The march towards Minimalism continues...

[MissAnnersleyismyhero]

Hey all, thought I'd make a new thread to encourage us all to keep going on the journey to minimalism!

Hello all

Not much minimising going on here, other than of my uterus: DS2 (DC3) born on Saturday weighing 9lb3. We all think he's just fab :)

So next on the list is to rid the house of maternity clothes!

On the qn of a decluttering-recluttering cycle, I've gone into this with minimalism as my key driver rather than decluttering. So for me I have to be mindful of purchases and bringing stuff in as much as removing things. I have been using the YNAB budget system to keep track of our budget for the last 6 months and find it dovetails nicely with my minimalist project because you allocate your budget at the start of each month then track your payments, which means that every purchase had to be justified within your budget at the start of the month, and you can't hide impulse purchases as you need to reallocate budget to cover them. So it really helps with mindfulness and forethought around all your purchases.

Many congratulations on the arrival of your fab son-number-two Everton!

Huge congratulations Everton!

What does YNAB stand for?

Congratulation from me too everton

Oh thats very interesting everton about the budget dovetailing. Ive been feeling things need to change in this household for some time. We have been through a marriage thing which is sorted and stable. We have finished our family with DD (2.4). We have been in our current roles DH only breadwinner - got through on promotion about to go through another. I have ummed and arred about finding my feet with my role (guilt of not earning actual income) But, there is something not right/missing about how we live despite having a lot going for us. I really think that this is the answer, being minimal and living a simple existence - we have too much stuff, systems overloaded and dont work. I want domestic efficiency. better organisation, meals cooked, time saved, calmer.

I can now see how or approach to 'stuff' and spending and acquiring is actually giving us less and less pleasure. DH and I have just agreed to use envelopes for incidental spendings - coffees, playgroups. one each for four weeks. We are to have a seperate envelopes for 'family activity' cash for weekends. The rest is getting put to one side in an account - we have been consolidating debts forever. When I see how much money those extra unworn sundresses cost, or all those cute toys not played with costs I really could cringe. But as I read somewhere - the money is gone. it is not comming back - let the iten go.

I'm just checking in after many, many weeks of absence. Illness, trouble at home. Ds being a royal pita. All flummoxing my aim of getting rid of stuff. Although ds1 has broken several more toys which, having sat in the hall for a week or so, are now on their way to the bin.

I so desperately need to get back on track but keep finding 101 excuses why I can't just bin stuff. I've bought two blankets to make into camp blankets. One for my rainbow daughter and one for all my brownie/guide badges and any I collect as a rainbow leader! At least them they'll be getting some practical use out of them.

Will pop back in for a proper catch up later. Off to declutter the little sofa of ironing ready for my mum coming later.

everton and congratulations!

erin YNAB stands for YouNeedABudget and will come up on google if you want a detailed look. It's excellent, life changing software that I keep using and then stopping. It is a philosophy/mindset as much as it is software. There are 4 rules which are:

1. give every dollar (pound) a job.
2. save for a rainy day
3. roll with the punches
4. live on last months income (ie save a months worth of salary)

Hang on will come back to this

YNAB is essentially an envelope system with more long term planning. There is a good forum, good fb group and lots of support. They also do free online classes so that you can really understand the software.

andsmile I absolutely see our house and our stuff impacting our lives and our enjoyment of it. We have a farm in Western Aus that we will eventually retire too. At the moment when we visit we stay in one end of the barn which DH has converted into living space. We have an old wood fired range for cooking, a tv, beds and a dining table. It is very simple, wonderful and spending time there heals the soul.

Hope that doesn't sound too wanky

Thank you for that, I will take a look. Love the way you have a retirement plan all set out already diggerdigsdogs. We are just bumbling along from one year to the next.

minisoks that sounds hard.

Does anyone else find a continuous pull between "my poor DC have so much less than x" and really valuing that as a positive thing? I honestly do think that they probably have too much and having more would be a negative thing, but it only takes a visit to a friend's house with giant trampoline and £1000 wooden climbing frame with all bells and whistles to make me doubt myself.

diggers no that sounds wonderful. This is why when we holiday and you only have just what you need especially camping it is relaxing. The same principle of getting out of house n you go for a coffee with partner, you could do that in the house but you wouldn't have the same experience re all distractions, like date nights too. Good for you having a plan to.

erin we DH and I never had much growing up re housing, holidays or family car. I did though used to have lots of clothes and toys, my dm was a lp and think she compensated but as I grew older I was aware of the debt and eventually felt her stresses re finances. I am guilty of making sure my DS is upto date with what others have got eg mine craft is the latest thing. I don't want him to feel left out, think school is hard enough for him socially.

But I'm guilty of buying him too much even beyond this. I've asked him to say what we are going to get rid of and he has pointed out two largish toys that cost £75 he doesn't want from last Xmas. He never asked for them. So I think I can do a lot of cutting back on this score without him feeling the pinch too much. I think you can use other things to teach values about possessions such as tidying up, fixing, pocket money jobs are used to buy items.

We don't own any of those huge outdoor things as we don't have the space and have thought aww min don't have, but I counteract that with well we've had trips to xyz that they will remember. We live near a huge park with a number of play structure areas, we go there. Mine go swimming a lot too.

No one is perfect no one has all bases covered. I have to remind myself of this a lot. Comparing is fruitless, you don't gain anything. This is a recent discovery of mine on the minimalists blogs. I've decluttered my thinking a bit!

I'm sure you're right andsmile. I definitely don't want to be comparing.

I have decluttered my handbag today. Long overdue!

Congratulations Evertonmint, I hope baby is thriving.

Nice to see you again minisoks, I hope the tough times are soon over

DH has cleared out some clothes

I need to vent my frustration about early secondary DC who doesn't seem to want to do anything but screen, read, play lego and listen to/make music but insists on keeping a small wardrobe full of toys that never seemed to be played with including a whole box of folded paper creations. It's such an in between age!

Congratulations Everton! I have found having a new baby strangely conducive to decluttering as she grows out of things faster than I can buy them at the minute!

Hope you are alright Soks.

Off for a proper catch up now. Will try to be back later!

Congratulations Everton Wonderful news!

Have returned from Glasto but ashamed to say that the car still hasn't been unpacked

Will start painting the DDs 'new room to be' tonight. 2 bags to the chazzer. Can't believe we still have stuff to get rid of. I swear we're not bringing much in.

I've had a few days off - back on the declutter today.

I've ordered new clothes - I want them (they may not fit) it feels at odds but it sure does make it easier to get rid of some the other dresses I was ummng and arrring about.

Oh jimmy who does - you are detined to flop in an festival afterglow We are looking forward to planning for Latitude next year. I'll hang onto the sleeping bags in the bedroom cupboard then!

Update - have another two bags for charity.

Why is it so hard to part with baby bedding and childrens books?

I've had a few tears and the books are still in the basket - I ended up reading DS's Thomas Tank books to DD.

I've been lurking and reading since Feb. You guys are an inspiration.....

I've made over £240 getting rid of stuff on ebay in the last 6 weeks and still have listings running.(I do check with the dc first before listing their old toys to avoid a guilty conscience).

Am amazed at the amount some things have sold for and the bizarre questions some buyers ask and the frustration of the only potential buyer wanting something posted/couriered when I've said collection only. Still have a long way to go and have run out of free listings on both my ebay ID's.

I have 2 trips to the local tip/recycling centre and taken what hasn't sold after 2 ebay listings to the charity shop (4 bin bags gone and another one almost full and ready to go).

I've ordered bigger more suitable bedroom clothes storage, having e-bayed the old stuff a little prematurely, we're living with heaps of clothes until the new stuff arrives.

However, I'm putting off tackling the garden shed. There's at least one "spare" lawnmower in there and some preschool toys which need to go.

It's taking me a long time because I also work full time and have an other half who changed jobs recently and is now more often away than at home for work reasons. Hooray in one way though as he is a terrible hoarder and what he doesn't see going out the door he'll never know about and it won't give him "letting go" anguish.

My dream at the end of this is to have a home that is much easier to clean (sad am I know) but our cleaning lady dumped us as the clutter was too much for her and I daren't find another until the purge is complete (about 2015 I reckon).

Welcome to 2014 (or do you prefer Meh?)

Not sure I am inspiring anyone at present - realising just how little I can do while I'm on crutches - it is even tricky making a cup of tea!

Ah well! - Hopefully just another 2 weeks (when I hope the sun will shine so I can at least sit in the garden!!)

2014meh Am amazed at the amount some things have sold for and the bizarre questions some buyers ask and the frustration of the only potential buyer wanting something posted/couriered when I've said collection only.

Or the buyer lives 100 miles away and their cousin's friend will pick the item up when they're in your area on the last Thursday of the month, possibly.

Put our toddler rucksack on Ebay yesterday and it's already got a decent price with 2 days left to go. It has been hanging around for 3 years and spent the last fortnight on an armchair in our front room

Got 2 more bags for the chazzer. Some winter coats and anoraks. A yoga mat and hand weights (Shred DVD already donated!!)

andsmile I might brave unpacking the car today!!

proseccoco if the games are still playable can you just label the boxes? I know what you mean, I have a Hungry Hippos well, Asda's rip off version Hungry Dogs with one of the balls missing. I haven't donated it yet but I could easily label it. It doesn't stop the game being played.

arti don't be too hard on yourself. Maybe read some minimalism blogs to prepare yourself for when you are more mobile. Have I mentioned Slow Your Home?!!

my house looks worse, im disillusioned with ebay

I was so busy throwing stuff in the bags and getting tearful about baby blankets that I forgot to rinse the bathroom mouse off. I had sprayed it liberally everywhere - well DH has been in first followed by DS and there seem to be clean with no adverse affects! - might be a new tactic!

Im just posting while DS on loo. He has issues. Im going to have to ring school again and tell them we will be late. I'm doing more decluttering today.

andsmile Hope today is better for you.

Hello all.

I've been realising how very cyclical I am about everything. Loads of energy at some times of the month, able to put things away, get rid of stuff, get on with my work, do stuff in the garden, spend proper time focusing on my dc, make good choices... And then some times my room (which is tiny) looks like someone's emptied a black bag in the middle of it, I binge-watch Orphan Black and waste hours browsing mindlessly on minimalist websites (the irony) and let my kids play for far too long on the Xbox...

This minimalism thing is supposed to be about making room for what matters, isn't it? Drinking hot chocolate under the stars. Drawing with one good pencil rather than lining up all my fancy art equipment and imagining one day I'll illustrate a book...

Feeling a bit disillusioned today, but it's probably hormonal... That and moving house and negotiating the separation with my dc's father. All quite tiring...