Back to basics

This week's GBE2 prompt is: Simplicity. Just typing that word evokes happiness in me. I love things simple. With the exception of my habit of over-thinking EVERYTHING, I'm a very simple creature. I wouldn't call myself a minimalist, necessarily, but I do prefer my surroundings to be sparse. I've said it time & time again, and it holds true each time: if my world is cluttered, my mind follows suit.

I've recently been focusing on a set list of goals. Things that I feel will make me a much happier version of myself. Things I've been neglectful about, but can't ignore anymore. The first step was to list them out & keep them simple. Once I did that, they didn't seem quite as insurmountable as before, and I've managed to hold a steady pace toward meeting them.

One of my main goals has been to get healthy, but I don't have only my health to think about. I also have to consider my family's health. Let me tell you, I have failed miserably at the housewife bit. In an effort to get us away from the fast food trap we've been in for far too long, and to make our lives much simpler, I decided to make a weekly menu board. I've found quite a few online that I like, but I think I want to make one of my own. Once I have the design done, I'm going to put it in a large frame & use it as a dry-erase board. The idea of planning out our meals never clicked before, but it makes so much sense to me now! I don't know why I didn't start doing it a long time ago! It simplifies shopping, it simplifies cooking, it keeps us away from fast food, thus saving us money & helping us stay healthy. (This is the point where I really just wanna slap my forehead & say "Duh! Big Red Truck!")

Beating the clutter in my house is another goal I made. I want to rid our lives of all the unnecessary things & bring us back to basics. I want a simple, clean, organized home. "A place for everything and everything in its place." There was a time when my daughter was young & I was single that I lived by that mantra. Once my husband & I moved in together, our two lives converged, as did all our crapola. After 5.5 years of always adding and rarely subtracting from the junk, it's gotten overwhelming. I'm not trying to give the impression that we're Hoarders-status, but it's more than I can handle anymore. I finally feel as though my husband is on the same page & is ready to tackle our downsizing with me. These sort of things always work better when you're a team.

I know that I'm only talking about physical simplicity here, but I really feel like this is where it starts. Our home, our family, our jobs...they all play such a huge role in who we are and how we feel. For me, I need simplicity, cleanliness, and organization. I need routine & structure. If that means planning out meals & making trips to Goodwill to donate a bunch of stuff, then so be it. Like I said before, I'm a simple creature and it's time to get things back to basics.