Why a Schedule Is the Biggest Thing Your Home Is Missing

In the Healthy and Happy Home Calendar, Maxwell and Janel divide monthly home care into five categories and provide you with timely things to do in each category for every month of the year:

1. Clean (wipe down the walls, dust the light fixtures)
2. Maintain (change the batteries in your smoke alarm, make sure household policies and paperwork are up to date)
3. Let go (flip your closet for the change of season, toss mostly empty shampoo bottles)
4. Decorate (refresh your bedding, spruce up your front door)
5. Enjoy (get to know your neighbor, build a music playlist for Sunday morning brunch)

The Healthy and Happy Home Calendar's overarching philosophy is to do little things around the house on a regular basis. In short, don't save all your major projects for the Spring. Do something every season to keep your home cleaner and your to-do list manageable.

Maxwell broke down his major cleaning projects for us by season:

Fall
"In the Fall, after months of having the windows open, focus on your window treatments. It's a good time to wipe down blinds and shutters and dry-clean or launder your curtains."

Winter
"During the Winter, we suggest washing your walls, perhaps a room or two at a time on weekends over the course of a month."

Spring
"In the Spring, give your ceiling fans a once-over so they are clean and ready to go for the warm weather ahead."

Summer
"Summer is a good time to give your fridge a deep clean, and don't forget to vacuum the coils to keep the cooling system working well."

As with cleaning, decorating should be ongoing throughout the year. "A little at a time is the way to go. Small, doable projects such as updating drawer pulls or buying new pillowcases to update your bedding look (which you can pull off in a weekend) mean that you live in a home that is always improving," says Maxwell, adding, "it's nice to be able to enjoy the little changes as you move throughout the year."

Any time during the year that your home is feeling stagnant or crowded, you should purge. "Letting go of things is an amazing way to update and make your home better — and it definitely doesn't cost a dime. In fact, you might be able to list and sell some things to turn a small profit," shares Maxwell. As if that's not motivating enough, he adds, "decluttering makes any room look (and feel!) so much better, and the things you DO love will stand out even more when they aren't in the mix with too much so-so or should-be-put-away-elsewhere stuff." Free and effective? We're sold.

If an organized calendar isn't your style or you need an extra push to stay on top of home upkeep, Maxwell has another suggestion: throw lots of dinner parties. "Think about it; you are going to clean up and declutter in preparation for your guests, you'll buy flowers and maybe something special to serve, you'll turn on music and turn down the lights," explains Maxwell. "You'll see the space through other people's eyes and do the little things that make it more welcoming for them while reaping the rewards for yourself."

Wondering when the best time to start thinking about holiday decorating is? Immediately after the holiday. "It's the perfect time to sort through and donate the holiday decor you didn't use this year (you won't use it next year either!), to pick up new decor items at clearance sale prices, and to figure out a great way to pack it all away neatly somewhere that is easy to get to."