Too Much

Tis the season for buying.  Stores are chock-full of toys, decorations and displays full of everything I   never knew I wanted.  It makes me want to buy things, which is exactly the stores goal.

This weekend I donated over 10 boxes to the local thrift store.  10 boxes of items I had, at one time, thought were important enough to buy and bring into my home.  It makes you stop and think, lugging all of those boxes out to your vehicle.  I bought all of this. When I buy more things in the future are they going to end up in boxes to be given away, too?

Looking at the toys scattered throughout our small home, I wonder, as I have many times before, if all of this is really necessary. I get caught up in the hype of colors and marketing and buy, buy, buy for our granddaughter, Elle, and her little friends. But what if there was half as much stuff or 1/4 as much?  Would they be bored?  I don't think so.

We must have 100 little plastic figures, animals and people.  Do you know what they do with them?  Dump them on the floor.  I conducted a little experiment where I took 5 small plastic toys.  I set them on the counter in the kitchen. Elle saw the figures and started playing with them, setting them up in a row, sticking them on the edge of her plate and in the straw of her cup, tipping them over, etc.  I asked her the colors and we counted how many there were.  We turned them upside down and used funny voices to pretend they were talking.  After eating, I moved them to a little table in the living room.  They were like a magnet.  And the rest of the toys, ignored.

I could probably reconstruct this experiment with any number of toys we have: cars, blocks, Legos, puzzles, etc.  Pull one out and watch what the kids do.  Why do I feel the kids need SO MUCH of the things they love when they are just as happy or maybe even more happy with less?  More isn't always better,  it's confusing, stressful, and messy.

The wooden car pictured above was purchased for 5 cents at the thrift store.  No bells, no whistles, no fear of becoming broken or damaged by mud or water.  It's perfect.  I need more of this and less of everything else.

I can not get another shirt hung in my closet.  Last night I tried on 6 or 7 shirts, discarding each one in disgust as it fit me funny or clung to areas I wasn't interested in it clinging to.  I ended up pulling out a top my sister bought me with a cover up sweater and felt good.   I bought a few more of the tops in different patterns and they are my go to tops whenever I want to look a little nicer than the spandex and v-neck t-shirts I generally wear.  Why do I have these other "unwearable to me" clothes in my closet?  The closet is literally stuffed.

Tomorrow I am sorting through my closet. I am going to be ruthless and remove anything and everything I don't love. I might hold on to one box of "I love these shirts, but they don't quite fit", just in case I drop 10 lbs like I hope.  We can all dream! But the rest of the clothes will hopefully find homes with people who actually wear them.  What is their purpose if they aren't going to be worn?

I want my home filled with useful items.  Toys that will be played with.  Clothes that will be worn.  Utensils that are used.  Books that will be read or referenced.  Decorations that make me feel happy or content.  I want to make room and time, for what gives us joy, for what has a purpose and this coming year will be centered on this, among using up what I have before purchasing anything new. I also want to renew my pursuit for more real food in our diets and less processed treats, although I am weak in this area.  Can you say candy?

I have been reading a few different books and blogs on minimalism lately and the repeating theme is: live the life you want, don't be bogged down with material items that require upkeep and space that you have to pay for, use your space for the things you love, surround yourself with what makes you happy, makes your life easier, be content, concentrate on what brings you joy and work for it, be happy.

I love being happy.

Reflection

Relax

Happiness

No Guru Here

Three years ago, my husband JR and I moved from a 2000 sq. ft home in the suburbs to a home in the country less than half the size, 880 sq. ft. Our first home was almost 3000 sq ft, so we were no strangers to downsizing.  We whittled our possessions down to our favorites and settled in to the country life with our menagerie of animals, 3 large dogs, 5 cats and 2 rabbits.  JR worked mostly from home, so we stuck him in a corner in the spare room and I started dreaming of gardens, farm animals, self-sufficiency and a quiet, simple life.

A year later, we built a garage, larger than our home, settled JR into his new “office” and started filling it up.  Around this time, my oldest daughter surprised us with our first grandchild and we went a little nuts with buying stuff for the baby.  We also acquired miniature donkeys, started raising chickens and built coops and pens.  I started caring for other children to give our granddaughter playmates and money to help pay for toys, mostly, and our youngest daughter’s upcoming wedding.  

And here we are, once again drowning in stuff.  Although I am not a big spender or a mall shopper, I am a “lots of little things”, shopper and have learned in my years of buying “lots of little things” how to stack, store and organize “lots of little things”.  BUT IT’S TOO MUCH.  

It’s time to get serious and focus on what makes me happy.  It might not be what makes everyone happy, but that’s okay.  Join me, if you like, in my quest for a simpler life, a healthier life, a more frugal life where the focus is on happiness and quality of life.  

Book Review: You Can Buy Happiness (and it's cheap)

Tammy and her husband, Logan, started off wanting a large house with the best things money could buy, but with credit card debt and school loans, they couldn't afford it. They decided to buckle down and get their loans paid off, but on the way took a trip to Mexico to help the Zapatistas. Tammy had been volunteering for the Mexico Solidarity Network to help earn money for their education and health care and she felt this trip would complement her volunteer work. This trip to Mexico was the turning point in her life. Living out of one bag and seeing how other people lived, opened her eyes to the excessive lifestyle she had been living and hoping for. This book follows Tammy and her husband's path towards a more simplified life to a smaller apartment, then smaller, then finally a tiny house. I thought the book was interesting, she gave a lot of practical pointers about sharing items, living without a car, downsizing, etc. Worth a read. 4 out of 5.