LAST DAY!!!

I am so glad I am not a professional blogger because this has been hard!! 

For this last day, I am making some commitments for things I know I need to do to simplify my life, but haven't done yet.

Here goes:
1. I know from my organization projects that I need nothing. I have enough soap, toiletries, envelopes, flour, tea, batteries, post-its, pens, pencils, glue, etc. to last me probably the rest of my life. It is a bit embarrassing. I am going to think long and hard before I purchase ANYTHING. I was in Wal-Mart the other day and was temporarily tempted by some of their fall items. Then I told myself, "Leave it here!!" I have too much stuff. No more is coming in. 

2. When my newspaper subscription runs out in December, I am not renewing. I rarely read it. It piles up and makes me feel guilty. My oldest son and husband love reading the comics, so they get that one section out and leave the rest on the living room floor, and not in a neat pile. I have found out that they can pick their favorite comics and have them delivered to their inbox for a very low monthly fee.

3. I am letting most of my magazine subscriptions expire. I love magazines, but in this season of my life I simply don't have time or energy to read them. I think I will  keep: Taste of Home, Cooking Light, Real Simple, Women's Day, and All You. I may keep Self for exercise motivation. The rest will not be renewed. I should probably go ahead and cancel the rest now, but I am not ready yet. Baby steps! I know even this list is probably more than most people get! I consider this one of my hobbies : ). I love getting a magazine in the mail, and having a stack of unread magazines next to my bed. 

Things I will continue doing:
*putting things away where they belong
*buying Kindle versions of books instead of hard copies
*trying to embrace "good enough" and letting perfection go

I know that the things I have shared are things that have worked for me and may not be applicable to anyone else's life, but hopefully you found at least one thing that might work for you, or been inspired to look for ways to simplify your own life. Thanks for reading!

Simplify Life # 30

I think the best thing I've done to simplify my life is to allow myself to spend the time and money to get my home organized. I have diligently followed the Home Organization 101 Challenge (http://www.abowlfulloflemons.net/).I now feel like I can trust my home. I know where things are and where to put them away.

Also, I used to feel labeling things wasn't necessary. Now, I use my label maker all the time, even if it's obvious what is on that particular shelf or in that particular container. I realize this serves three purposes: 
a. can see at a glance what I have since items are grouped together in one place by label
b. I am accountable when I put things away now; I put things away where they belong because of the visual reminder of the label (especially helpful in my lazy susan!)
c. My family can find things, too. 

I am a cheapskate and it has been hard to spend money on plastic organizers, but it is so worth it and it's what I asked for for Christmas this year! 

Simplify Life #29

This one is short and to the point: I unsubscribed from most e-mail newsletters and blogs. Now, my inbox is far less saturated than it used to be. It took about an hour for me to unsubscribe to all of them, but it has been worth it. I also try to be careful when ordering from a new site to make sure to uncheck the box that says I want to get their newsletter! I still have a few favorite sites and blogs that I continue to get e-mails from, but I am quick to unsubscribe to things that pile up or that I am not excited to read. E-mail has become a necessary burden. I try to not have it be another thing adding stress. 

This is from fatmumslim.com and summarizes what I've tried to do:

Simplify Life #28

I keep three baskets on the back staircase leading upstairs: one for shoes, one for dirty kitchen linens, and one for sports shoes/ supplies. We don't have a mudroom, so we need places to store shoes upon entering from our garage. The baskets help with that, and also, since my laundry room is upstairs, I have a place to put the washcloths and towels I use. I also have a small shoe organizer, plus this idea from Pinterest (one of my favorites): 


Hang a set of coat hooks near floor level to use for shoes!
Life is simplified: I have a place for shoes (instead of tripping over them) and a place for sports shoes, and also a way to transport dirty kitchen linens upstairs. 

Simplify Life #27

I donated my ironing board to Goodwill yesterday! I have given up most ironing (I do sometimes have to iron our church clothes) and instead use homemade wrinkle releaser or the wet washcloth in the dryer method.(I also try to take the clothes out when the dryer stops, but that happens maybe 60% of the time.)

Here's the recipe I use for homemade wrinkle releaser:
WRINKLE REMOVER SPRAY:
 1 cup distilled water
1/2 cup rubbing alcohol 
1/4 cup liquid fabric softener
Put in clean spray bottle. ( 8 oz. distilled water, 4 oz. alcohol, 2 oz. liquid fabric softener) 

I have a small foldable ironing board that hangs in my closet that I can still use. I am also considering getting one of these just in case:

http://www.amazon.com/Unknown-L2500-SILVER-Magnetic-Ironing/dp/B0073TCIF6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351462082&sr=8-1&keywords=magnetic+ironing+blanket


A magnetic ironing blanket that adheres to a washer or dryer! 
If I worked outside the home, I know I wouldn't be able to do away with ironing. 

Simplify Life #26

Another way I've simplified our memory keeping is by using keepsake boxes. I basically just throw things in there that are random/don't fit in a scrapbook. I don't even date them; we just go until we fill up a box and then start a new one. The boxes are numbered (I think Jason and Joel are both on their second box). I purchase the decorative cardboard photo-storing boxes from craft stores when they are on sale. I like being able to actually touch the things in the boxes and to go through it. It is definitely not as organized as a scrapbook, but where else would I store the actual tiny bar of Dove that was used to bathe Joel as a newborn in the nursery? (Incidentally, this makes his first box smell wonderful!) I store them in the closet of our guest room. I like getting a different design each time, but would probably stick to a solid color if I had to have them on a bookshelf in the open.

Simplify Life 25

The next two days are ways I've simplified memory-keeping. I used to love to scrapbook and kept up with it for several years. Now, that way of life mystifies me. I don't even read the newspaper anymore; how did I find time and energy to scrapbook??! Sigh. Life is always changing and so are our priorities. That said, I still love keeping track of our family's memories. I have now moved to doing everything online (online clutter isn't clutter, right?). The main site I use is snapfish.com. I am pretty good at getting our photos uploaded there in a timely fashion. (The fair pictures are already in their own album there!) For three years in a row, I made a photo book of our year in pictures on that site, and then waited for a coupon and ordered them. Last year, I loved doing a digital scrapbook. I used this site:
http://www.studioj.com/

It's more expensive, but you can easily be creative and artistic, and I loved the final product. Here are some photos of the different albums:

The three black books are the ones I made on Snapfish. They take up hardly any room on the book shelf!!

This is one of the page spreads from the Snapfish album.

This is one of the page spreads from the Studio J album. It is a much larger album and in a big three-ring binder. You have a lot of choices as to page layouts and colors. I usually go back and glue some other things on some of the pages, like tickets. 

I don't even print out photos anymore. It is so easy to organize photos online and has enabled me to keep up with our yearly albums.