Are you hosting Thanksgiving for your family this year? The day is right around the corner! Therefore, it’s time to make some room in the fridge for the turkey and delicious sides you plan to cook up for your family. To help you prepare for the big feast, we are sharing our best tips to deep clean and organize your fridge.

Get rid of old items:

Remember that takeout food you ordered two weeks ago? If it’s still sitting in your fridge, it’s probably best to throw it out along with any other spoiled items. Throwing out all your old food or food you don’t plan on using will help you make room for all the ingredients you will need for your big Thanksgiving feast.

Wipe down shelves and drawers:  

Now that your fridge is empty, you might as well use this as an opportunity to wipe down all the shelves and drawers. We suggest using a solution of two tablespoons of baking soda and one quart of hot water. You can also use warm soapy water if you don’t have baking soda on hand. Afterward, clean and wipe down the exterior of the fridge with soapy water or stainless steel cleaner, depending on your fridge model.

Get creative with food placement:

Organizing your fridge is kind of like playing a game of Tetris, especially during Thanksgiving. You may need to stack things on top of each other. The best way to stuff all your Thanksgiving food in your fridge while staying organized is by using same-sized containers. Place all your food and ingredients into containers and stack them on top of one another to maximize space.

Label your containers:

The container suggestion may be efficient to maximize space, but now it’s probably hard to look at the ingredients and food you have available in your fridge. Labels, however, are a perfect solution to the problem. Place a label on the front of each container to easily see your ingredients and dishes when Thanksgiving Day arrives.

Store your drinks elsewhere:

Part of hosting dinner is having drinks available. However, your fridge is probably already stuffed with food. Therefore, we suggest buying your drinks the day before Thanksgiving and keeping them in a cooler to maximize space. Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate and cherish your loved ones. However, hosting a big feast for a big family can become stressful if you’re not prepared. We hope our tips help you stay more organized and, in turn, less stressed on Thanksgiving Day. Hosting is tough, but with a few preparation practices in place, you're sure to have an organized, clean, and most importantly, a memorable Thanksgiving.