Content Warning: This section of the guide includes references to and descriptions of miscarriage, death, and emotional abuse.

Ali is 38 years old and lives in Beechwood, New York, with her three children, Greer, Iris, and Cliffy. Two years after her mother died and her husband, Pete, left her, Ali is feels overwhelmed and stuck. She works as a professional organizer, helping others clean up their houses, but her own home is messy. She decides to make her mom’s oatmeal cookie recipe to make herself feel better but realizes how disorganized she has let her pantry become. Unlike last year, she doesn’t let herself cry. Her kids get up, and she helps them prepare for camp. She doesn’t change out of her sweatpants before driving them to the rec center.

Afterward, Ali scrolls through her Instagram page and the pictures of clients’ pantries she has organized. She wishes she could clean up her own mess but doesn’t have the energy.

On her way to pick up her kids, her childhood best friend, Frannie, calls to say her parents won tickets for a two-week vacation in Key West. The women are shocked, because Frannie’s parents own Hogan Diner and the Beechwood Inn and rarely leave town.