Streamlining

The last year or so my goal in life has been streamlining.

I looked up one day and realized I was stressed, unhappy, and didn't look forward to the next day. I knew something had to change. I had to make my life less hectic. I had to stop the constant busyness and the pressure to do everything. Start spending less time on things that don't matter, that have no lasting significance. I didn't want my children to look back and not remember me playing with them. Or that I was stressed because the house was messy. I wanted to show my girls how to have balance... except that I didn't know how.

Thus, I had to go bare-bones. First was to get things decluttered and organized so I didn't spend my time merely stepping over piles or moving junk from room to room. I had to figure out what was really important, and what I was only hanging on to. Then I created some systems to make my life easier. The most helpful was a cleaning checklist. I am someone who likes to mark things off as I complete them and I also tend to be easily overwhelmed when I can't remember what needs to be done. The cleaning checklist saved my life. I feel accomplished having marked off the task, and I can easily see what needs to be a priority.

It's been an interesting process and I'm still working on it. But I now find myself with time. I never had any time before. I have worked on projects I've put off. I've had time to iron. I've had time to sit and play with my kids for hours. It's been amazing. Streamlining my life has lowered my stress levels significantly and has made our house (I think) a cleaner, happier, more peaceful place.

And now... I see I'm finding time to blog again. I am very happy about this! I just hope there are a few people who still read. ;)

So, hopefully you'll see me around more. And I'll probably be streamlining the posts as well: one or two quality pictures versus a ton. Some more writing about what we're doing, which is what I like best. More of our thoughts and passions. I hope it's something everyone enjoys. :)