https://www.accentmaidservice.com/house-cleaning-tips-insights/how-a-cleaning-service-can-make-the-holidays-better
https://www.maids.com/blog/holiday-cleaning-list-to-prepare-for-guests/
https://maidhealthy.biz/3-reasons-hire-maid-service-holidays/
https://poloandtweed.com/blog/save-time-do-it-right-with-a-housekeeper-duties-checklist