There is a pastor who we know and love very much who says;
“God loves us just as we are, and loves us too much to let us stay that way”. I
have always loved that because it always gave me hope that not only could I
change, but that I was meant to.
This year- 2015 I have major changes I want to make in my
life and in my home and family life. This year I have 12 resolutions. I thought
about filling up my blog in January expounding on each one, but as this is my
first post of the New Year- the official launch of “Bowl full of Blessings ”- I
thought I would narrow down this post to just one of my resolutions. SIMPLIFY
OUR LIVES!
Ha, narrow it down huh? When I got into my plans to help
simplify our lives, there are over 10 things to do to accomplish that and in those
10 things, another 10. Wait! This doesn't sound simple. I read somewhere that
simple doesn't mean easy, it means simple to do. That’s what I have pulled together.
I think we could all use some simplicity in our lives so I
am very excited to say Hi there! Welcome to my blog and here are 10 ways we
plan on simplifying our lives.
#1: UNSUBSCRIBE!!!!
I don’t know about you but I have hundreds of emails
everyday from all over the place. Ya know that one website I wanted to look at
but had to give my email address to get in? I have lots and lots of those
emails. It makes it harder to find the emails you want to get. So, numero uno
on my list to simplify my life… unsubscribe.
#2: DITCH THE ELECTRONICS!
Ok, clearly I am not suggesting to make a run to a recycle
place and dump all of our electronics, but rather I am suggesting- unplug.
Everyone! Maybe it’s after dinner and before breakfast. I don’t know when the
best time is to do it as a family, but I do know- most nights of the week you
can walk into my house and you will find Ben on the couch on his phone, Tristan
in his room on his DS or IPod or WIIu, and I am somewhere in between watching
YouTube videos on homesteading or how to milk a cow. We spend our evenings
separate… when we spent all day separated. So for us, it’s taking a breather-
and breathing together. I found some really great blog posts on this topic at the Shabby Creek Cottage blog She also talks about 10 ways to simplify…. It
turns out when I was done with my list, I too had 10 things.
#3: SCHEDULE DOWN TIME:
Doing tons and tons of reading on this topic almost every
single article I read mentioned or suggested “schedule down time” in their list
of ways to simplify. Hey, I agree- how do you schedule down time? Well… I have
already kind of done that on my own. I get home from work about an hour before
Tristan gets out of school. I could get a lot done in that hour, but instead I
make a conscious effort to stop thinking for 30 -60 minutes. Let my brain rest,
watch part of a movie, and lay down- something. I know not all of us get the
opportunity to stop moving until we hit the pillow, but to allow room to take a
breath- I support the idea that is good for both your physical and your mental
health.
#4: FIND A MANTRA
While trolling pinterest the other day I came across this
saying, it’s the minimalist mantra: I love this from "The Motivated Type" on Etsy. . Though I
have no intention of becoming a true minimalist… I would like to embrace the
mantra on a more regular basis. This doesn't have to be your mantra but besides
the Bible, we all need phrases or words or songs that remind us, reinforce us,
and challenge us to stay the course we are on… or in fact, choose a new one.
#5: LIVE WITH LESS
#6: PRIORITIZE OUR LIFE let go of what doesn’t matter
Such a great piece from imperfect homemaking.com- I love her
advice for getting things in order and getting rid of that which doesn't fit
into our order is stellar and right on.
For us, it might not be so much “things” as it would “acts” or
“behaviors”. There is a good amount of griping, yelling, and fighting that
happens here over all kinds of silly and unimportant things. I think that
taking a look at our lives and identifying the priorities - and making those the
things or people or actions that we put our energy into is going to be very eye
opening and has the potential to grow this little family even closer together.
#7: GET ORGANIZED
For those of you know me, and even more so- those who know
me well, I am a fairly organized and detailed person. However, there are many
areas of my life and my home that leave something to be desired. Keeping a
calendar- which we do, having spaces in your home that are organized and put
together so that clutter doesn't have a chance to take over- everything has a
place to go. During this month I will be posting some projects I am working on,
like our magnetic chalk board wall calendar and the re-do of our command
center. These are just two of the many organization projects I have on the
docket for our home. Also getting my planner more organized, my blog planner,
closets, drawers, the refrigerator, even the garage. I believe having these
things and spaces more organized and purposeful will lend to the strength of
simplifying our lives. Check out these projects: {My Organization Pinterest Page} { Cre8tive- home- decoration.com} { A Bowl Full of Lemons. net }
#8: CASH BUDGET (Work towards becoming financially free)
This is always a work in progress but we have been pretty
lax in our budget keeping and cash only living. I have read {“Total MoneyMakeover” by Dave Ramsey.}
It’s pretty inspirational but will take a great deal
of sacrifice and dedication. We haven’t done much since reading it in terms of
taking steps to move forward and upward but that’s part of our 2015
Resolutions. We are “resolute” to becoming free from the burden and chains of
financial issues. Part of this is also working towards us being able to buy a
small plot of land and home in the near future- as I desperately want to
homestead on a farm. I stumbled upon { Fun cheap or free.com}
and found this post…. {“How we are managing our cash budget this month.”} They
have some really great pointers- some I may even snatch up.
#9: IN THE WORD and out of the world
I am a 36 year old woman who was raised in church but who
never got a full understanding of who God is until I married my husband. Over
the years we have experienced our ups and downs, like everyone else, some lower
and higher than others- but we have also experienced a real and present God in
our lives. It’s unfortunate that we don’t spend the time we should in the Word and
in prayer unless of course we’re standing on the cliff and don’t want to taste
the dirt again. So part of my plan to simplify my life is to stay connected and
grow daily in my relationship with God. My sister bought me a yearlong
devotional by Joyce Meyer called {“Trusting God Day by Day”} for Christmas. I am
excited to start it… oh wait; I already have as you are reading this on the 1st….
I promise it’s the first thing I will do the morning of the 1st.
#10: MORE FAMILY TIME
TOGETHER
As part of step 2 and step 6- family time together is
precious for us. Our 9 year old is growing fast and I am afraid that we all too
often waste that time we have together for our own personal ventures or plans.
Another great blog {Double the Batch.com} has a great post {“HOW TO LIMIT SCREEN TIME AND HAVE FUN AS A FAMILY”} besides cutting back on individual electronic time; we are also
making a commitment to eat dinner every night together at the table. Look, this
is a national movement but I was raised that no matter what- when dinner was
ready, we were at the table. Ben and I swore and swore that we would raise
Tristan that way. Have we? Um, no!
Sometimes Ben and Tristan will eat at the table and I will be in the
living room…. Or we will all be eating in separate rooms. It’s a terrible habit
we all have that I mean to break- ASAP! Tristan got a lot of board games this
Christmas, adding to our impressive board game collection. We have already
cracked open “Sorry” and “Clue”…. Family game time is a great way to spend time
together. We laugh, sometimes cry, and just have a great time trying to beat
each other at which ever game were playing, where undoubtedly Ben becomes the
villain.
These are the 10 things I will be attempting to accomplish
this year to help simplify our lives. I would love to hear what you do to help
keep your lives from over running you! Please post! Would love to hear from
you!
** I have not been paid or reimbursed for any of the blogs or products I
have featured in this post. All are just my suggestions and favorites**
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