For many, the holidays are a hectic (but joyful) time for connecting with friends and family, hosting guests, and cooking heaps of food.

Between the decorations, the clutter, and the stress of entertaining, it’s no wonder people often feel overwhelmed and disorganized after it’s all over. But with a little patience and a good plan, you can wrangle your home—and yourself—back into a more normal routine.

Take a moment to decompress

After you’ve driven the last relative to the airport or hugged your friends goodnight after a long day of togetherness, make sure to sit down, relax, and recharge your batteries. Maybe that means having some hot tea and putting your feet up or watching an episode of the TV show you’ve been binge-watching.

Give yourself permission to do nothing for a few hours, or even a full day, before you start working on your to-do list.

Tackle the gifts

Go around and remove any miscellaneous clutter like stray wrapping paper pieces, gift boxes, bags, or bows. Once you’re left with clear floors, assess the new items that have entered your home via gift exchanges. This is a great time to implement the “one in, one out” rule of organization. For instance, if you received a couple of new sweaters, see if there are any items of clothing in your closet that you could swap out for them.

For any exchanges or returns that need to be made, print the labels and package items for drop-off. Taking care of this immediately will make you less likely to miss your return window.

Put away holiday decor

To get your house back in order, begin taking down your decorations and stowing them in labeled storage containers and dismantle your artificial tree if you have one. For live-tree disposal, check your county website for information on curbside pickup or tree-recycling drop-off locations.

Clean, clean, clean

If you’ve had guests staying with you, load their used linens and towels into the washing machine. Shake out and wash tablecloths, and put away any serving dishes and kitchen items you won’t need until your next large gathering. Then go room by room, vacuuming and dusting until your house starts to resemble its preholiday self.

Assess your food situation

The holidays usually include massive quantities of food and, therefore, leftovers. However, there’s no rule that says you must eat all of them until they are gone. Take any pies and cookies to the office, or make up a meal for a neighbor who doesn’t have family nearby. You can also consider ways to repurpose leftovers into meals for the week, like making a turkey potpie or meatball sandwiches for your family or turkey sandwiches for kids’ lunches. Organize your fridge so you can see what’s in there and what needs to be eaten first, take stock of your pantry, and make a list of any staples you need to replenish at the grocery store.

Reflect

While the memories are still fresh, write down some of your favorite moments or traditions from the holidays. Record the recipes and menus that worked well and would be good to repeat, noting which ones weren’t quite hits. Also, send any videos or digital photos to family and friends so they can have those visual reminders of a wonderful holiday. And if you partake in thank-you-note writing, now is a great time to pen your appreciation and send off your handwritten messages.