Make it simple.

I have been researching simple, yet healthy recipes. Recipes that don't require a lot of ingredients but is a complete meal. My husband and I agree that it tastes better, and feels better to eat. We do a lot of simple soups, and one bowl meals.

Here is a recipe for an idea.. Over at my going green blog:

http://myjouneytogoinggreen.blogspot.com/2011/01/creamy-black-bean-soup.html

Saving money.

You really wouldn't belive how much money I have saved. Cutting back on the un needed crap means less I have to clean, less I have to fix, less I have to replace, less from the earth, and MORE money in my pocket. We can put this money towards better things, like maybe having a nice home, savings, or traveling. My husband is probably relived that I don't require much. I don't need much to be happy. All I really need in my life, is healthy food, a roof over my head, and the company of my loved ones. I have found that I now have less of a desire to buy that "up to date shirt", or that expensive phone. In fact I don't need to dress like everyone else to be loved, I don't need that phone to fit in, in fact that cell phone was quite annoying. Unexpected phone calls of "hey where are you, ok i'll be waiting at your door."

I hated feeling like I had to have this or that just see if someone would like me. I want to be liked for who I am, not what I wear or if I do what you do. Today I am happy to be me, and the real me wants to better my life as well as others if they let me.

My first big goal..

Ok besides clearing out the clutter, which will be on going anyways. My next big goal, is to at least visit Oregon. It's freaking beautiful there and why would I want to miss the beauty? For the past few months I have been dying to go to Portland, some of the nice areas are close by.  I know it sounds like a strech with a baby on the way but I belive I can make it happen, I am on my way Oregon!

Oh the irony..

Today must be my best memory day. While reading a minimalist post about eating simply out of one bowl for each meal, I remembered something else about my past, that leads me to belive that I am a born minimalist. While living in ahouse with roomates, the dishes can really pile up, and I found myself drowing in them horribly every day. I actually made a rule: one bowl, one plate for each of us, and we were to wash our own dish upon finishing. It works if you pack the rest of the dishes away :)

Even a year ago I told my husband I wanted to do this again. It also limits how much you eat. Just a quick thought there.

Dreams can come true, if you let them.

When a was little bit younger I used to dream about getting rid of everything except what could fit in a hiking backpack. I wanted to explore, and see things I never thought I could. I stumbled across a list I had wrote for myself about what would be kept in the travel backpack, I even kept revising it to reduce even more. I have been backpacking several times in my life and learned to not carry too much quickly!

Thinking back on this I can now see how real of a possibility it really is. Sure I have kids and I wouldn't be as able to go for long or without a home to come too. But it's still a possibility. I can still have the dreams I always wanted, I just have to let them come to me!

I belive you can be or have anything in the world that you want. My dad always told me I could be anything I want, I just have to try hard enough. I belive this to be true for your dreams as well.

Thinking back....

Looking back on my life, there are a few times in my life that circumstances forced me to become more minimal, even if for a short time.

I was 12 years old, and my parents wanted to build a home. In order to save money to put towards having a nicer home, we (My mom, dad and sister, with lil brother soon to come) moved into a 5th wheel on the property. This made it so we had more money without paying rent, and so that when my dad got off work he could work on the house, and be close to us too. I had 2 overhead cubbords to store my things, this meant clothes and maybe some music. We lived this way for about a year, at this particular time in my life it didn't really matter to me, I was going to get my own bedroom, bathroom and walk in closet. That was worth the wait in my opinion.

Of course upon moving into the house, the gear started to accumulate.

Then shortly after turning 16, we were going to endure the task once more. We packed up everything we owned except clothes and moved into an even smaller 5th wheel. My sister and I had bunk beds, and I had a little closet, plus a cubby at the foot of my bunk. This is the point that leads to my very first post on this this blog.

After some time I began staying with my boyfriend. He lived much closer to my school and work, and he took me in graciously. I kept a few clothes that were my favorites in the bottom drawer of his dresser and he bought me a few books that I still love today :) I had my car with a few things like big jackets and maybe an extra pair of shoes. But besides that, the rest was still in storage, a place I wish it would of stayed!

We eventually moved into our own home, and thats where it hit me. My parents went to storage and brought me boxes upon boxes of things I hadn't seen in a few years. To this day some is still packed in another storage. (still haven't touched it) We got even more stuff, we had friends bringing boxes of kitchen stuff, and plants galore.

After a year, we were financially having problems, so once again, I packed up everything we had, and we moved into 1 room of my in-laws house. We lived there for almost a year, and then while expecting our first child we took and even smaller amount of things and moved to an apartment that was still occupied by my brother in laws things. So we didn't really need any of our house wares yet.

9 months later, we packed all that away, (moving around the state lol) and moved into 1 room at my parents house (the three of us now) for a couple of months, and ended up at the in-laws for another 6 months.

So now two years ago we moved into this cozy duplex and we have been here since then. We are still working on all the stuff we put in storage. We had about 3 small storage units full, and have reduced it down to half of one, the plan is to finish that this summer and be done with it. We have both vowed that if circumstances lead us to live small again we would not put a single thing in storage, it would go bye bye for good!

Well now that you have my life story lol, you can better understand why possesions really don't mean anything to me.

I do cherish some things, but I crave the simple lifestyle. I had a few things that I loved and spent time with people that made me happy, I had money to do yoga, and I didn't eat nearly as much food! I was healthy and I went for hikes often.

So for my conclusion today, I want to say that having a lot stuff has always been a burden for me. We had to move a lot in the past, and I seriously dreaded the day we moved here, beacuse I knew I would have to deal with all that stuff. When we move again, I don't want the re-accuring nightmare. Plus it feels good to know that if you had to go quick you would have to time to grab what you needed instead of wondering what you should leave behind. I guess you could say that I am a traveler at heart.

Letting go.

So far the hardest "thing" to let go for me, is the fact that people will try to rub it in your face. Example, people are always trying to one up you and make you feel like you need to be in the "status quo". Other people will make you feel like you need to have that big exspensive house, or brand new car. The important thing to remember is that money does not buy happiness. You can think that all you want, but even the richest people aren't happy. Right now in this moment I am struggling to achive the state of mind that I don't care as much about money. It's no fun to be in a big house your husband busts his butt for, but you never see him.

I am happy for my little place, that we have just enough money to live in, you know why? Because I get a 3 day weekend with my husband every week,  he gets to spend quality time with my daughter and me. And he has made it possible for me to be at home so my daughter isn't with strangers everyday.

So this is my weakness, and I am sharing it with you, so that you can see that everything is not perfect. Yes I am achieving a lot and I am very happy with my results as my journey to minimalism continues. But I want to share my struggles with you so that I may be stronger for first admitting it.

So far..

Becoming minimalist has opened a new world for me. I have always wanted to be more eco friendly, and kind to the earth. While I am not a complete minimalist I see already how much of the earth I am saving, by cutting back on buying, especially buying things that will break with in a few days, buying less means less that was taken from the earth, by me anyways.(It also means I saved money on something I didn't need anyways) I also don't need a ton of cleaners anymore, I have a few simple cleaners that do the job well, and save plastic. I now have more time to cook healthy meals without feeling burdened by the "extra" work. In fact I have simplified my cooking too, and started making homemade snacks instead, because I have more time to think about I am doing. I also see that it feels good. It feels good to walk into a clean home, it feels good to only have to clean a little here and there, it feels good not having so much clutter on my counter top, it feels good to have time to just be me, and not rush around trying to keep this and that up to "par".

More time..

I can already see the difference in my life. I have more time and feel like I have more time. My husband and I had a 3 day weekend together and this time it felt like 3 days :)

I may sometimes feel bored but that gives me time to think, and I usually end up in the kitchen baking, but I love to do it. Having less to do around the house has got my creative juices going and I don't feel rushed doing the things I love to do.

It's clean!

     I can successfully say that when I have guests, or when someone stops in, that I don't have to worry about my mess or be embarrassed by it. In fact most people ask if I have been cleaning all day. I really haven't had to do much cleaning, and the extra things that need cleaning every now and then I can see them easier and they only take a few min. to take care of, instead of 40 min or longer because I had to move this, or clean something thats in the way. It feels good to have a clean house in just a few min. And to top it off, I don't have to bust my butt to clean the house, which is a real plus when your pregnant.

     So here's a 'cheers' to sitting back and relaxing on a sunday afternoon!

( Right now my posts are based on the the things I am learning from minimalism. There is of course a emotional side to it all. I feel like a new person!)

Feeling pretty good about the changes we have made!

I got a few compliments yesterday about how well I was doing with my new years resolution and how nice my home looks uncluttered. It really re-assured everything about what I am doing with my life. I actually had plenty of room to have several friends over and we did a big game night. Those are the kind of memories I want to have. We plan on doing this often. It just feels good to see how other people were affected by the small changes I had made.

Get going.

I vowed to clean out one drawer in the kitchen today, and collect one walmart bag full of toys that were going. Once I started I just kept on going. I got 2 kitchen drawers clean, and went thru all the toys, packed older ones and stored them in the top of the closet, we'll see if they are missed. My daughter will now keep her toys in her room, so we can be clutter free in the living room! It felt good, and all it took was one thing. That one thing felt soooo good, it got me going!! :) Today was very successful!

It's the little things in life that are worth living for..

My daughter has been talking about her baby sister all day (I am still pregnant), and how much she wants to meet her and do things with her!

It's just stuff.

What would you do if you got a knock on your door, and was told to evacuate? What would you grab? Say you have 24 hours to pack up and go.

I know some people would literally flip out. In fact I have seen it in action. Can we say 2002 Hayman fire...I understand that we work hard for what we have, but whats really important? I'd rather work hard so that we can have experiences that we will always remember. I personally, will always remember the times my parents took us places. We did a lot of hiking and camping, the views were the best reward ever. These images are imprinted in my brain forever.

So if I had to evacuate, to me it would be a new path in life. Some people would pick up and move on, and some would come back and build their life exactly like it was. I would move on.

Off the top of my head, right now, if I had 24 hours to evacuate this is what I would do:

 I would pack as if I was going to be away for a week at a relatives. Your basic essentials. Maybe a few toys for the kiddo, but otherwise it would not break my heart to leave it all behind.

What would you do?

Mindfully eating.

There is a huge problem in America, and you know what it is? Obesity. Obesity leads to other health problems, like diebeties, high blood pressure, even heart attacks. I belive that because we all live in such a fast paced world we eat and don't appreciate it. We eat while in front of the tv, while in the car, or rushing just so we can go go go go go..... Don't you think it's too much for our digestive system? We aren't even thinking about how much food we are consuming, we just keep on going.

Part of becoming minimal, means that you'll have more time to eat mindfully. When you aren't being consumed by the go go of the world. Sure we all have to be a part of it, but not all time. Put your phone away during a meal. Or yes even turn off the dang computer, and try to enjoy these moments, because we only get each one, once.

When you actually take time to prepare and eat food, it engages all your senses, and then by taking time to eat and enjoy each bite, you'll know better when your full. Plus by making your own meal, you can be sure it's healthy. I can't say that eating out is faster. Is it worth the time to be a little nicer to your body? Rather than craming some burger down your throat (mind you, that burger is so packed full of preservatives, you'd never know how long it was sitting there) that will cost you your health?

Like I said before, minimalism isn't just about getting rid of crap, it's also about getting rid of all the distractions, that aren't needed. When I have less stuff to take care of, I have less to worry about. Which means more time with my husband and kids, and more time to enjoy the things in life we were meant to.

Be present.

You can't change the past, and you have no control over the future. So be in the present. All that you know is right now. Sure we all have goals and aspirations for the future but we really only have so much control over it.

So my best advice is to live in the now, because if we don't thats lost time. Time worried about nothing.

De-cluttering

It's not like you can't walk in my home, my house doesn't look trashed by any means, I just can feel that what I already own is too much, and especially with another baby on the way. I am not a hoarder by any means, I have decided to take on this project for many of reasons!

My first mode of de-cluttering is to get the areas I am in the most. I spend a lot of time in the kitchen, thats where I have been minimizing. I have started with random dishes, mismatched things, of course things I no longer use. I am just about to hit the drawers, can't wait to feel that weight lifted!

I have also cleaned out the fridge and food cubbords, it is truely amazing what random things you occumulate!! Now whenever I open the cabinet or fridge I sigh with relife. I can reach what I need without other stuff in the way, and visually, it's easy on the eyes!!

It feels amazing to be in the kitchen, and now I enjoy my cooking even more, I have what I need and nothing stands in the way!

Stop buying, Period!

This might be a hard lesson for some. It comes a little easier to me though. My wonderful husband lets me be a stay at home mom. So every penny he makes I consider his! He pays the bills so that I can be with our daughter and I can't bring myself to ask for more. Which is just fine! I don't need to be out buying stuff anyways.

You have to "Just be" with what you have, and resist any new purchases, of course there are a few acceptions, and in those cases, get something quality so that your not replacing it a few months again.

Try to use what you have and be creative about it. Just think to yourself "what would I do if I didn't have money? Some may answer to borrow it from someone, others may be really creative with what they already have. For example, I wanted to poach eggs, but not have to buy a poacher, I don't have room or money to this anyways, so I got creative. Learning the old way... which may I add is a pain in the rear end. But I also tried all kinds of things and found something that works for me!!

Stop recieving.... Things,that is!

It's perfectly fine if someone wants to give you a gift, but ask for something like spending quality time with them, a babysitter for a night, maybe they could cook for you... The point is, why get more stuff you didn't need and won't remember? Wouldn't you remember it better if you did something together? Try to let people know that you would cherish something like that, a special memory.

Most of these lessons I have been learning, are things you have to keep up. It might sound like a lot work, but it's more work if you slip up and let the stuff in. Also I want to say minimalism isn't just about having less things, it's about simplifying your life and by doing that you will free yourself to a whole new world.