Get organized before summer starts.
We were just settling in after the holidays and now, here we are looking down the barrel at summer! Any of these transitions are always easier with a little organization.
Jenny Layton shared three ways we can be more prepared for summer.
By Jenny Layton
1. Organize the tangible stuff
At The Happy Gal, we talk a lot about how external clutter creates internal clutter, which is a fancy way of saying that when we don’t have all the “stuff” decluttered and organized, it creates a lot of cluttered feelings internally, like overwhelm, stress, anxiety, and procrastination. One of the quickest ways to help us feel on top of our life and ready to have a great summer is to make sure we have all the summer stuff we are going to need organized and ready to go. So let’s talk about a few of the ones that seem to have the biggest impact:
Kids Clothes
Nothing is worse than trying to quickly get ready to head to the pool, but instead you’re digging through jeans and sweaters to try to find the swimsuits and coverups. So if you haven’t already done it, schedule a few hours one afternoon to go through the kids’ closets. Rotate the winter stuff into a bin or a higher shelf and get out the summer clothes so they are ready to go. This is a great opportunity to weed down the amount of clothes in the closet as well, getting rid of all the old stuff that isn’t fitting anymore. Having a closet full of clothes that fit and are in season is a BIG summer win. Kids can get ready quicker, less clothes to dig through means a less messy room to pick up, and it’s a lot easier to fold and put away laundry when there is enough space for the clean clothes in the drawers and closet.
Collect the Gear You’ll Need
What are your go-to activities over the summer, and how can you be prepared for them? Do you have little kids that need some backyard entertainment? If so, have a bin ready with bubbles, sidewalk chalk, and bug catchers. If you know you’ll be swimming a lot, get your swim bag ready to go – sunscreen, swim diapers, and pool toys. Or think about the car… what do you like to have on hand in the summer? I have learned that we always want bottled water, a picnic blanket, snacks, a first aid kit, mosquito repellent, and even some cash.
Extra Credit – Address End-of-Year School Clutter
Once school is out, schedule a few minutes to go through the backpacks and the other end-of-year school paraphernalia that comes home on the last day. That stuff will hang around and haunt you – and we don’t need that external clutter creating any additional internal stress. Plus you will be high fiveing yourself for being so on top of things when school starts in the fall and you have fresh, clean, empty backpacks ready to go.
2. Establish your summer routine and calendar
Tangible clutter is annoying, but it is fairly easy to take care of. It’s all the TASKS that can really start to feel overwhelming. When school is first out, things can feel so out of whack that it can be hard to tell up from down. When will you clean the house? When will the kids practice the piano? When will you be able to shower or find the time to work? And then there are the camps and the swim lessons and vacations. Listen, I know we’re ready for a break from the rigidity of the school year, but even the summer needs a little rhythm or else it all feels like chaos.
While every circumstance is different, there is a general flow you could start with. Set a regular breakfast time to get everyone on the same eating schedule. Then establish a routine that kids can easily catch on to. Maybe chores and getting ready for the day comes next, and then piano practice or reading, and then friends or electronics happen after lunch. Predictability is key to help you enjoy the slower pace of summer without feeling like everything is spiraling out of control.
If you haven’t already, get everything on the calendar now. The vacations, swim lessons, the weekly trip to the pool – proactively design a fun summer with your family, and then be sure to calendar it so you can keep it all straight and avoid unnecessary stress and overwhelm.
3. Transitions are meant to feel bumpy
It is always a joke between my husband and myself that I have a breakdown at the beginning of every summer and then again when the kids go back to school in the fall. That is because transition can feel really stressful and overwhelming. It helped so much when I started to look at these times of year like a road trip.
When we are all packed up and driving on the freeway, we can cover a lot of miles and feel like we are getting to our destination at a good pace. This is how it feels when we are cruising along with our routines when kids are in school. But on that road trip, it’s inevitable that we are going to need to make a pit stop. Someone has to go to the bathroom, the car needs to refuel, it’s time for lunch – and so we slow down, exit the freeway, and come to a halt while we refresh and recalibrate. We aren’t making any progress on our journey, but we are gearing up so we can get back on the freeway and get cruising again.
When the kids come home for the summer, that first week or two is like that pit stop at the gas station. Everyone has needs that need to be met and we are trying to sort everything out – the schedule, the chores, the lessons, the fun. But soon enough things settle back down, and before we know it, we are back on the freeway, driving at a good pace and life is moving ahead again at a new normal. Then just as we get used to summer, we can expect the need for another pit stop – school is starting so we need to exit the freeway, refuel, put together a new schedule, and soon we’ll be back on the freeway, this time in another school year.
Keeping this in mind can give us some perspective, patience, and grace for ourselves during transition time. It’s made a world of difference for me. Remember that things will get back into a groove and it will feel good… we just need to get through a few bumpy days or weeks.
If you’d like more help, Jenny is offering an Organize Your Summer challenge June 2-5. Find more advice from Jenny on Instagram, @jlthehappygal.
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