If you’ve been reading lately, you know how much I love summer with the kids.

You also know that I’m a little scared.

It feels a little like Chapter One of the blog is coming to an end. I began this blog on the first day of this school year, determined to hold myself accountable and begin to focus on my home. Although it’s very far from perfect, I have made real progress.

But Friday, at 12:15, everything will change. I have plans, but I know that new challenges will blindside me. Lack of routine and a house full at all times is a wonderful blessing, but I will have to adjust my mindset.

On Saturday, I worked out in the garage for a while. I moved now-empty shelves back into place after our garage sale from the weekend before. I put random-leftover-junk into boxes I didn’t mind giving away and ended up with quite a few empty storage tubs.

Then, my eye wandered to “the stack.” The corner full of stuff that didn’t go in the garage sale, but desperately needs to be organized.

Piles of stuff + Empty shelves and tubs = Lots of work to be done.

My heart sank. The familiar feeling returned. I was overwhelmed.

I have so incredibly far to go. My resolution to find “A Place for Everything” seems unattainable most of the time.

But as summer begins, I can’t let these feelings paralyze me. I have decided to move out of decluttering mode, and into survival mode.

Let me just clarify that I want our survival mode to not be Survivor (Eat-Rats-Because-You’re-Starving) mode, but more like Gilligan’s-Island (Make-the-Most-of-Living-on-a-Tropical-Island-Even-Though-You-Only-Planned-for-a-Three-Hour-Tour) mode.

I want to enjoy the summer in a clean and neat home. A perfect home is not an option. A fully organized and clutter-free home is not an option. I’m going to shelve my decluttering-madwoman character for the summer, and focus completely on being a mama who teaches her kids to keep the house livable.

Make sense?

Progress may not be an option, but to keep from regressing, we’ll have to focus on maintenance.

Basically, I’m allowing myself to not worry about the big pile of junk in the garage. Keeping the basics done during the loosi-goosiness of summer will be enough for this slob-brain to handle.

School will be back before I know it, and I’m sure that pile will still be there.

Stay tuned for Chapter Two.