slow and steady wins the race





Sometimes even the best plans go awry.  Like mine. For instance, I was planning on having an entirely super clean home that Better Homes and Gardens would have showcased.  I was planning on being the mom that was super in shape Sports Illustrated cover ready.  However, I am not there yet.  I got totally sidetracked with LIFE.  (not the magazine, but the process of being)  The point is that I am not throwing the entire plan out the window and then spending hours re-planning.  I am simply extending my deadlines.  I was the person that at one time thought there was a huge flaw in the planning part and would have done exactly that.  Spend my whole life planning and not doing.  I can see some success, but I am finding it harder to maintain minimalism, even though it brings me peace.  Remember that lovely closet redo?  Well, it is not beautimous anymore, there are dirty clothes outside of my dirty clothes basket and shoes that were too lazy to put themselves up.  It is okay.  All I have to do is stop it before it starts breeding to other areas.

my mom is the bomb. and I am her mini-me.

  On a wonderful note, though, I did go through 2 of my kids' rooms.  you would have been super proud of me.  I probably could've been a candidate for hoarders up there.  Here are the sums...(oh by the way I forgot pics of the before, sorry, but I would not have posted them anyway, they were THAT cluttered) 10- 52 gallon bags of trash out of two rooms!  10- 52 gallon bags of donation clothing and one hockey table and one little tykes dollhouse.  It really is worth it, guys, all my kids want to do is hang out in their rooms!  And now I can actually get to the part where we decorate.  and invite friends over, almost anyway.  How is your journey going?

Dirty little secrets

Ok peeps- The laundry room was de-cluttered. (Dirty little secret number 1- I had sheets from my bed that I had "lost" over a year ago hiding under decorating items and cleaning supplies in my laundry room!)  I still need to move a cabinet out of that room into the office, but I am not ready to do the office yet, so it will stay here until that time period.  I can literally dance in there now, which, of course, I did.  I felt soooo invigorated about that simple success that I went ahead and worked on my closet.  You saw the before- here it is again...

BEFORE

yes the brown pressboard shelf is ugly AND you can see the floor!!!

Project-o-Meter, planning your attack!

Sometimes, what you need is a new way of thinking.  I have been so down and out because my progress has been s-l-o-w.  Actually it has been nonexistent.  I began re-examining my life in order to figure out what made me feel like life was living me instead of the other way around.  It is due primarily to the fact that I have too much stuff that steals my time and becomes a priority over what I really want out of life.  Basically, I am clearing toys off my floor and not taking my kids to the park, playing a game with them, planning an adventure, etc- the cleaning of the toys became the priority.
I am giving myself a deadline, a deadline for the queen of procrastination...

Phase 1: Assign myself an area of my house, de-clutter for 1 hour. Remove non-essentials, bag up and do not look back! This should be completed by January 15th.
Phase 2: In same areas deep clean each room for one hour.  Vacuum, dust, sweep, etc. for one tiny hour. That is it. Should be completed by Feb. 1st.
Phase 3: In each room determine what projects need to be started,completed, or put on hold Due date Feb. 7th. Create a master plan for these projects to take place and what PRIORITY they have.
Phase 4: Beginning February 8th Project-o-meter commences, this is the part where you can truly enjoy your living space and accomplish the tasks that you have dreamed of but never got up off your hiney to do. 

I am still working on organizing my closet into a haven of purdyness.  But here is the before picture...


sweet baby Jesus that just does not scream serenity, at all!

Thankfully, I have a really awesome best friend who is excited to help me accomplish my dream of a minimalistic home and has agreed to declutter, supervise my project accomplishments, and create belly aching laughter to get me to where I am going.  Honestly, she is only 1 out of two people I ever allow in my home because the stuff is ruining my life!  In return, I must travel the Oregon trail to her house and do the same, but life is soooo much better with good friends (and coca-cola, more on that later...)

overwhelmed, sigh...

Honestly, this whole minimalism thing is a bit overwhelming and exhilerating at the same time.  I need to take the journey of a thousand miles, by starting with the first step, I know, I know.  I keep seeing my home all organized and pared down, but I keep coming up with excuses as to when to actually physically make a step.  Then I beat myself up for not getting anything done.  So, I think that I will start in the closet.  My closet.  I am going to get rid of (gulp) half of my clothes.  I have never really done that whole haven't worn it it a year toss before, but I do know what I wear all the time and what I am probably never going to wear.  Easy Peasy.  By the way the dining room table has become my project-craft table-wrap presents-toss the mail area.  Jeff Lewis of Bravo's Flipping Out would be horrified. http://www.jefflewisdesign.com/ He is pretty much the bomb and the inspiration for my house. Chcek out his beautiful gallery, I will post pics of my before and after progress soon. Promise.

A picture of Jeff's old home, what bliss. Perhaps, I should develop a cleaning OCD.

Roast chestnuts, not children

I must confess, I am stressed about not having enough goodies to give to my kids for Christmas.  What's that you say? Aren't you on a "journey to minimalism"? yes, yes, I am. But I feel torn between two worlds.  I have accumulated so much stuff that I don't need and yet, I am bringing more into my home.  The whole idea is not to go without, but only have things that A) you are in lovey-dovey with and B) items of quality, none of that junky junk stuff anymore (goodbye Dollar Tree).  While on a mission to discover Christmas without gifts, I discovered this gem...Jesus roasting children in hell for Christmas presents Wow, just wow. I had no idea that Jesus could even pop blood vessels!  In all seriousness, Jesus loves the little children and I cannot see him ever roasting children. ever. This is more along the lines of what I was looking for-  Volunteering, cooking together, playing games that you already own, basically, just spending the time with ones you love doing stuff that you always want time to do, but never have the time to do.  However, if you are like me, and just cannot step completely away from giving trinkets to your little ones and you are looking for quality gifts for your kids, this is a little sneak-peek at some of the toys they will be getting:

• a Microscope  
• books, because you can donate these to a school library later
• items that enhance a passion, for instance, my son loves to cook, so he will be getting a nice set of stainless steel cooking utensils, and a couple of stainless steel pots, these are quality, people.
• My daughter will be getting her own sewing machine in the hopes that she will create a cottage industry business with it.
• A Star Wars lego set (which I realize has a million and one tiny pieces that kill your feet when accidentally stepped on, but, he wants to be an engineer and honestly, have you seen those crazy lego kid designs? they are pretty much amazing and I expect them to end up at MIT or something)
• For your spouse, one of my favorite presents that I have heard of was my cousin's.  She wanted window boxes for the house (and because her middle name is also frugal, she did not want to purchase these) so her husband made her those boxes, practical non-in-the-way present. love it.

So, the whole point would be to ignite passions and cut the clutter, and spend time with your favorite little ones. Happy shopping, y'all!

Clutter Contracts- a legally binding agreement in my totalitarian world

A clutter contract  is a contract that I made my kids sign stating that they would not leave items out.  If they leave items out, then they are collected after they go to bed and packed away. FOREVER.  If an item is cried about, fussed about, or pitched a fit about, mom will go to the room and collect another item of her choice to be packed away. FOREVER.  I am including backpacks, shoes, and clothing in this contract. THE contract  I am up to my eyeballs in the messes that my monsters kids leave every.single.place.they.can.  So, this is dia numero uno.  I am patiently waiting for the clock to hit nine so that the fun and mayhem can begin.  I will let you know how the scene plays out.  By the way I finished getting all my Christmas lights put on my tree today. woohoo, go me! 

Day 1- less=more

I have never been one of those people that wanted a gazillion kids and to stay at home with home baked cookies and my knitting.  I have always loved working.  However, I have found that my job gets in the way of my relationships.  My husband feels left out, my kids don't get the mom time they need, and my friends barely call for lunch dates anymore.  So, when I started to feel like I was missing something, I realized what I was missing is a relationship with those that I love the most.  My kids have been sick today, which forced me to stay at home, which is a rarity.  So, looking around I noticed that I simply have too much.  I fill my brain with things to do, fill my space with not needed home decor items, which half the time I am settling for anyway, and too many projects started but never finished.  I am thinking that this mommy needs a makeover.  I want to clear my life of all non essentials and just enjoy life, not have things that tie me down and definitely get more out of my relationships.  So basically less stuff equals more of what I really want out of life.  When did the American dream become my dream?  I am doing my own dreaming from here on out...minimalist life, here I come!



And this, my friends, is an example of the chaos I come home to everyday
Lovely dining room table, it just screams simplicity and minimalism, aye?

But wait there's more...

This hallway decor is actually a desk for my daughter's room. How long has it been gracing the foot of the stairs? For about a month now. Awesome, I am choosing to view this as modern art.  I call this piece "Desk on Side"

So, after the stunning views of my house, you can see why change is needed.  Feel free to leave tips, decor ideas, and other nuggets of wisdom for a lost person like me.