Letting Go of “Someday”: How to Clear Homeschool Clutter Without Overwhelm
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One of the hardest things about decluttering as a homeschool mom isn’t just the stuff—it’s the voice in your head whispering, “But what if you need this someday?” That little voice is keeping you stuck, mama. And today, we’re going to quiet it once and for all.
If you’re drowning in piles of “just in case” items, this post is for you.
I hear it all the time from overwhelmed homeschool moms: “I know I need to declutter, but what if I need this someday?” Sound familiar?
In homeschool Facebook groups and co-op conversations, I often see moms asking for advice on decluttering their overflowing shelves, only to have friends respond with “Keep it all! You never know!” or “My friend threw out her kindergarten books and then had surprise baby number four!”
But here’s what I want you to know—that “someday” fear? It’s not protecting your family. It’s stealing your peace. And it’s making your daily homeschool life so much harder than it needs to be.
Today we’re going to talk about why “someday” is sabotaging your sanity, what you actually don’t need to keep, and real, practical steps to finally let go without the guilt. Because mama, you deserve to live in your home—not be buried by it.
The Real Villain: “I Might Need This Someday”
Let me paint you a picture from my own life. Before I decluttered our homeschool materials, I was holding onto everything. Seriously, everything. I had shelves and shelves of curriculum that people had given me, that I had collected from the free pile at co-op, that I had bought at thrift stores and off Amazon.
I had so many books and different curriculums that I hoped to use, that I wanted to use, that I dreamed of using—but they weren’t the right fit for my kids. They weren’t the right age level. They weren’t the right interests. They weren’t the right learning style.
And so all of these things were sitting on the shelf staring at me, making me feel guilty and sad because I wanted to use them. This was my hopes and dreams on display. I could envision this beautiful day when we would sit down and study Little House on the Prairie together. I had this vision in my brain of what this would look like, but the reality was my kids wouldn’t sit down for a read-aloud. My kids didn’t want to do pioneer crafts. They couldn’t do the activities in the book yet because it was above their level.
The reality of our situation was different than the vision and the dream in my head.
Here’s the truth: when you keep holding onto everything “just in case,” you’re not preparing for someday. You’re drowning in today. That fear of needing something later is actually making your life harder right now.
The Mindset Reframe You Need
Letting go isn’t about risking your family’s future—it’s about gaining clarity, space, and sanity today. When you’re paralyzed with the fear of needing something someday, I want you to shift your mindset to: What are we doing now? What is the most important thing now? What’s working now?
Think about it this way—what’s the actual worst-case scenario if you let go of something and then need it later? You might have to borrow it. Buy it again. Find an alternative. These aren’t life-or-death situations, mama. But living in visual chaos? That’s affecting your mental health every single day.
Myth-Busting: What You Don’t Actually Need to Keep
Let’s bust some myths that are keeping you stuck in clutter paralysis:
You don’t need:
- A Pinterest-perfect homeschool room
- A fully stocked curriculum library
- Every learning tool that looks amazing on Instagram
- Backup supplies for every possible scenario
I see this all the time with clients who are trying to recreate the dream homeschool room they’ve seen online. They buy bins and labels and shelving units, thinking if they just had the right setup, everything would be magical. But you know what happens? They fill all those beautiful organizing systems with stuff they aren’t using. It might look organized, but it’s still clutter—just clutter in pretty containers.
Here’s what most homeschool moms don’t realize: you actually need very little to provide an excellent education for your children. A few good books. Some basic supplies. Curriculum that matches where your kids are right now—not where you hope they’ll be someday.
The guilt and the overwhelm you’re feeling? It’s coming from trying to do it all. And mama, that’s not realistic for your real-life kids or your real-life season.
The Hidden Cost of Clutter on Your Family
Let me tell you what all this “someday” stuff is actually costing you. When your game closet is three feet deep, you can’t see what’s in the back of it. Your kids are never going to play those games because they don’t even know they’re there. And you don’t want to open that closet because you’re overwhelmed at the sight of all that avalanche pile.
Daily homeschooling becomes impossible when you’re drowning in clutter all around you.
Here’s what’s happening to your body when you’re surrounded by visual clutter: We are visual people. When we see so much visual stimulation in these piles of stuff everywhere, it’s raising our cortisol levels. Our bodies are starting to feel a little panicked.
It’s like when you step on a Lego or trip over a ball. Your body suddenly thinks, “I’m not safe. I’m in danger. I could get hurt. This stuff could fall in an earthquake or trap me if there was a fire. I am not safe.” That’s what your body’s trying to tell you when you look at visual clutter.
The only way to get rid of visual clutter is to let it go. If you don’t declutter, you can’t organize. You can’t organize away clutter. There aren’t enough bins in the world to effectively, cleanly organize your clutter. You have to get rid of some stuff.
The Real Impact on Your Children
This isn’t just about you feeling overwhelmed. Your kids are absorbing this chaos too. Research shows that children in cluttered environments have higher stress levels and more difficulty concentrating. They’re learning that overwhelm is normal, that it’s okay to be surrounded by things we don’t use or love.
Is that really the lesson you want to teach them? Or do you want to show them what it looks like to live intentionally, to keep what serves us and let go of the rest?
Your First Gentle Step: The Container Concept
I know this feels overwhelming, but we’re going to start small. Here’s your first actionable step: Focus very clearly on creating a space for your current homeschool materials. Whether that’s your kids’ curriculum carts or a cabinet—put the things that you’re doing now, the things that you are focusing on, the things that are important in this season in that space.
When you set up your homeschool space, the things that are on the shelf, the things that are in the cart, the things that are there in your visual space are the things you are using. Your kids love them. You are using them. They are the applicable curriculum and materials right now.
Then I want you to look around and just kind of see the weight of all the other things. Is it piles? Is it bookshelves? Is it closets full? What are you dealing with? What are you looking at?
Here’s Where the Container Concept Saves Your Sanity
This is going to give you a boundary and make it very easy to see the space that you have to deal with.
Pick one specific space for curriculum that you’re saving—things that maybe your oldest child has gone through, but you’re saving for a younger child. Totally fine to keep that, but you need one shelf or one cabinet or one box, one bin to hold that.
You’re going to put the best of the best, your favorites, the ones that you’re absolutely going to use again, the ones that you can’t wait to use next year. Those are the things you put in there first. When that space is full, it’s full. That means no more stuffing in things with the thought, “Oh, I hope to use this someday.” No, it can’t fit. There’s no space for that in our life.
What this is going to do is give you a very firm boundary. This is a space that we’re keeping for future use, things that we’re going to use. And it’s a very clean and clear space. It’s not piles, it’s not overflowing. It’s a very clean and organized space for holding those things for later.
Apply This Container Concept to Everything
If you’re going through supplies like art supplies or office supplies, again, you’re going to put out the items that they are using, that they love, the things that we’re using right now, the things that they need right now.
Then you can have one bin of backstock of extras, of special things. Maybe you don’t want all the paint out because they make a mess—totally understand that. Put that in the bin, put it in the closet, put it up on a shelf, but that’s it. One bin, one basket, not a whole closet overflowing.
What you’re going to see is that there’s probably still piles and shelves leftover of stuff that you were keeping, but it’s not something that you value highly enough to put into those spaces that you’re creating. So does it really matter? Are you really going to use it? Probably not. That’s the stuff that you pack up into a donate box and you bless another family with.
Heart-to-Heart: Why This Matters for Your Health
I tell my kids all the time: you have to get rid of some stuff because new things are always going to come in. Birthdays and Christmas and back-to-school sales and free piles. You’re always going to be bringing in new stuff. You can’t hold on to everything. You’re not going to use everything.
And when you see the things that you aren’t using, it’s hurting you internally. It’s hurting you emotionally, physically, psychologically. Your whole body is stressed out and full of negative emotions—that is damaging your health.
So for your sanity, for your physical, emotional, and psychological health, I beg of you, let go of some of the stuff.
I want you to have hope. I want you to see clear, organized spaces, but you can’t get there until you pack up the stuff that you’re not using and get it out of your house.
And I say this with the most love because I have been there. I have gotten rid of hundreds upon hundreds upon hundreds of boxes of stuff over the years. I have let go of tens of thousands of items that I thought I needed and I thought I was going to use, but I just couldn’t.
I have been there. I have dug my family out of the pit of clutter hell. And you can too. I promise you can do this.
It’s Not About Perfection
This isn’t about creating a magazine-worthy home. This is about creating breathing room for your family. It’s about teaching your children that we don’t need to keep everything to feel secure. It’s about showing them what it looks like to live with intention.
You are so capable, mama. This step-by-step letting go is a gift you give yourself and your family. It’s not about shame or failing. It’s about choosing peace over the paralysis of “what if.”
The Freedom That’s Waiting for You
Here’s what I want you to imagine: You walk into your homeschool space and everything there has a purpose. Your kids can find what they need. You can set up for the day without moving piles around. You can actually see your surfaces.
When you let go of the “someday” stuff, you make room for today. You make room for the activities your kids actually want to do, the curriculum that actually fits their learning style, the supplies they actually use.
You can have this freedom. It’s going to be a journey and it’s going to be a step-by-step process where you just look at a space and you pull out five things you’re not using and you throw them out or you put them in a donate box and you get that donate box out of your house.
I want this freedom for you. So please stop holding on to someday because someday is not going to come. Today is here. Your kids are here. Your real life is happening now.
Your Next Step This Week
Here’s what I want you to do this week: Choose one small area. Maybe it’s your homeschool cart, maybe it’s one shelf, maybe it’s one bin. Apply the container concept. Keep what you’re using now. Create a small boundary for what you’re keeping for later. And let the rest go.
Just five things. That’s it. Find five things in that space that you haven’t used in the last six months and probably won’t use in the next six months. Put them in a box. Get that box out of your house this week.
You don’t have to do it all today. But you can take this one step. And when you do, you’re going to feel a little lighter. A little freer. A little more like yourself again.
A Step-by-Step Action Plan
- Choose your space: Pick one small area to focus on this week
- Create your “current use” zone: Put only what you’re actively using in this space
- Set up your “future use” container: One bin/shelf for things you’ll definitely use later
- Find five items to release: Look for things unused in 6+ months
- Remove them immediately: Get that donate box out of your house this week
The Truth About Living with Intention
Remember, mama: you need a system that sticks. And systems that stick start with simplicity. Clear your space, clear your mind. Your homeschool deserves more peace, and so do you.
The “someday” mindset is keeping you trapped in overwhelm. But when you choose to live intentionally—keeping what serves your family now and letting go of the rest—you create space for what actually matters.
Your kids don’t need you to keep every possible educational resource. They need a mom who can think clearly, who isn’t stressed by visual chaos, who can find what they need when they need it.
You don’t have to keep everything to be a good homeschool mom. In fact, keeping less often makes you a better one—more present, more peaceful, more able to focus on what truly matters.
This journey toward simplicity isn’t about deprivation—it’s about freedom. Freedom from the weight of unused possibilities. Freedom to focus on your real life with your real kids in your real season.
You don’t have to do it all—just do what sticks. And letting go of someday? That’s where simplicity that sticks begins.
Ready to take this further? Grab my free Homeschool Simplicity Staples guide—it’s got six sanity-saving tools to kickstart your homeschool organization without the overwhelm.
Start with five things this week. Your future self will thank you.
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