Boys Room

Last week we changed the boys room.  Hooray!  A couple of years ago, we got a bunk bed for them.  They have loved it!  I didn't realize how BIG it was going to be...but they love it, so it has lasted.
But finally I talked them into changing.  We made some purchases- cubby storage, bins, and a bunk bed.  This included a trip to IKEA- where I only bought the items needed for this room!

Starting with 'before'...this is real life, people.  It was so hard to keep this room clean!  The bunk bed had a built-in bookshelf, desk, and drawers...I was hoping this would help, but not so much.  It ended up taking over the room, and it was overwhelming for them to keep it clean.

                                                BEFORE:

                                                Let's get to work!!

                                                 AFTER!!:

That room is SO BIG now!!  

All of their stuff is in those bins.  'Special stuff', cub scout stuff, stuffed animals, lego instructions, trophies, and collections.  Some of their books are in the other cubbies (some downstairs).  They know where everything goes, and everything is so easy to access!  Ahh, this has been great.  Plus, they have kept it totally clean for a week now...and they both comment on how great that feels.  Woohoo!

As far as buying things- I have been searching for a bunk bed for months, so I knew this would be a purchase.  The other things in their room have left the room, so this was only a move toward a more simple life...which is the overall goal! 

No Stuff vs. No Spend

Update on our no spending (as of March 7):

It's going really well!  So far the only things we have needed to buy: a left-handed baseball glove for our lefty daughter (and I need to get some baseball pants for her too...since it's the one color we don't already have from our son), and a phone case for John.

Pretty great!

Deleting shopping apps, not going to Target (or TJ Maxx, Dollar Store, etc), and shifting my mindset have been the biggest help.  I don't think about buying more of anything, my brain is learning to not even want to accumulate.

There are things I wanted to buy, for sure!  Those decorations at the Target dollar spot I heard about are adorable!!  New organizing stuff!!  The new drugstore makeup that is just as good as the high end stuff!! But I just put it out of mind.  Out of sight- out of mind.  If I don't have to make the decision whether or not to get something every time I go to the store- I can do this!

Spending vs. stuff

Just to clarify, my purpose isn't a no-spend.  We have bought tickets to multiple things, we haven't cut back on food budget, and are traveling.  For example- I found tickets for $45 for a year pass to our local mini golf/go cart/laser tag place, and I think it would be so fun to get those!  That is the pace I'm at right now- its close, the kids would love it, and we can go after school sometimes.

"When you own less stuff, you find more money, more freedom, less stress, and less worry." -Joshua Becker, Becoming Minimalist

For us, this is about having less stuff.  And less stress, more focus on what matters.  We have always been very careful with our money.  We've never had credit card debt, and have always sacrificed and saved for things we want- car, renovations, tickets, travel, etc. or just gone without.  Which means we didn't buy hardly anything all the time for a couple of years in college!  We've been taught and instructed to not have debt and to pay off our home, so we follow that.

One thing I haven't figured out yet...the kids rooms.  I LOVE organizing kids rooms!  And I've done theirs many times.  But...there is still a mess in there.  Even when it's clean, it quickly piles up!  I've been working on a solution (which will involve buying stuff!) for the boys' room, and I am almost complete.  It's hard to figure out a balance of keeping their 'special' stuff, and then also make it relaxing, easy to clean, etc.  They can clean it...and I keep making it easy for them to take care of...but we haven't hit that sweet spot yet.  Getting there!  I have been trying to figure out the problems, and also thinking hard about solutions before I jump in and get anything.  I want their rooms to be relaxing and a place for them to go for their own space, so I am working hard to make that easier! (yes, we have gotten rid of things, yes, they have to clean it up very often, and yes, they can make it a disaster in minutes).

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day!

We have 3 kids in school who each need to take valentines to class.  With no spending, that makes this harder!  So far if you aren't going to buy things...it means you have to plan ahead.

This one was an easy one for us though!  Everyone just repeated what they usually do- the 3rd grader made a paper airplane for each student (3rd year in a row doing this!), 1st grader made hearts and put stickers all over them (3rd year in a row doing this), and preschooler used some pre-cut hearts I had gotten in the Target dollar section last year (or the year before?).

Those hearts were in my craft closet, and were so cute!  I bought them since they were a dollar for a bag of them, and at the time I knew I could use them for ANYTHING!  Make a little banner with them, glue them on to something, just spread them on the table- who knows!? But I hadn't used them.  So I was glad that I didn't buy valentines so I can use what I've got...since 'someday' might not happen!  I don't often take inventory of what I have before going shopping, so I have plenty of craft supplies for many projects.  This is encouraging that I will be able (forced, really) to use some of them this year! (Yes, some- not all.  Cause there is a lot.)

*John and I don't really give each other gifts...partly because if we really want/need something, we just get it.  So we aren't getting things, but we didn't do gifts.  We did get to go out to dinner!  Thanks to my niece who came and babysat for free as a gift to us!

First Month!

We made it through January!

This was a pretty easy month.  We JUST celebrated Christmas a few weeks ago.  I feel like there is a natural desire to spend less (and eat less?) after the holidays.

So far, some ways this has been easier is by not going into stores other than grocery stores (I'm too busy anyway!) and then when I deleted shopping apps and deal sites, it's re-programming me to not think about STUFF.

Also, I cancelled my monthly makeup subscription that I've had for the last few years.  I LOVE getting something fun in the mail, but really, I was underwhelmed by the products more often that not.

My sister in law has joined us (yay!) and it's been fun to hear about choices she has had to make.  She returned a subscription box as well (clothing), when she thought about the fact that she had plenty and didn't need more.  Love it!  It helps to keep me motivated to hear from her.

We did have a big trip in January- southern California.  We went to Legoland, Disneyland, and California Adventure.  And we didn't buy anything! (Well, we bought a lot of food...but no stuff).

I had the kids go through our minifigures before we left and they picked out a few to trade at Legoland (shops and workers have lego mini figures for you to trade).  At Disneyland we traded pins.  I was tempted to buy more pins last December because I knew we would go to Disneyland at least once this year, and we are going on a Disney cruise in July.  But I thought about the spirit of my goal, and that we have plenty (and even had a big pile of pins to trade!).  We did trade all that we had left, so before the cruise we will go through what we have and pick out which ones to trade.

Has anything changed so far?  Nothing huge.  I just have readjusted my thinking, and I have had a little more 'me' time, so I am trying to be aware of how I spend that.  I've actually spent some time reading, also cleaning stuff out...which is more encouraging since I know no more is coming in to replace!  At least not for a while!

Let's Do this.

New Years Resolution 2017: To not buy any stuff.

Well, I don't want to set myself up for failure, so I'll allow SOME stuff.  But really... we are aiming for as little as possible.

Why?  There's so much stuff!!  I declutter a lot.  I don't shop a lot.  But still... there is stuff!  I love to organize and clean out, but I feel like I spend more time than I should doing these things.  We've got 4 kids and just under 2500 square feet, and I feel like our house is typically 80% clean (or can be in a few minutes if necessary)  We have a 2 car garage and can park both cars in the garage (and have been able to for years) and most rooms are cleared enough.  I think it is good for the kids to have chores, but I also don't want to spend a ton of time of them 'cleaning' their rooms (getting distracted and playing...)

I think the overall effect I'm going for is: If the whole family helps, our whole house could be clean in 15 minutes.  (maybe 10?)  I don't really want to own more stuff that takes up our time to clean up/out or go through.  I just want to be able to have things tidy (not perfect.  There is no such thing.  I just want it to be easy to get it better.)

I also want our kids to treat things better.  I hope they gain an appreciation for what they have and that they take care of their stuff more.  If you have 3 rain jackets...it's easy to leave one in the car and grab another one.  Or even forget one at school- there's still another in the jacket bin!  And then we get to the point where we can't find any of this child's jackets (I thought we had 3??)  Responsibility and taking care of their stuff is what I'm going for.

What?  What 'stuff' do I mean?  Toys, fabric (one of my hobbies), crafts, holiday decor, books, Target stuff, home decor, games, presents, paper craft stuff, thrift stuff, kids art supplies, garage sale stuff, organizing stuff, make up, whatever!
I feel like even with cleaning things out, we have enough craft stuff for anything we could possibly want to do, enough fabric (and batting and thread) for lots of quilts and projects, enough toys to play with for hours and hours, enough games that we don't have enough time to play them all, enough DVDs that we haven't watched much or at all, enough stock piled birthday presents, and enough art supplies to make a ton of whatever they want to make.  Enough books we all want to read or re-read, and enough extras of a few of our favorite things (i.e. John's shirts and my make up).
I'm really hoping this is that 'someday' in the back of my head- the books I'll read 'someday' or the project I will get to 'someday'.  If I don't do it this year...will I ever?

How?  So, I don't really shop THAT MUCH.  I go to the mall maybe once a year? I go to Target 4-5 times a year... and Walmart about the same.  I do go to the Dollar Store, garage sales (though not much last summer with having a baby), and thrift stores.  Amazon?  eBay? Target.com? Walmart.com? Craig's List?  Oh ya, I use those a bunch!  Prime 2 day shipping?  Please and thank you!  It is so easy to realize we need something, and then 2 days later it is on our doorstep.  Score!

This means to start off the year/resolution... I deleted my Amazon app, any store apps I have, and then deleted all the apps on the search page on my phone.  Including the deal site that I read daily and have found some amazing deals from using her posts!  When I open a new tab, it now just has google and Facebook for frequently visited pages. (I don't have the Facebook app...but that's been years.  Trying to make it slightly harder for me to get to, thereby cutting down my time on there.  In theory.)

This is a change for how we/I think.  The last week in December, John told me his physical therapist told him he needs to have a band at home that he can stretch with.  John had knee surgery in November (part 1 of 2...which is really surgery #2 on this knee).  I went on Amazon, saw what he needed, and almost paid 8.99 for it.  It's luggage straps- the kind you strap around the middle of your suitcase to hold it in and identify it.  I thought- this is needed, plus we can use the straps after he is done for our luggage.  Perfect.  Then I though- I'm about to do this challenge.  There has to be a better way to do this.  He said a strap from a duffle bag would work, so he found a duffle bag in the garage and is using the strap.  Yay!  Saved money, switched my brain from 'ease' to 'use what you got!'  It's a silly small thing- but that is what I am dealing with, mostly.  Silly, small things that seem like I need them, they are under $20, and no big deal.

This isn't really a huge lifestyle change for our time as far as the bringing stuff in part.  It's mostly allowing us to live with more purpose- or at least think about our time and our things with more purpose.  We don't take the whole family to the outlets or to the mall or even to Target, really.  I like shopping with as few children as possible!  We love to enjoy family time, and love to get outside, but also enjoy staying home and playing games, reading, Legos, watching movies or Warriors, etc.  This is more about knowing that nothing is coming into our home, so when we get rid of things and go through our stuff, we know what we end up with is what we are for sure using.  Like, when we went through kitchen stuff.  We had a cupboard that had stuff we didn't want to go through yet after we renovated our kitchen.  It's been a year and a half and we didn't even remember what was in there.  So 90% is gone!  Easy peasy.

We know that we aren't getting any new bowls or platters or pitchers or whatever this year, so when we look at what we have, we are more careful about figuring out what we are going to use for sure.  This has helped in getting rid of more stuff!  We had 3 pitchers- one glass that we use whenever we use pitchers (not super often), one plastic that is good for outside (making crystal light or just ice water to have when we get out of the pool), and then one cute one that we never use.  Knowing I am not going to get any more- it makes me really think about what I want to keep.  I try to figure out when we would use any of these and what we want to keep.  Glass pitcher made the cut, plastic pitcher is possibly going, and cute, useless pitcher is out.  Repeat for other categories.

So far, the kids and I have gone through every kids book we own, and also every game and puzzle we own.  And John and I put 70% of the kids toys in the attic for rotation.  I've heard it's great to do, but we hadn't done it yet.  The kids rooms were a mess a few too many days (awww we have to clean ALL of this stuff up????) so I was ready.  They came home from school and eventually looked in the toy closet (upstairs hall closet).  9 year old- 'Thank you!  It's so nice to see what toys we have!' 7 year old- 'Woa, that is not very many toys.  But I like all of them, so it's good.' 4 year old- 'Look!  There's the planes!  Look!  There's the cars!!  Let's play!'  We still have messes, but boy is clean up so much easier so far.  And zero complaints about having nothing to do.  Actually, there is a medium-sized bin full of random Legos, and all 3 kids have been playing those all week.  They are building houses and a hotel, and furniture for everything.

So far, 18 days into January, this is easy.  It is a burden off of my mind that I know I won't buy anything.  I LOVE a good deal, and I'm REALLY good at finding them.  And it's SUPER FUN!!  But I am liking this calm that I feel from not worrying about stuff.  I hope it continues!

Also, it is weird to think of your year in advance for what stuff you NEED.  Shorts for my kids, and Christmas presents come to mind.  I do have a stockpile already, so they are going to get some gifts for birthdays and Christmas for sure, just less.  Each Christmas I try to do less, but those are thoughts for another day.  But what else do you need?  I don't want to get very many kids clothes...laundry can take forever!  And I love when we go on trips and everyone has 5 outfits and I can do 1 load and everyone is restocked easily for exactly what they need.  So yes, I will need to buy a few things, but I will also be more aware of what still fits, and how many 'new' items come in.  For my clothes- I had a baby 5 months ago, so as I start to lose weight (...soon I hope...) I have clothes to pull out that I haven't worn in over a year!  Summer stuff will have been 2 years!  Score!

I'm excited for this journey and what it will do for our family.  Already going through the kids things has made their time at home easier and stress-free.  And less mess puts me in a much better mood toward the end of the day when I am pretty done.  Still a long ways to go, and I'm guessing in a year we will be able to look back and how we spent our time, what was important, and what- after a year- we still didn't get to and can leave the house.

*One last note... something about a goal like this that is set in stone for us and we think about, it is helping me to be better at other things.  We are also on day 18 of reading our scriptures together as a family.  Last year was full of good intentions and lots of reading and discussions...but not consistently every night for more than a month.  Just here and there all year.  Already I am noticing a huge difference for us, which I'll talk about later.  I decided we CAN be totally consistent at one thing- reading at least a few verses each night (we also talk about what we read, so it's going to be a couple more years till we finish... and then start again!)