Sorting is the forgotten soldier in organizing your holiday celebrations. And I get it. There’s no fun and excitement about separating items and putting them in accessible and neatly labeled spaces. But, believe me: your future self will thank you.

Here’s what you need to sort:

Wrapping supplies: Do you have to dig through the Christmas wrap to find appropriate wrapping for a birthday or wedding gift? Do you keep tape, gift tags, ribbon, and bows with the wrap so that wrapping a gift doesn’t become a scavenger hunt?

Decorations: If you have to move five Santas to find your jack o’lantern, you need to sort your decorations. While they can all be stored in the same place (mine are in one corner of my attic), you should be able to put your hands on the décor for a specific holiday or event (Fourth of July, graduation, fall, Easter) without tearing the house apart. In addition, each year as you put decorations away, sort out things you no longer use or that are not in good repair. Put the quality things you do use into sturdy boxes or tubs and label them well. That way, next year, you can just grab the Halloween tub(s) and get to work.

Craft supplies: If you have multiple crafts addictions, it’s important to sort your storage. You don’t want the glitter in your yarn or to put heavy bales of quilting squares on glass or to have expensive scrapbooking paper crumpled under your beading tools.

Taking a rainy day to sort out what you have, what you use, and what needs to be trash or a donation — storing like with like in well-labeled containers is a great thing you can do today to lower your holiday stress.