I’ve learned more about life in the last seven years than I did in the 33 before that. After having Emma, I learned to be more patient, more forgiving, more flexible, and more able to operate on just a few hours’ sleep! I’ve certainly NOT arrived! I’m just learning a little more every day.
One evening I was helping Emma get ready for her bath, and I asked her if she wanted some bath toys to play with. She answered, saying that she did, but “not too many, Mommy.”
I didn’t think much of it at the time. I just threw in four or five little floating toys. But the more I thought about it, the more I was able to take a little life lesson from that moment. How many toys does she need to make her happy? Does she need a whole bathtub full? Or does she feel a little overwhelmed when there are too many toys floating around her. It doesn’t leave her much room to “swim” when she’s surrounded.
And what about me? How many gizmos, gadgets, knick-knacks, and other “toys” do I need? I can tell you from experience (and from sitting at my cluttered desk right now) that being surrounded by too much stuff makes me feel like I don’t have room to move. I’m less productive and less creative when there are piles of stuff invading my space. My sense of peacefulness is disrupted.
I’ve also noticed the opposite situation to be true. A few weeks ago, we unpacked the last of the cardboard boxes from our move. We packed a mini-van full of things to give my cousin’s school for a sale they were having. It was all stuff that we no longer used, loved, or wanted. I felt a sense of relief as that van pulled away to deliver our donations. *Whew!* Less stuff for us to deal with.
We’ve been pretty intentional about our unpacking of boxes. We’ve tried to take the time to examine each thing that came out of each box. Do we love it? Do we use it? Do we need it? Does it bless our family? Or does it get in the way of our goal of having a peaceful home? We weren’t too brutal the first time through the boxes, so there will still be some serious de-stuffing going on here! By surrounding us with less stuff, I’m hoping to encourage us to be more content with what we have.
I’m linking this post here:
:: Tip Me Tuesday hosted by Tip Junkie
:: Works for Me Wednesday hosted by We Are THAT Family
:: Thrifty Thursday hosted by Coupon Teacher
:: I’m Lovin’ It Fridays at Tidy Mom
:: Frugal Friday hosted by Life As Mom
I have learned the same lesson while training my 6 blessings. Less is best!
Thanks for sharing!
That’s what I keep telling myself as we try to downsize our stuff. Less is indeed best.
This is so true. When we moved last Spring, I did a deep (brutal) purge of so much stuff. I felt just like you said – instead of longing for all the stuff we got rid of, I just felt absolutely relieved. Fast forward to a year later, and I’m feeling a little claustrophobic again and thinking it’s time for another deep purge.
That’s so true, Liz! The stuff does seem to start to take over even after just a year. I feel like we try to be intentional about limiting what we bring in, but it still seems to accumulate. Maybe a deep purge yearly is what it will take!