Posted in Frugality-Simplicity

Simple Journey Ministries Presents

I Can’t Live Simply Until…

A Place to Call Simple

Moms are often dissatisfied with their home environment when they are ready to make the shift to a more simple life. They look around and see all this stuff. They feel overwhelmed at the thought of downsizing and organizing all that stuff. This usually results in it being left alone and mom thinking she can’t possibly begin a simple life until she has a HUGE amount of time to accomplish the task; which no one has! Mom may decide to repaint, redecorate, or re-stage rooms instead of eliminating the stuff to simplify. However, this doesn’t get rid of the stuff, and this mom never really feels that sense of simplicity.

Is this you? Do you want a simpler life style, but your home doesn’t seem to co-operate? Start SLOW! Pick ONE room you spend a lot of time in as the target room. Your goal is to transform this room into one that is simple and comfortable. This means clutter free for most people. I often recommend that mom pick the master bedroom, because having a peaceful environment that is her own can often change mom’s demeanor. She may get more recuperative sleep or find that spending 5 minutes in her room with God is all she needs for refreshment throughout the day if there are no distractions like piles of laundry.

Pick one week to work on this room. Before Day 1, put some thought into what you would like to change and what is within your budget. Ideally this is a great project for not spending ANY money, but if you haven’t painted your room in five years, it might be time for a coat of pain in a warm, muted, neutral tone to help set the environment. Schedule de-cluttering activities for one or two days in a row. Get rid of as much as possible. Remember you are looking to simplify! Less stuff around you really does change your mood within the room and there is less to take care of, cutting down of weekly cleaning time. Less cleaning time means that you can do something else during the extra time! WAHOO! Who wouldn’t like to gain a little time each week? Use Days 3-6 to paint and re-organize your room to accomplish a tranquil environment.

Once you have accomplished a simple environment, keep it that way. With less stuff in the room this will be easy! As you find the enjoyment of having this one place of simplicity in your home that you can rely on every day, you will find yourself inspired to take on each room of your home, one simple step at a time.

These are my thoughts.