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Thursday, December 31, 2020

Living a minimal(ish) lifestyle


Living a minimalist lifestyle

 


Since becoming a mom and owning our first home I am all about balance. Its necessary for me to avoid feeling overwhelmed and chaotic. 


When I first looked up how to live a minimalist lifestyle I was completely overwhelmed. Some true minimalist have truly stripped away a lot of materialistic objects in their life and just possess what they feel they need. 


I personally didn't want to go alllll the way there. I was just searching for living with less and implementing productivity in my day to day. I wanted to adopt this different lifestyle because I don't want my stress of having to clean up and have a tidy home take me away from being present with my son. Sometimes when we get overwhelmed with picking up toys, cleaning dishes, feeling anxious to live up to the high standard of being good stewards to our home, can paint a picture to our loved ones that they are the problem.


This comes from my upbringing. My mother takes stewarding her house with great pride and mission. Her home has to be tidy all day. Floors cleaned and mopped. Rugs vacuumed. Blinds and furniture dusted. Laundry completed and bathroom cleaned. However her concentration on these things did take her attention away from being present in her home. She was made to raise her siblings at a young age so I know this role was ingrained in her at a very young age. 


Once we bought our home this year, I set out what my intentions will be in our home. I initially started to set out with the same to do lists of maintaining a clean home, keeping the baby away from certain furniture etc and I noticed that this was not the healthiest perspective. 


Minimalism started with a shift in my perspective. 


I first asked myself what is it that is overwhelming me? This can be a lot of things and even external things. Is it your schedule? Your work life? Your home? Clutter? 



Gratitude is the theme of it all. 

 

Leaning into this so that my eyes can see what is already in front of me. I want to make space for what really matters. 


What really matters? This is a great question to ask ourselves. What matters and do I really need this item? Is this action bringing out the worst in me? Are these things taking too much of my time and taking me away from what brings me joy?


Sometimes the more you have, the more it takes up your time. If your kids have a lot of toys, when cleaning it up, is it taking a lot of your time and causing you to lash out?


I want to be proactive rather than reactive.


Practical ways to implement minimalism(ish) in our home:

 

1. De-clutter (This is with physical clutter)

  •  Start somewhere simple or small to not overwhelm yourself. Try a junk drawer and ask yourself: how often do I use this item? Is it frequently? Is it taking up too much space? This will help you evaluate whether you will keep it or toss it. 

  • Is this item meaningful to you? Does it bring joy (like Marie Kondo says)

  • Do you plan to use this in the near future? With the key in mind, does your home have the space to store it?

 

2. Block out time to dispose of your stuff

  • Perfectionism and procrastination can self deprecate all your efforts and this process. It will convince you to delay finalizing your efforts and the next thing you know you have garbage bags upon bags of stuff to get rid of sitting in your garage, basement, attic, closet etc.

  • Go on Google Calendar, ical, or your planner and block out time in your day or week to plan out how to donate your items.

  • Part of the planning process is researching where to take it. Make sure to make time for this step and write it all down so you can have a plan of action! This will help with your motivation to get this  done. 


3. Make room for the things that matter 

  • Once you de-clutter your home it's very tempting to want to buy more to fill the fresh new open space again. Part of this lifestyle is quality over quantity. 

  • When I am looking to decorate our home, I look for items that:

- Will last for many years

- Can be multi-functional

- Is it necessary for our home

 

Remember this process is not to overwhelm you. If you start to feel overwhelmed take a pause and re-evaluate your why. Why are you doing this? Who or whom are you doing it for?

Ask yourself: What do I want in life? What am I creating space for? What values do I want in my home?


Give yourself grace.


This can be a long process and you are capable of amiga! 





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