Simplifying

I always find lists of things that people have done to simplify their lives inspirational and occasionally adopt or modify a practice or two for our home and lives, so I thought I'd brainstorm what has worked for me and share.

First off, if you are in a place in your life where you are desiring to simplify, take a moment to be thankful. If simplifying is of concern to you, you are likely in a more privileged position than most people in the world. That is a blessing and you are likely in a wonderful position to bless others as you simplify (which may result in joy for both parties).

Here are some things that have worked for our family. A few disclaimers (there should be more): I am definitely not perfect, things are not always simple here, and I'm usually the one who makes things too complicated in this household.

Clothes and "Stuff"

1. Get rid of clothes you don't wear. If you have a hard time getting rid of clothes, put ones you don't wear "away" in a bin. Date the bin. After a year, any clothes you haven't taken out of the bin to wear in the previous year can be donated.
2. Put away seasonal clothes in the off-season. This is highly relevant for folks who live in a place like Wisconsin. No need to dig through piles of shorts to find your jeans every day in the middle of winter. Put them away for six months! The same goes for seasonal or outgrown kids' clothes. Put them away and stop digging through the excess every day.
3. Reduce the number of toys your children have by a lot. This results in a lot less cleaning up every day for you and the kids, and your kids will likely enjoy the toys that remain more and be less stressed out themselves. For more info on how to do this and the benefits, check out the book, "Simplicity Parenting" by Kim John Payne.
4. Reduce or rotate kids' books. This was a most wonderful epiphany for me. I can put away books that I don't like reading to the kids. I can also rotate books in and out. It seems like having fewer books out at a time generates more interest in the ones available, and I have actually spent more time reading to the kids since implementing this strategy. You could even get rid of all your kid books if you like to visit the library frequently. 
5. Reevaluate rooms in your home for efficiency. Do you really need six frying pans? Do you ever use more than four at a time? Maybe you only use all six during the holidays -- can you set two aside somewhere out of the way until then? Are you ever going to use the 30 bars of hotel soap that you've collected over your lifetime? Donate them to the food pantry.
6. Plan a "get rid of stuff" day. My husband and I like to do this a few times a year. We'll try to pare down the number of bins of stuff we each have in the basement or challenge each other to get rid of more books than the other person. Selling things on Craigslist, taking books to a used bookstore, or planning a garage sale may be a motivator for you. Otherwise, donating to Goodwill, setting items on the curb with a "free" sign, or trashing them are valid options!
7. How to deal with junk mail. Sometimes catalogs come in the mail, and I spend time flipping through them. I have to remind myself that I am choosing to be bombarded with those ads as I flip  through when I can just as easily toss the whole thing in the recycle bin. I also learned recently that I can choose to "unsubscribe" from junk mailings that I receive regularly by contacting the sending party. Sometimes this is as easy as filling out an online form e.g. Charter: https://connect.charter.com/cas/portal/settings/privacy.aspx. The same goes for junk email. You can always unsubscribe rather than filtering through it every day.
   
   Meals and Meal Planning
8. Establish a pantry if you have room for it. Stocking up on pantry items when they are on sale and having them on hand makes it much easier to whip together a meal with fewer trips to the grocery store.
9. Get a deep freezer if you can afford it / have room for it. Being able to buy meat, cheese, and veggies in bulk when they are on sale and having them on hand has the same benefit as a pantry.
10. Meal plan. It can take some effort to find out what works for your family. For us, I find that planning 2-4 suppers a week is sufficient. We have oatmeal, bananas, and eggs on hand for breakfasts and lunches are usually simple things like sandwiches or leftovers. If I make a meal plan for two weeks (some people do once a month), I can do one grocery trip to get everything we need. At worst, I have to make one additional trip just for milk or produce (or ice cream). This is much less work than making lots of last minute trips to the store for "just a few things" especially when you have little ones in tow!
11. Learn some crock pot recipes. You will soon come to learn its amazing properties.
12. Learn some freezer meals / double or triple meals. I never make one meatloaf anymore. I always make two or three at a time. Or two meatloaves and some meatballs. Then I cook one and freeze the rest. Make extra crock pot pulled pork or beef. Casseroles. And so forth. It's such a relief to be able to pull a meal out of the freezer and toss it in the oven on those nights when you just don't have time to cook!
    
    Life, Relationships, and Soul
13. Equip your kids to 'help' / be independent where they can. Based on the Montessori approach, I try to find developmentally appropriate tasks for my two year old to do that are also actually helpful to me. For example, in his play kitchen are his actual plates, cups, forks, and spoons. He can bring his own dishes to the table for every meal. He can put away his own dishes when we unload the dishwasher. He is also learning to clear his place at the table and to load his dishes and all silverware into the dishwasher. He is learning to take off his own coat and shoes and put them in the closet. All of these are little things, but he enjoys doing them, and they are a big help to me!
14. Spend less; give more. Inspired by the Jesus and the Advent Conspiracy, I can now walk around the mall at Christmastime with a restful spirit. I no longer feel pressured to buy *something* for someone because I *need* to get them a gift. I do spend my time trying to decide on a meaningful gift rather than finding a sweater in the right size and color. This might still mean buying something off of someone's "list," it might mean making a gift, or giving the gift of time, but it is done from a very different spirit than the pressure and hubbub of commercialized holidays.
    
    "The most powerful, memorable gift you can give to someone else is yourself. And nobody modeled this more than Jesus. So what does this look like for you? Tickets to a ball game or the theater? A movie night? The main point is simple: When it comes to spending time with those you love, it's all about quality, not quantity."
    
    
15. Discover your gifts, passions, and temperament. Learning more about how God created me has helped me accept who I am, appreciate my strengths and understand my weaknesses. I am learning what energizes me and what drains me. This information helps me evaluate opportunities as a good fit,  an opportunity to grow, or possibly just not a good fit for me! And that is wonderfully freeing! I don't have to be a good fit in every role, and that's OK! It's also OK for me to try something for awhile to determine if it's a good fit.
16. Spend time doing things that are life-giving. I say this in the context of being a very exhausted, sleep-deprived mom. With some hesitation, I recently joined the "take-down" crew at my church (we meet in a middle school). I had a desire to serve and thought the position would be a great fit for me, but I hesitated to join because I wasn't sure I wanted to make the commitment on top of my exhaustion. I gave it a try and felt very energized afterwards. More energized than if I had just spent the hour resting or eating brunch with my family. Sometimes doing "more" can actually result in more energy and less stress than doing "less." It can take some trial and error to find that balance, but it's worth it!
17. Find people you can be authentic with and spend time with them. We are not meant to go through life alone, and it's stressful to go through life without being able to be open and honest with people. Case in point, meeting with a group of moms and realizing that I'm not the only one who sometimes feels frustrated or bored in dealing with a two year old (who I also love to death) all day, every day was a huge relief to me.
18. Accept that God knows you completely and (still) loves you. This allows you to be completely honest with yourself and with God. It may freak some people out that God already knows (has always known) everything about them, but there is much freedom here. You can approach Him without any sort of front. With your ugliest emotions and thoughts and "secrets." And you will be accepted. And you will be loved. Note, this does not mean that God doesn't want you to grow and change. He wants you to grow and change precisely because he loves you, like any good parent wants their children to grow and change. Also, when you are rooted and established in God's love for you, it frees you from being so concerned about what other people think. This is something I'm still working on in my life. 

I hope you found something here helpful or inspirational. I may add to this list as additional practice come to mind. I would love to hear what you've found that works for you!