Implementing Minimalism

Remember that one time I wrote this blog post about being a minimalist and finding my groove in minimalism. Well, completely ignore it. I was WRONG! We have so much c.r.a.p. I mean that with love to anyone who has contributed to our mess and even the things that I have bought for us.

The day after Christmas we loaded up our home and moved to our new house. We actually slowly started the process of moving things here and there. I remember leading into this move thinking We have purged. We are so good. We are living minimally. And then I moved our house. It was all a lie. Forgive me friends.

While I am finding grace in the process of moving, I am also being challenged by living with less and I am like bring it stuff.

Here is one lesson that God has taught in my 29 years...what you pray for you will be challenged in. I have prayed for downsizing and boy am I being pushed to learn about what I thought was a simple lifestyle. Even styling my bookshelves last night I kept thinking good grief...get rid of all this stuff. While I love things and how happy they make me, I am learning that things weigh me down. They weigh my family down. They weigh my aspirations down. Thus trying to learn how to live a simpler lifestyle.

Here is my biggest take away with minimalism: It will forever be a learning process for me. And that is totally okay.

It is taking me multiple tries. I read articles consistently on living with less. On living with more adventure versus things. And I am trying. I am learning. I am expanding.

Our garage right now is massively full of stuff that we are selling. And that feels great! BUT we still have a long way to go and much, much more to learn. For example, we knew we were moving the day after Christmas. That morning as we were gathering things together I took two boxes and put all our new gifts, clothes, toys in the boxes. Two full boxes of new things just from Christmas. And I get it. We live in a consumer driven world! I was raised on finding a baragin and multiple baragins. Still to this day I grab 20 things to try on in the dressing room and walk away with only a few. So did I really need all 20 of those things? Did I really need even one of those things? These are things I am talking through each day. And this post isn't a look at me! I am trying to be a minimalist! It is a post of honesty and what I am working on personally. If minimalism isn't for you, I promise to not turn my nose up at you. My journey to and through this is due to what I am discovering makes me happy.

Just know if I am writing about it (being any topic) it is so real in my life. It is pushing me. It is hard for me. It is real friends. No judgement here. None at all.

So cozy up to your screen, grab the coffee and let's dig in. This is a long post, if you couldn't tell.

Minimalism. It may be a term you have heard or may not but for those note sure what minimalism is it just think a simpler life. Less stuff. Less distraction. More doing. More being. I am barely scratching the surface with my part to minimalism but alas here is what works for me already.

THINGS I AM DOING TO IMPLEMENT MINIMALISM:

De-Clutter // Every few months typically with the changing of seasons I go through all our drawers, closets and storage room. I make a giant pile of things to toss, things to sell and things to donate. This little to do not only helps me welcome in a new season but it also helps me get rid of things we don't use. It makes me feel fulfilled. There is something to be said for the power of purging.

Capsule Wardrobe // This is new to me and while I do not fully commit to this I have slimmed down my wardrobe per season to just a handful of tops, pants and shoes. Can I just say the biggest benefit for me is getting ready in the morning for work? I almost always know what I want to wear and that makes me happy and efficient. You may be thinking that you could never do this and I get it. I felt the same way but am happy to say I am a sucker for a small and simple wardrobe. It has also helped me discover my personal style.

Unsubscribe // This is so liberating. Seriously. Give it a try. When you don't have emails coming into your inbox for the latest sale you don't feel the influence to buy. Unsubscribing also goes for more than your inbox. A few months ago I realized how much I had the urge to buy things. Scrolling through Instagram was giving me the itch to buy so I quit following accounts for baby onesies, t-shirts and home decor. Much to my surprise the urge to shop went away because I wasn't looking at these things all the time. I was only shopping for things we needed versus something that just looked cute or caught my eye. Remove it. Delete it. Take your name off the list. I think this point may be the best take away from this post.

Selling our oversized for us home // Say what? Are you crazy? The house that you have worked on for years and poured so much into? You are nuts lady. I get it. But yes, we sold it and so fast and easy that it just assured us we were making the right move. I LOVE our old house. I mean really love it and we say all the time that when we have teenage kids we are going to want it back but for right now it doesn't work for us. We remodeled so much of that home and still had a long, long way to go. With two young babies spending our money and time on remodel projects just didn't suit us. We wanted to be more invested in our kids than house projects of a large nature. We had two couples look at it via word of mouth and the second couple made an offer the next day. The house is also 3,600 square feet and with two babies and working I can't keep up with just the dog hair let alone the space, clean up, straightening, toilet scrubbing. We said yes to selling and we said yes to a smaller house. I promise to write about the new house soon (updated mudroom here) but we have a backyard people! Our old home (due to the addition) didn't offer a backyard for our puppies and babes. Now Skip plays outside 85% of the day. It is such a blessing to sell our old home but not one that was easy. I love that house.

My kids toys // My goodness. Do kids really need that many toys? Seriously. I counted Skip's ball basket last night. It included 20 balls and 5 bats of various sizes. That previous sentence does not include a single ounce of exaggeration. Actually on my to-do list is to go through his toys. Phase 1 is removing a large, large portion of toys. Phase 2 includes hiding them in my garage to see if Skip notices. Phase 3 includes donating all the toys. Phase 4 is going through all his books. See how it keeps evolving. One day I hope to teach Skip how to go through his things and give to those who need his clothes, toys and books. I also hope to instill healthy habits and lead by example when it comes to the fulfillment of stuff. Also how did he get this many toys? He must be working a secret operation with Santa. I kid but you get the picture.

The 3-6 month rule // This is a rule that I am sure exists for many but it is taking over all areas of my life. It is simple. If I haven't used, worn or needed it in a 3-6 time period then it goes. Clothes that haven't been worn in 3-6 months, peace out. Kitchen gadgets that haven't seen the light of day, adios. Makeup that isn't being worn, tossed. My real goal with this rule is to make it an even smaller time period. Things need to have purpose or an use in our home versus just there for comfort or because. Also this rule helps me truly evaluate if I need something or not before I ever purchase it.

Can I reiterate that I am no expert on minimalism? I don't have it together people. NOT EVEN CLOSE. To even say I am a minimalist is a joke. You should be laughing. But I am learning something new each day and for that I am grateful. If this lifestyle is for you, let's chat. If not, totally cool too. I like friends of all varieties and interest.

Post to come: some of my favorite articles, bloggers and real life people who rock minimalism.

Hey, thanks for reading. I think you are pretty rad. :)

Images here, here and here