I can’t believe I’m staring down Month 3, so I’m a quarter of the way done with my project already. With that in mind I feel like my house should be 25% emptier and I should feel 25% less frazzled. Neither is true, but I don’t mind. I’m trying to find a balance between expecting a lot of myself while not beating myself up, because lots of things are out of my control.

Last month I laid out a fairly specific plan of things I wanted to accomplish, after winging it for the first month without a clear strategy. Neither approach has clicked, though, because I feel like I’m spinning my wheels and not getting anywhere. There have also been a couple times, I must confess, when I’m spurred to action because I need to write something and not because I tried to adhere to my plan. Structure is really hard for me, at least when I impose it on myself.

So this month I’m going to try another approach. I’m going to work on my project every day for fifteen minutes. The last couple days have worn me out, so I’m not going to plan more specifically right now. Since I like my deal-with-what-bugs-me philosophy, I may not plan anything at all. I need to decide when this 15 minute block will happen too. I could not be less of a morning person, so I don’t think mornings will work. Evenings could work but I feel I get into trouble when I leave certain tasks for the end of the day, because by then I don’t want to do anything either. Choosing the right time is going to be key.

I’ve made headway with a few things- laundry, meal planning, and I want to keep improving in those areas. Next Thursday I’m having a donation pickup of at least four boxes or bags. So far I have two boxes so I have some work to do. Every five years or so I get the itch to do a lot of redecorating, which is dangerous from a financial point of view, but good from a decluttering point of view because I’m more likely to get rid of décor which is sitting in the garage and attic. But I’m going to try to rotate stuff and use what I have, and get rid of things too.

So that’s my plan for next month, which isn’t reading like much of a plan at the moment. Maybe a good night of sleep will help me refine my plan a bit.

In the meantime, this little bird has taken up residence outside my bedroom window. Emma’s named her Chance. We both enjoy watching her. It’s surprisingly effective stress relief.