Month: July 2019

Moving Day

The baby was up most of the night but it ended up being a blessing in disguise.  My husband took care of her most of the morning, and now as they are both catching up on sleep, I am outside watching the bumble bees and butterflies do their morning chores among the flowers.

It’s moving day- and of course will be 90 degrees and humid. I thought we’d be in a rush to get back home, but there’s been no frantic rush to go anywhere.

I wish I could say the vacation was all sunshine and rainbows- although, we did have days with both.  The kids and I took turns being sick, so that cut out a good week and a half from the fun.

Our favorite days were spent playing in sun-showers in the front lawn; or watching baby learn to hit a t-ball; Dinners with my Dad; and waiting for my husband to get home from work to do some adventures in the area.

It’s been a blessing, and I pray the kids remember some of it.  My son loves the area- he got to camp out with his Grandfather, and run through the yard here like he did as a toddler.

We did so much, and still in four weeks I feel like I didn’t get to do everything I had planned.  I had hoped to run a yard sale to get rid of some excess things that were left behind in sheds.  I didn’t get to wander around by the creek picking up stones.  I only did a little artwork, but I did collect enough photos to have plenty to work from during the colder months when we are stuck indoors.

And a thank you to my husband for making this all possible- and I apologize again for calling you crying about the bat flying thru the house that one evening.  As my son says, “You’re a country girl, you should be able to handle this”.

 

Pack it Up, We’re Heading Home

We got word today that by Friday (two days from now) we can move back home.

To Do:

  • Pack Clothes
  • Pack Toys
  • Pack Groceries
  • Vacuum and Dust Down
  • Leave for home

In the past, moving a family of 4 from one home to another would have been a frustrating experience.  I made the decision this time to pack just what we would need, no more, no less- And that reminded me of all the things I may not need when I get home.

I survived with one make up bag of ‘essentials’.  I made do with 3 pairs of shoes (for the record, one pair each of sneakers, slides, and wedge heels that worked for dress up or down).  I existed with my phone and surface tablet- although, I admit, the Ipad and Kindle were welcome for catching up on some summer reading.

For the kids, my son is content with a travel box of Legos and his Nintendo Switch.  The toddler was a challenge- although a small pile of favorite stuffed animals and books did the trick.

I am hoping that when I get home, I can take a hard, honest look at some ‘areas of opportunity’ for me- namely, my studio and my closets.  I had a working Capsule wardrobe of maybe 4 tops and 3 pairs of pants that got me thru a month no problem.   I would add a dress to the mix, just for dinners out, or going to church.  But what I left home, I didn’t miss- and I suppose that means it can find a new home soon.

My studio is, to put it nicely, a catch all.  More appropriate would be a hell-hole.  Everything that doesn’t have a home goes there- and I am missing a little corner to read a book in, study my art work and a desk to do paperwork.  I can visualize what I want it to look like, I just can’t quite figure out how to get it there.

My son has a new dresser which I am excited to try the Kon-Marie technique on his clothes.  We have about 4 weeks before school begins, and that means it’s crunch time to get prepared as well as enjoy the last few weeks of summer freedom.  On deck for plans- a trip to the local zoo, then a petting farm, and the Easton Farmers’ Market.

“Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! ” -Thoreau

Three words could not more eloquently or succinctly describe what I must do!

Hypocrite

I am going to head outdoors with my cup of coffee to listen to the night creep in over the stream. First, a confession.

I paused for a moment, considering the hypocrisy of writing about minimalism from my vacation home.  Hesitated, for a few months, because I am here while my first home is having a total kitchen renovation done.

How could I pretend having two homes is somehow justifiable? Hypocrite.

While I may work toward minimalism, I am not in a minimalist family.  Like any good business partnership, marriage works best when the pair head off in the same general direction- in this case, I am content with my husband taking the lead of our little family, and enjoy the projects we find ourselves in.

A tiny home is not in the cards for us- At 6′ tall, he has spent a good part of his career in small bunks on tugboats or work trailers- so when he is Home, it is not and cannot be a tiny place. Home is a place to stretch out comfortably in all directions.  A room for laundry, separate from the office, a distance from the kitchen; then down the stairs to exercise equipment, and so on.

The vacation home was my primary residence up until our marriage- a Cape Cod style on the banks of a creek, tucked away in some pines.  Not tiny as HGTV would have you think- but snug, cozy, in all ways “hygge”.

And so, in guilt, I was reluctant to write- because isn’t the Tenants of Minimalism to downsize in all things?

If I were single, in my 20’s, then yes- But the reality is I am a very happily remarried 39 year old mother of two- and part of that happiness is seeing my husband pleased with his surroundings.

I minimize the other parts of life.  I use 3 pairs of shoes instead of the old way of dozens kicking around the house.  My makeup bag (singular) has only what it can fit- if I purchase something new, something must get recycled or passed on to my sister.

Our daughter plays with an assortment of her brother’s recycled 7 year old toys that I kept (intuition and blind hope told me not to get rid of his things even after my divorce).

Summer vacation was at the vacation home this year. But the vacation was the experiences of sharing my corner of the world with my out of town husband, and our kids-  Little day trips to a butterfly garden, a local aquarium, out for pizza, or just playing ball in the yard- That was the priceless joy that Minimalism helps achieve, at fraction of the costs of an exotic (Disney) trip this year.

So I release my guilt now, and follow what parts of the minimalist movement I can- and look with a more gentle gaze on fellow Minimalists at whatever path they choose to walk.