less stuff, better life

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the purging continues... first i have to admit that getting rid of the things we already own is harder than i thought.  sometimes i would stare at an object for a while and think, "what if i will need this after i throw it away?"  {you know how sometimes throwing things out backfires} one of my friends actually advised me once not to throw things away because one day the need for it will come.  somehow it's buried in my brain and it's slowing me down from getting rid of things.

but somewhere in the world wide web i came across a minimalist prayer which came in handy during deliberation.  it says, “Lord, help me keep the things we need and get rid of the things we can unload, and give me the wisdom to know the difference.” gotta love the analogy to the serenity prayer ☺ 

still the process of elimination has been slow.  so far I have only been getting rid of the obvious - things that are rarely used and that are outdated.

my first stop was sophia's room.  i find that with kids you just accumulate so much stuff.  specially with a first child, and a girl, you want to buy everything in the beginning.  clothes are just too cute, and then there's all the baby products that you think will help make things easier.  i learned the lesson the expensive way that   what works for other babies may not work for mine.  for example, i have 3 baby carriers barely used, because sophia didn't like them or they were uncomfortable for me.

i began purging sophia's toy bins which were brimming with toys from when she was a baby.  as much as i hold sentiments for her first toys, i was sort of relieved at the thought of not hearing her baby musical toys go off ever again.  you know, like those types that sound annoying but does not have an off button.  i only kept the ones that are still appropriate for her age and a few ones for sentiment's sake.  the rest i put in a bag to hand down to the next baby in our clan.  i also secretly threw some old boxes and easter/halloween baskets that just annoy the heck out of me.  thankfully, she didn't even notice they were gone!

my second stop was our kitchen cabinet, full of worn out tupperware, sippy cups, take-out containers, and other discolored plastic containers.  i threw quite a bit in the recycle bin and i am elated at how much easier it is now to organize and find matching containers.  i would like to eliminate all plastic containers at some point,  and lately i have been recycling glass jars to use as an alternative for storing food.  

my third stop was our closet, and it is a continuing process. i toss out a piece at a time.  basically very time I come across a shoe or a piece of clothing that i have not worn for over a year, it goes into a bag labeled "for donation." sophia's clothes on the other hand are set aside, some lent to a friend.  i am still hoping one day sophia will have a little sister :)

for the most part changes has been slow, and i admit to failing on the no-buying rule.  however, buying is much less frequent than before and i buy things now with more careful deliberation.  the image above is what i strive for: so minimal, uncluttered, and very peaceful.