Around the House: Create a Week-by-Week Plan to Make Pesach With Less Stress

By Yehudit Garmaise

With 28 days until the first seder, we can complete Pesach preparations with calm and serenity by dividing and conquering the tasks one week at a time.

The next month is intense and involves a lot of hard work and thoughtful planning. Therefore, anyone making Pesach should make extra efforts to take some time every day to take a break, read, go for a walk, go shopping, go on a fun outing, or do a fun art project with friends or with children.

The month before Pesach doesn’t have to be stressful and exhausting. Just follow our tested plan to get your kitchen set for Yom Tov.

Week 1:   

1. Start to buy less foods that contain chametz. Instead, try to use up what you have in your freezer and pantry.

2. Clean out one cabinet at a time to make space for Pesach items.

3. Think about which meals you are hosting and for how many people.

4. Pull out Pesach cookbooks and recipes to plan what you want to make for each meal you are hosting. 

5. Think about what your family eats over Pesach for simple breakfast, lunches, dinners, and snacks.

6. Make a grocery list of everything you need for the meals you will host and for your family’s daily needs. Keep this list in a document on your laptop, to re-use and add and subtract to your list from year to year. 

Week 2:

1. Completely clear out two shelves in your kitchen to clean and line for Pesach dry products.

2.     Clean out the freezer and one shelf of your refrigerator and line them for Pesadich items.

3. Consult your meal plans and add the things you need every day for your family to finish your large grocery list. Save the produce until after you turn over your kitchen and are ready to cook.

4. Take a deep breath, and do your first round of grocery shopping, or order your first grocery delivery.

5. Put all your Pesadich groceries neatly on the lined shelves with a sign that says, “Pesadich.”

6. Ask your children to clean their rooms of any chametz.

Week 3:

1. Make a lasagna, casserole, and a few other dinners that are easy to freeze and then heat up for your family once your kitchen is turned over.

2. Look over your stored Pesadich dishes and pots and make sure you have everything needed to cook and serve.

3. Head to a nearby home goods store to pick up what you need and any gifts you might want to give to anyone hosting you.

4. Toivel new kitchen items.

5. Try to get extra sleep and rest to ensure your energy for the final week of preparations and two late-night seders! 

Week 4: 

1. Completely clean the refrigerator and turn over your kitchen on Sunday, April 14, so you can cook Pesadich foods all week. 

2. Bring your Pesadich dishes inside.

3. Divide your cooking into categories, such as main courses, soups, kugels, dips, other side dishes, desserts, and seder plate.

4. Tackle one category at a time for each day.

5. Make sure you have everything you need for your seder plate.

6. Make final vegetable and fruit salads.

7. Set your Yom Tov table.

8. Relax, enjoy, and take pride in a job well done!