I've been reading a lot about simplifying life lately. It seems to be a common thread amongst everyone- the desire to slow down and not live so fast paced. The world seems to turn so swiftly these days, our lives are cram packed with stuff to do and literal stuff to deal with. Even in my own little home, life seems to spin out of control at times. So much to do!
In my mind simplifying meant a lot of things that probably weren't really simple. Making my own everything, sewing my own everything, downsizing our stuff etc. I realize now that it's ok to take help from the store and still live simply :)
I realize it's ok to have a simple meal and still be a good cook. It's ok to use paper plates and still be frugal. It's ok to use disposable diapers and still be resourceful. My husband and I have talked about it and this is what we have decided. Since I am now taking care of 4 little girls 5yrs and under, I will focus on the basics- dishes, cooking, laundry, picking up around the house. In the evenings I plan to quickly clean up around the house- spot mopping, bathrooms etc. On Saturday mornings, dh and the whole family will take a couple of hours and wipe out the major house cleaning. This was his idea :) And he is a GOOD cleaner- better than me :)
I have also made a basic menu for all meals that I will stick with for 2-3 weeks, then change. That way I don't have to make a new plan each week. I will still make our bread and keep up with all my cultures (kefir and kombucha). I won't know how each day shall go until after this week, since I need to mesh Emily's schedule with ours first. At some point we will NEED an outing so we don't get cabin fever. It's so HOT though!!!
This is a huge burden lifted off of me. I now know that my responsibilities each day are caring for children, picking up the house, meals, clothes and kitchen clean up. That's it. I know that I will have a team of helpers at the end of the week to deep clean our house and keep it nice. I will also be making some money to help with bills and extra things we need/want like the lovely loose tea we adore, nutritional supplements, stuff for Leiah's new room, clothes etc. Maybe we will get some TV channels eventually. But, we won't have time to watch it because...
Life will be picking up pace. I have an extra child, Leiah will start kindergarten, we are starting a fall garden and we're about to get a flock of chickens. A whole new life, ha,ha. But, we feel confident that this is what we should do and are prepared to work hard. That's what it all boils down to huh? You want something, you work hard at it.
Oh, and I knew as soon as I posted that I was taking a break that I would suddenly be posting all the time. I'm weird like that :) Morning quiet time is about over now, must go.
3 comments:
Living life simple is so enjoyable. I think your plan sounds great. So far I haven't figured a plan out for us after we have two more children in the home, I may borrow yours :) Except the part of DH helping, my sweet wonderful DH is not good at all with cleaning and well his Saturdays are full with mowing grass or his second job which is making knives for his customers.
You will love having your own chickens, it is so wonderful to have your own eggs. It is also really neat to watch them, my kids love watching the chickens and "chicken" was one of the first words my 15 mth old said. Ha!
Cheers to living life simple, I think if everyone does that then the pace would slow down some.
P.S. When I can I use paper plates for every meal. I used them the whole weekend. I hate washing dishes so I try to cut down on the work.
I, too, have been longing for simple living. Our chaos has resulted in planning too much for our summer. 3 horse shows, help cater a wedding, 2 birthday parties, and a trip to see family that took us across the country. All that crammed into about 6 weeks. I've learned a valuable lesson in scheduling though. And it's finally over, and it's so quiet at my house. It's so niiiiiice :)
Sounds like you are on the right track, and it sounds as you have a good husband. Really. How many husbands would offer to help with the cleaning every Saturday!?
I found you through Lentils and Rice, your blog seems very nice :)
Nice to meet you!
I have had the same situation, in fact you have just inspired me to post. I was trying to make bread, worried about canning stuff (we don't have a garden and I don't know how to can) and cook from scratch..but I have a two year old and a baby and I can hardly get everyone up and dressed everyday by breakfast.
I was putting so much pressure on myself for what I THOUGHT was Godly instead of doing what he actually had for me to do. I mean canning, really, I live in a townhome and have no garden LOLOLOL.
Many Blessings :)
Ace
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