#Minimalism

Have you ever bought a house that was twice the size of your previous one and thought it was all you ever wanted in life and within months realize that your entire family only lives in half the house happily because that is all you need.  We sure have!

When is enough, enough?

After reading multiple books, blogs, watching countless videos, and spending hundreds of hours discussing our future, my dear husband and I have latched on to the idea of minimalism.  In a nutshell it is the idea that you don't live beyond your means (instead, way under your means), with items you barely use, hate taking care of, or don't bring joy to your life, and you learn to be content with what you have, use, and love.



Moreover, you start to focus on what really brings happiness to your life, and start living simply in happiness rather than chasing some unattainable dream.  There is more to life than just earning a paycheck and buying all the things.  Abstract as that may sound, it was music to our ears, friends.  Life was getting heavy, expensive, hard to maintain, and just exhausting.  We wanted more time to concentrate on our daughters, traveling, making memories (which are priceless), and plain enjoying life instead of loathing Mondays, Sundays, and everyday in between.

So much of our life is spent chasing after a dream that some people never live to see.  Let that soak in.  That retirement package is going to be so great, they say, only to not live but a few years (if at all) past retirement age.  Yeah, no thanks.

What, you don't like the idea of retiring back into lower middle class?  Neither do we.

Maybe the status quo is incorrect and instead of buying into the idea of the original "American Dream", they should re-write the life thesis and name it the "American Dream: #Minimalized". You know, the dream without all the debt and regret.  The hashtag is for good measure and so that all generations feel included.

To some, this idea is going to be so far-fetched that it will seem as though we are just inconsistent in our life choices or can't make up our mind.  You may  be right, but you know what?  I would rather make a million wrong choices to find the right one, than to settle for what I think is right when this whole time many missed opportunities have occurred because we were so caught up in what we thought was the way to live.  So when is the right time to change? We asked ourselves this question for about a year and a half and we have decided now is good.

I am not sure what this will look like in the end, but DH and I are no longer scared of that thought.  In fact, we are so excited to do this we are going to tell our story publicly!

Areas we are downsizing:
*Housing
*Homeschooling
*Spending on things that don't bring joy to our lives (Read the book "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" by Marie Kondo or click here - it changed our lives!)
*Our person belongings
*Worry/Stress
*Tremendous amounts of regret in the form of crap we bought (see photo)

Our garage sale pile has definitely grown!  Can you believe we couldn't live without all this stuff???

Things we are upsizing:
*Traveling (we have family all over and it is time to see them!!)
*Camping (It gets its own category because it is amazing!)
*Family Time
*Savoring the moment (rather than continuing working towards goals constantly and missing the world around us - Facebook anyone?)
*Love for time not money
*The amount of knowledge we can attain from living more and spending less (a true treasure in our eyes)

More to come on our progress through this huge transition.


Remember: It is never too late to change your mind regarding your life path and by doing so you may just make the decision that leads to true happiness.  Never settle!

Peace

As I sit here this morning in the tranquility of our home, I am reminded how peaceful life can be. With some planning on my part (setting several alarms, asking my husband to wake me up before he leaves, and going to bed at a decent hour...hey it takes more effort for some people ;) I was able to take advantage of stillness and quiet I sometimes think are non-existent in a house with two young girls, two crazy dogs, and two busy parents.  This "quiet" thing is actually a thing!  I thought my girls singing in the bathroom while peeing at opera sound levels was something that would haunt my ears until forever but guess what...they are ASLEEP and not peeing (hopefully) and it is soundless before the sun comes up.  Who knew??!

Sometimes you have to sneak up on peace and tell it who's boss to make sure you can get your share. As adults, we sometimes feel guilty for taking time out for ourselves to recharge and just be.  STOP THAT!  Guilt needs to shut its ugly face in this case.  We cannot continue to take care of others if we are not properly taken care of first. So be a patriot for some peace in your life by waking up an extra half-hour early or stay up a little past when everyone else is in bed, grab a quiet spot wherever you are to just be: think, pray, meditate, write in your journal, craft, do whatever it is that brings peace to your mind and heart.  Your identity is important and reminding yourself who you are and your thoughts matter could be the difference between a kid getting grounded for having too many Shopkins in the living room (no...that never ever ever ever happens at our house - ok who am I trying to kid, yes it does!) and you being able to use your emotions for what really matters in this world - loving those closest to you, getting stuff done, and brushing off all the crap that comes our way. Find your peace so you can keep on brushing!

Well, I hear the delightful stir of children, so let the opera begin!!

"We must come to see that peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal. We must pursue peaceful ends through peaceful means."
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Image from publicdomainpictures.net, by petr kratochvil. Thanks, Petr.