Chaos... the same feeling creeping over me every year as the school year comes to a close. I am in full blown mode of out of control chaos. The calendar is swarming, the boxed out days already filled before I even turn the page to start a new month...

dance recitals, end of the year school dances, exhausted girls wanting to sleep in, fundraisers, finals & regents exams, elementary and middle school graduations, along with purchasing clothing for these events and the haunting question of "did I order the yearbook back in September?" "Did I return the permission slip and money for the 8th grade boat trip?" How am I supposed to remember all of this.... Chaos!

But, if I can remind myself of this one thing... this too shall pass... I will survive the month of June. On June 24th, there will be a renewal within our entire home. A renewal of sleep, patience, relaxation and a time to pull in a beautiful breath of warm air and breathe.

The renewal allows the chaos to diminish and the days of summer to take over...

the summer is dedicated to humid summer nights, on the tall grass, playing a game of kickball with neighbors, baking from scratch, delicious blueberry muffins where the blueberries are so fresh they burst in ones mouth, a summer of allowing a sense of calm envelope the body while reading a book on the porch swing eating an ice cream cone, rather than stressing

about how many pages were read and filling in a reading log. These long days of summer are memories to look back on with fondness, not memories to look back on and feel a weight on ones chest from the pressure and chaos still taking over.

So, let's promise ourselves this summer that the chaos will be left behind, the need to fulfill lists are gone, the overwhelming pressure to "be on" diminished, the need for the house to be perfect, beds made, pillows fluffed out the door... a new door is opening for this new season of renewal.

With the door opening, lets allow ourselves to sleep in a little, run in the grass with our precious children, swim with our kids without worrying about what we look like in a bathing suit, eat popsicles and roast marshmallows, take the time to essentially go back in time... teach the kids how to bake, watch a movie under the stars, work on a puzzle for a week or two, ride bikes in jammies, cut flowers from the garden, play dress up while blasting music and put on a show, learn something new, explore beaches and lakes while allowing room for the beauty of nature to bite us a bit, put up a lemonade stand in the driveway, swing on a hammock and maybe close our eyes and listen to the sound of the birds and crickets and relish in this moment...this moment of bliss... and may we find ways to allow this to seep in to September without feeling the sense of chaos all over again.... pinky promise?