Simplifying life. Or, What was my point again?

After a quick review of my last few posts, it dawned on me that I've strayed from the whole point of my blog. Sure, I've made updates on how I'm doing on some of my peripheral goals this year, but this blog is about my one word year. This blog is supposed to be about how I'm finding ways to simplify things in life.

So how am I simplifying my life? I think there are many areas of life that would benefit from some clean up but the easiest thing to tackle is the physical stuff. I've always had a weird obsession interest in organization, decluttering, storage solutions, and anything related.

Having said that, it's easy enough to be interested in having a less cluttered house and simplify life with fewer material possessions, but it's not that easy to put into place sometimes. I've amassed so much information about organizing the home and how to store things beautifully, but I've always been overwhelmed with the idea of doing anything about it.

Exhibit A: The junk room.

Last year, I thought I had figured out the answer to my troubles. I read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. If you're not up to speed on this decluttering phenomena, then here's my explanation in a nutshell. You tackle your clutter in one big effort, in a methodical and systematic way by going after item-type, not by room, one item at a time, one type after the other. (I.e. Clothes, books, etc.) The simple criteria is you keep the item if it "sparks joy" in you. (I'm definitely not doing justice to Kondo's process so it's better you read up on it yourself.)

Unfortunately, I never implemented the "KonMari" method of tidying up. However, one thing that I've taken away from the book is the concept of items sparking joy. As I attempt to declutter my house one item at a time or one room at at time (totally against Kondo's concept!), I decide if the item gives me joy. It sounds easier than it is since you really have to decide if you're feeling joy or maybe something else (sentimentality? ambivalence?). I've managed to clean up a lot of things using this strategy though.

Another strategy that has helped me comes from my happiness guru, Gretchen Rubin. The first of her Twelve Personal Commandments is "Be Gretchen". Granted, this is her personal list and she's referring to herself, but the idea still resonates with me. I have to accept my likes and dislikes and know my limitations. I have to "Be Kim". That means I have to accept that I won't be a scrapbooker or make my own beaded jewelry. I've gotten rid of lots of things after I really made myself dig deep and decide if those items were contributing to me being authentic and genuine.

Our home is still a work in progress and I definitely still have trouble with getting rid of certain stuff, but in general, I've been decluttering away. I've cleared space on counter tops, I've donated or sold unwanted items, and I'm figuring out how to store the stuff we are keeping in more aesthetically pleasing containers. 

In the meantime, everything else goes into the junk room until I can deal with it.

Let's catch up!

I haven't been keeping up with posting to the blog lately. I've been meaning to post every Sunday night but the last couple of weeks haven't worked out that way. I have quite a few ideas cooking for future post topics, but in the meantime, let's review how February has been for me.

My photo challenge went really well. Sure, I missed a day or two and even posted some photos late, but the point was that I actually kept myself looking for those moments to capture and share on my Instagram account. I am really proud of some of the shots I managed to get. Head over to my page and check out what I was up to!

My step challenge went really well too. Most weekdays went well and I stayed close to my 10,000 steps/day challenge. Some days even went over! I actually won a FitBit "Workweek Hustle" challenge that I was in with some friends. Also, the change I made to my weekend goal of aiming for 2500 steps/day instead was exactly what I needed this month. I was able to shoot for 2500 much more easily than squeezing in 10k on a weekend day. I felt good that I was able to stick to my goals!

I wasn't doing too good on my eating habits. Not much to report on that, but I've decided to take a bit of a different approach that might suit me better. I'm not a fan of the idea of diets that deprive me of something or are low-carb/low-fat/low-whatever. I'm just going to rearrange when I eat things. My breakfasts will be more protein heavy (eggs, meat, peanut butter, diary) so that I satiate my hunger early on and stay full longer. I want to aim for more plant-based foods at lunch so salads, soups full of veggies, and wraps or sandwiches with less bread, if possible. At dinner is when I'll carbo-load. I don't mean to go nuts with carbs but that's when I'll have my fill of pasta, potatoes, rice, etc. I don't plan on going nuts with this "guideline" but I'm hoping focusing my meals will help me choose more wisely. If I can get myself to track my meals, that will help me check if I'm sticking to my plan.

I've managed to get a lot of reading done this past month, even though I meant to slow down of the year. I got into reading all of Gretchen Rubin's happiness books and couldn't stop. She is a big reason why I keep this blog and reading up on her work just felt like the right way to get motivated and creative with my blog. Hopefully I'll get my reviews posted eventually but those aren't my focuses right now. The other books I've read are just plain fun for me... except Anna Karenina... that's the pick for the Eclectic Readers book group and I can't get myself to finish it! That may be my Everest to conquer this year, if I don't finish in time for our discussion.

February also marked the month of my 31st birthday. It's been a good month for me. I'm hoping March is going to be good too! I'll be celebrating my 6th wedding anniversary with the Husband. There are a few events with friends on the social calendar. I look forward to tackling some books that I've left unfinished on my nightstand. I hope to step up my efforts for my health.

One more day to get through February. Happy Leap Year!

PS) Here's my March Photo challenge. It comes from a 2013 post on the Embracing Beauty site. You can also check my Photo page in the top link bar or go see what I've pinned on Pinterest.

The Inspiration

I used to keep an online journal back in college and it was one of my most treasured "possessions" - something just for me. After I graduated and settled into the "real world", I still craved the therapy and expression that my journal afforded me, but I wanted something less informal and something more structured. I've played with blogging on and off for the past several years but never found a theme or unifying idea to base my blogs on. They were all reincarnations of my old online journal and never felt quite right, not quite what I wanted to achieve and maintain. I needed a focus. I needed a foundation. I needed inspiration.

Now I have it.

One of my newest addictions is listening to podcasts. The most recent one I've been listening to is "Happier" hosted by Gretchen Rubin and Elizabeth Craft. I love that this podcast offers real, achievable tips for living a happier life. One of the tips that resonated with me became the basis for this blog.

Pick a one-word theme for the year. The idea is very simple - pick a word that will describe the kind of life you want to live for the year.

I actually read about this tip a few years back - there was something about it in a magazine (of which the title I can't recall) that Gretchen Rubin wrote. At the time, a blog wasn't something I was considering as a personal project but nonetheless, I wanted to find a way to incorporate the one-word theme into my life.

I actually remember this more vividly than I should. It was the tail-end of 2013 and I decided that "happy" was going to be my theme for 2014. I wanted to make decisions and do things that would contribute to me being happy. For that particular point in my life, that meant I was going to cut back on commitments that gave me anxiety or displeasure and that I would spend more time with my husband.

2014 ended up being a banner year in our house. We were settling into our first purchased home, and we decided it was the right time to start our family. I got pregnant pretty much right away (possibly due to my new happy mindset??) and we welcomed a beautiful baby girl in October 2014.

Fast forward a year and I am now reconnecting to this happiness tip that made a difference in my life. It hit me that this was how I would create a focus for a blog. The best part to me is that every year, I can start fresh with a new word, and I don't have to feel bored or constrained to one idea indefinitely that might not matter to me in the future. This blog will also be a vehicle for me to record ways I follow other happiness tips and things in life in general, all of which will hopefully tie into my one-word theme.

Stay tuned for the next post when I reveal what my one word will be for 2016!