Really Purging the "Stuff"

Ever since that conversation hubby and I had in November, we have been slowly eliminating things from our lives. I should clarify that, because it's not just physical things, but activities, thoughts, and attitudes as well. I have to admit, the physical things are easier than the others.

The last few months have been incredible! I feel like Mr. Small House and I are dating again with the wonderful conversations we've been having. We're really trying to find who we are and who we want to be both individually and as a family and it's exciting!

We're reading more books about things we always wanted to try or learn about.

We're working outside more. With less distractions, we've found we both really do love yard work. Mr. Small House has been building a rock wall in the back and has taken over building garden beds. We love making compost! And I really enjoy taking care of my garden beds. I like the construction side too, but can't do much of it while 9 months pregnant. :)

Unused craft/scrapbook stuff is gone and no longer nagging at my mind. This one has made me so happy!

We got rid of any child's toy that requires batteries. I'm so tired of the obnoxiousness! I think we got rid of at 75% of the kids toys and now they actually use the playroom. What a novel concept! They were also so distracted by the stuff around them that they couldn't focus. It was like their brains were overstimulated into paralysis. I've seen that happen when we used to let our son play video games. It was really kind of scary watching him.

Any music, movies, or books that weren't something we'd want our kids seeing are gone. No more zombies, no more tv seasons or movies with questionable content we just excused. I should be honest. Most of them are gone. 90%. Sometimes you have to do baby steps. While most of the "teenage" music is gone, I can't quite yet part with my Guns & Roses (despite not listening to them in at least 6 years!)

As of this week the boy is no longer going to preschool. It was a fun preschool my friend ran but it changed our morning routine and walking him there has become a stress for me and therefore a stress for everyone. It meant a tantrum three days a week from his little sister. It's not worth it. Hopefully things will work out well for kindergarten in a few months!

I'm trying to really evaluate my life and the things in it; asking some hard questions. Why is it there? Do I like who I am with it? Does it lead me to something I want or away from it? Does it drain my energy? Do I keep it/do it for someone else? It's really interesting asking these questions about the habits and the people in your life, by the way.

I could keep going, but hopefully you get the idea. All these things I let take up room in my life have kept me from becoming who I really want to be. I am noticing so many small differences in how I think and behave just because I don't have as many distractions. I know the big changes will take a lot more effort on my part, but life has really improved just from this. I've noticed from reading other blogs that this is something a lot of families are doing. My friend Emily is probably the one that got me thinking about it. If you are decluttering your life right now, what are your reasons? Is it working?

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