Simple Living

The more I ruminate on what I have read in the book Organized Simplicity over the past couple of days, the more excited I am about my purging project. I am a little bummed that I'm this excited right now, when I'm not in tip top shape healthwise, and when it's the middle of winter and the completely wrong time for a garage sale. All this comes down to the fact that I will likely have to wait until April or May to really tackle this project.

But I'm not sure I will end up waiting that long. I know how important it can be to act on desire like this, because in a couple of months who knows if I'll have the same drive. So if I can convince my wonder, amazing husband to clear me some room in the garage where I can gather yard sale items, I might get moving sooner rather than later.

The most important concept I've gathered from my reading is about purpose. I need to define (in writing, for me, since that' most effective) what vision I have for my home, and then more specifically, for each room. For example:

Main floor: an area where the kids can run around in freely and safely, a friendly atmosphere that let's guests know they can kick up their feet and relax here

Living room: a gathering place for our adult friends, a place to sit and read, our entertainment hub

Kitchen: a place to cook healthy foods from scratch as much as I can

Entryway: effective storage for daily outdoor clothing/shoes, but hidden away as much as possible

With this vision, I can now enter each room and evaluate it against these pictures. An item should be either useful or beautiful, or it doesn't need to be there. If the item is not helping to fulfill my vision of the room, get it out!

I am making a goal to track my room by room progress here on my blog, as a measure of accountability. It will likely be a drawn out process, not something I tackle in a myriad of days in a row. But hopefully, if I get my act together, I can post my ideas and photos of each room, record the items I've held onto for forever but am now tossing, and sharing the joy/agony of the process. Maybe you'll be inspired to embark on your own "organized simplicity" journey, too. If so, be sure to share!