For The Love Of Simplicity

I love the month of May. It could be because it’s the month that I became a mother (Chloe’s birthday – she turned 4!!), or because Mothers Day is in there or perhaps because it’s also my birthday month. It might have a little to do with the warm spring air or opening my windows and smelling cut grass. It’s cold for sooooo long where I live that I heartily embrace the renewal of spring.

I’ve been busy cleaning, airing out, line-drying, planting, swing-pushing and grilling … and I have been loving it. I know my posting has been pretty sporadic – but I’m guessing you don’t mind a little less clutter in your reader or your inbox. My life tends to move with ebbs and flows and I try my best to just go with it (which takes some serious effort for this structured girl). I was out of town a LOT this month and it felt a little better to chat with family in my pj’s than to open my laptop and work on my blog. I have great readers. I know many of you are nodding your heads in agreement.

This blog is (mostly) about living frugally, but don’t you find that a frugal life – is also a simple life? I don’t mean simple as in “plain” or “ordinary.” I mean simple like – uncluttered, un-rushed, slower, less chaotic, more creative, etc. As I’ve become more and more comfortable with a “less is more” lifestyle I’ve started thinking – this is nice, this is really nice.

As a family, we’re learning to find happiness, joy, fun and contentment in simple things. This blog is about things I do well, but also about things I’m learning. One of those things is that so many, many things aren’t important to me. If I think about the things that bring fulfillment and add positively to my life, they are mainly people, relationships, quality time together, eating good food, enjoying the outdoors and trying to master some domestic skills.

I’ve learned that I get a lot of fulfillment out of making or creating things myself rather than purchasing them – and I like that. I have somehow come to love walking outside far more than through a mall. I seriously have no idea when that happened but I’m glad it did. I’ve learned that the reason I like going on a date with David is because I like being with him – and the amount of money we spend on that date affects the time very little.

Because we’re disciplined and starting to be smart with our money while we’re relatively young, I know that one day I won’t have to be frugal and I won’t have to make as many sacrifices – but I hope I don’t forget or lose sight of the things that have changed me and made me into the girl that I am now. I hope that even when I don’t have to, I’ll still hold onto the value of less in my life.

Why I do what I do ~ Do you remember the bunny I sewed for Chloe for Easter? Well, we celebrated Easter away from home and I forgot to bring it with us so I gave it to her when we got home and told her it was an “I love you” present from me to her. That was over a month ago. Even now, she takes that bunny with her many of the places that we go and sleeps with it at night. People usually ask about it (because it’s weird-looking I think) and she very proudly tells them it’s her “I love you bunny.” Every. single. time. I choke up. My daughter understands love so much more than I do sometimes.

photo credit: garryknight

If you enjoyed this post you may want to subscribe to free updates by RSS feed or Email.

Tagged as: Frugal Living, Personal Growth