Some people shop recreationally. In fact, a lot of people shop recreationally. In all honesty, I was raised in a family of recreational window shoppers. While my family rarely had money to spend on extras, one of my mom’s favorite past times was (is!) window shopping.
However, I quickly left that by the wayside once I ventured out on my own.… Continue reading
It’s no secret that I’ve been slowly working to simplify my life. Whether it’s decluttering my home, my schedule, or my mind, I’ve been seeking out ways to get rid of the superfluous so that I can focus on what’s truly meaningful and important to me.
While I’ve had a lot of discussions with my 6-year-old about our simplification efforts, and included him in a lot of our decluttering – especially when his possessions (see HERE), art (see HERE), or other items he’s concerned about are involved, I haven’t overtly directly discussed most of this with my 2-year-old.… Continue reading
This week I’m simplifying my life by setting aside my To Do List. Generally, setting aside my list is, for me, a bit chaos inducing. I use my calendar and my daily list to organize my days and make sure that I don’t forget about the things that I need to do.
However, this week and next I am visiting my extended family.… Continue reading
The winter holidays are upon us. And if you’re like most families, this means there will be an influx of things into your home, especially for your children.
Over the years, my husband and I have done a good job of reminding our loved ones that we don’t need more stuff. Instead, we ask those who live far away to save their money and spend it to come and visit us (or those local to us to join us for a special meal or a cup of tea or fun nearby trip together).… Continue reading
The Winter holidays are upon us. In addition to the multitude of gifts that people exchange during this time of year, there is generally an enormous amount of gift wrap and trimmings to go along with them. Unfortunately, much of this gift wrap simply ends up in a landfill after the recipient opens the gift.
While everyone loves beautiful packages, here are some ways to make your gift-giving more environmentally friendly:
Life sometimes throws difficult things our way. Unexpected events occur; at times these are pleasant and at other times they are not. We all face hardships in some form or another (for example, a litigious person may threaten you with an unwarranted lawsuit — see HERE). People around us will make mistakes and there will be instances when we will be negatively impacted by them.… Continue reading
Our lives all have different seasons. Some seasons are busier than others. This true over the course of years. It is also true over the course of weeks.
You may have noticed that I haven’t been posting daily on my blog for the last couple of weeks. During this time, a several unexpected things have occurred. (I’ll post more about one big issue that arose in the coming week or two).… Continue reading
If you’re anything like us, you have more than one size of bed in your house. We happen to have one of each size: a king, a queen, a couch that folds out into a full, and a twin.
This means that we have sheets in four different sizes. And because we live where it gets cold in the wintertime, we generally have a set of cotton sheets as well as a set of flannel sheets for each of the beds.… Continue reading
Cooking real food from scratch can take a lot of time and effort. Part of what makes it take so long is all of the cleanup involved. Thankfully, when my husband is home, he takes care of the post-dinner cleanup. That truly helps a lot. But another way to simplify your mealtime is to cook a One-Pot meal. I try to do this at least once a week.… Continue reading
“Many people believe simplicity implies doing without. On the contrary, True simplicity as a conscious life choice illuminates our lives from within. True simplicity is both buoyant and bountiful, able to liberate depressed spirits from the bondage and burden of extravagance and excess. True simplicity can elevate ordinary moments…from the mundane to the transcendent.”
–Sarah Ban Breathnach
It’s easy to get caught up in the messages of our broader society: to hear the call that says we need to update our house, to keep our wardrobe current, to drive a new car, or carry the latest electronic gadgets.… Continue reading