No-Spending Days

So we Long's are really trying to live more simply. We're getting rid of a lot of stuff (as I've mentioned in previous posts), and working towards having a bigger giving budget. It seems like every day one of us calls or texts the other with some new "lets get rid of it" idea or "what if we..." comment. It starts getting pretty crazy when you become convinced that Jesus REALLY meant to "love others as you love yourself". I don't say that to sound holier-than-thou or anything. I mean, we're still spoiled rotten when we think about it. But when you start cutting those strings that "stuff" and "wealth" have on your heart, you start experiencing moments of freedom and it gets downright addicting. Sooo...
My challenge to my family and yours is this:

Go 4 days a week without spending any money.

Is that extreme? It's really not so much to me since I'm at home doing school with my girls Monday through Thursday anyway. I seldom leave the house on those days, and if I do it's for an appointment or something. Definitely not to go shopping with the munchkins. But there is the occasional night run to the grocery store or Jono eating lunch out with someone. And you know how the "I'm just running in to get some milk" can turn into "well, the fall scented candles were on sale...".
We usually do our grocery shopping together on the weekends anyway, and if I have somewhere else I want to go, it's usually on the weekend too since that's when Jono's off and can either keep the kids at home or at least go with me to help control the chaos. So really, it may only mean a few breadless days for me and planning meetings after lunchtime for Jono (when he can get away with just ordering a water?). A small sacrifice that has the potential to keep a few extra buckaroos from disappearing.
Maybe you're not at home the majority of your week and going 4 days without spending a dime seems catastrophic. Do 3. Or 2. Or even 1. It's baby steps. Just skipping your usual Starbucks run one day a week can mean $20 extra you have at the end of the month to give to an awesome ministry you know of or to a person or family in need. That seems like a pretty good trade to me.

P.S. As of today, our 2 vehicles are on Craigslist. Jono's gonna get a cluncker (unless I can talk him into just getting a bike) since he works 1.5 minutes from our house, and I'm getting an older van with fewer little buttons that do wonderful things like open and close doors. Oh well...it's just a car right?

Spoiling the Sick

Today Nevaeh woke up with a fever and a tummy ache. I absolutely hate it when my babies are sick. Not just because I know that it means more whining and higher maintenance, but just knowing that their little bodies are struggling makes me woozy. Well, I had the realization that many moms probably had much earlier on in their motherhood. I am officially at a stage in life where the thought of getting sick has absolutely NO benefits. I remember when I was in school hoping that I'd catch a bug so I could stay home in bed all day and watch tv. Even as a newlywed I was ok with coming down with something because it meant I could justify ignoring my endless to-do list and just chill for a day. Now, I know most moms say that that all ended the second they had kids, but it didn't end for me until Memaw passed away. Because while she was alive, it was still kinda fun to get sick. The second she heard that I wasn't feeling well she would hightail it over to my house, bathe and dress the kids, fix us all lunch, take the kids outside for a walk or to play, bring them in and read them a book, put them down for a nap, clean my house, then sit on the sofa with me and watch some Lifetime Movie or Oprah. It was supa fun.
But today as I thought about possibly getting the bug that Vaeh has, I was filled with horror. Getting sick means nothing now except that I'll be extra miserable while cooking, feeding kids, dressing kids, changing diapers, and teaching the girls. The perks are over.
So I vowed that I would make an effort to always bestow blessings on the sick in my family, and you should do the same. Whether it's our hubbies or our kids, we should be an angel of healing to them, bearing soup and juice and remote controls. Sometimes it's hard because, as busy wives and moms, we don't have time to deal with whiny men/kids. "Just lay down and be quiet so I can accomplish my goals for the day." But I say, go out of your way to spoil a sick person silly, even if it means putting everything on hold for a day. It will probably, like, cut the healing time in half. And don't we all miss those days?
Now, if you are one of my precious girls reading this in the future, I hope that you can't say that you miss it because even when you're grown I plan on swooping in and saving the virus-infected day. I hope that when all of the moms around you are complaining about how terrible it is to be sick, you are secretly hoping for a little cold to come your way just so you can be spoiled for a day by your Momma.

The Fifth Wall

Today I did something that I've been wanting to do for a long time but just haven't gotten around to it. I've always loved the concept of painting the ceiling in a room to make it feel more complete. Unfortunately all of the ceilings in my house have that terrible, starburst bumpy stuff on them, and the ugliness of that has just unmotivated me to pay them any attention. I mean, really. That has to be just a lazy, construction guy solution. No interior designer was like, "Hmmm. Those ceilings just look too clean and sharp. I know! Hey, hand me that sponge and some sheetrock mud. I'm gonna add some pizazz!".
But we are transforming a previous junk room/office/boy's bedroom into Alana's bedroom, and I realized something...her room is the ONLY room in the house with a nice, smooth finish. So I decided to christen my abode with a painted ceiling. Finally. And I must admit that it's cute as pie. I chose a very light, airy blue so that it almost looks like you're looking up at the sky. We all love it. All it cost is $20 for the paint, and I have lots left over that I'm thinking about using in our baby girl's room who will be coming soon. And it only took me 2 hours to cut in and do 2 coats all by myself with 3 kids constantly swarming around me. So that tells you it's fairly simple. I'm even talking myself into painting the ceiling in my guest bathroom, even though it's bumpy. I'm just gonna try using one of those rollers for textured surfaces. I may regret it...but we'll see.
So, pick a room, a super light color, and show some love to that fifth wall. Especially if you're blessed enough to have some sparkling white crown molding. It'll really make it pop.

Disclaimer: My arms and neck are-how should I put it-KILLING ME, but I'm trying to think of it as a good thing. Like when you're sore after working out. So, it's a bonus. P90X ceiling painting.

No "Know-It-All's"

I'm pretty sure that one of the most obnoxious characteristics that someone can have is being an unteachable know-it-all. It drives me (and everyone else around them) crazy, and ensures that they will never grow and learn and improve. So one of the biggest hopes that I have for my girls is that they would be learners. Figure out what all of the important aspects of your life are and then figure out how you can learn more about it and get better at it.
Today I woke up at 4:30 am (uuugggghhh), loaded up with Jono and some dear friends, and drove to Newspring Church in South Carolina to a church leadership conference. I must admit, Jono and I are conference junkies. We absolutely looove gleaning from the likes of Francis Chan, Perry Noble, Andy Stanley, Steven Furtick and Judah Smith. It was so much fun and literally like trying to drink from a fire hydrant. We spent the whole ride home discussing all of our take-away nuggets and how we hoped to implement them.
Maybe you're not into "church leadership". We also go to youth ministry conferences and children ministry conferences. But from reading books on parenting to listening to podcasts about marraige, there are always ways to broaden those horizons and keep the ol' think tank chuggin'. It just doesn't make sense to me to stop learning about things that are important to you. And, since we're all super busy, it takes some creativity to find the time to read or listen or attend. But this is me saying that it's worth it. You become better at what you do. You allow yourself to dream a little bigger. You get re-inspired and re-energized.
And while all the know-it-all's of the world are talking about why what they think is so right, you'll be the one just rockin' at what you do and loving it.

EAT

Ok. I promise I'll try to take a longer break from food related rantings after this one, but it was something that hit me today and I thought, "By golly, I'm passing that on to my girls."
Eat.
That's it. Just eat. I found myself feeling tired and blah and all shaky today and then realized that I had eaten....hmmm...NOTHING! It was about 4:00 and somehow I had gone the whole day without being struck by the notion to eat. And after I thought about it for a minute I remembered that I had done the same thing practically all week. I don't know what my deal is. I think it's partly just being busy with doing school and taking care of kids. Some of it may be my psychosis and fear of gaining weight, but probably not really that much. I like food too much to consciously turn it down. A lot of it is also probably that it is the end of our pay month and the money in the grocery envelope is g.o.n.e. And in our cash-only household, when it's gone it's gone. So there just hasn't been much around that has caught my eye. But I decided tonight that a chubby, full Mommy/wifey is much nicer and more fun and pleasant to be around than an anemic, low blood sugar one. So I have vowed to eat. For the sake of my dear children and sweet hubby and my own sanity, I will be partaking of food more regularly. And, assuming that my girls get my same genes, I can freely pass that advice on to them. I've always loved food and have somehow avoided ever being extremely overweight (other than during pregnancy), so I choose to chow...and so should you.
Everyone's a better version of themselves with food in their belly.
Oh, and for the record, I realize that my blog needs some remodeling, but I just haven't had the time to do it yet. Plus I'm super technologically challenged. So hopefully I will talk my dear Jono into helping me pretty it up soon. And I'll update the title to better represent what I'm blogging about now. It's on the to-do list...

How Might We Simplify???

Before I get into my "insight of the day", I gotta give a quick shout out to my awesome Jono for pulling off an AMAZING anniversary weekend! For posterity's sake, here's a rundown of what he cooked up for me:
1) He told me Thursday morning to pack an overnight bag. No clues, just the promise of a childless night's sleep.
2) After dropping the kids off at his aunt's house, he took me to Mary Mac's Tea Room in Atlanta for the most delish and filling dinner I think I have ever had. We have been wanting to check it out for quite a while now, and let's just say it didn't disappoint.
3) Then he drove me down many mysterious (read:sketchy) roads until we came to...The Starlight Drive-In Movie Theater!!!! This has been a dream of mine for. ever. In fact, the way my dear Jono proposed to me was by setting up our own drive-in theater out in the woods. We watched "Inception" which was good / a little brain tiring.
4) We finished off the night by checking into the Hyatt which, as I mentioned before, assured us of a whole night without a certain four year old climbing in bed with us.
5) Friday, we got out of bed at around ten o'clock (yesssss!), got dressed, and proceeded to hit up every store in the Atlanta/Buckhead area that I've been wanting to shop at. Most of them were at Atlantic Station (I think I could live there...minus the cost of living), and of course we made the obligatory stop at IKEA!!!
So that was our fun and exciting "9 years of love and fun" celebration. Now on to insightful things. Every now and then, have the "how can we simplify" talk. With your hubby if you're married and with yourself if you're not. Tonight when Jono got home from work, the girls and I were cleaning their room and we had a bag that we were putting stuff in that we/they wanted to give away to some of the refugee kids that we visit. I know, we just had a yard sale. But I'm on a SIMPLIFY kick. And I had been thinking all day, "What can we do without? What are we spending money on that we could nix and create some margin as well as up our giving?". Well, clearly this was a place that God had led my thinking, because as soon as Jono saw us he said, "I've been thinking all day that we need to find some stuff to give away...I just wanna simplify." So we started evaluating everything.
Before I share all the ideas that we came up with, I think it's important to say a couple of things. First of all, I am not one of those people who are like, "Oh, you have a tv in your house? We don't own one of those terrible contraptions.". In fact, that person always gets on my nerves. So the ways that we may choose to simplify may not be the ways that you choose to, and that's cool with me. I am not the "You're living too extravagantly" police. On the flip side of that (actually, I don't know if it's on the flip side, but whatever), just because I feel led or convicted to make one change doesn't give everyone else the right to point out, "Well, if you're gonna do that, then shouldn't you do this too?". For instance, me deciding to give up acrylic nails in no way opens the door for someone to say, "So, I guess since you're being so holy you're not ever gonna color your hair again either.". Can't we all just be excited for each other's baby steps and not expect one little sacrifice to immediately turn into moving to Africa to live in a hut? (which, by the way, I would do in a heartbeat).
Ok. So back to the talk. It takes a lot of intentionality to come up with things you can give up, because we are immersed among people who actually have MORE than us. The initial thought is that we should not be getting rid of stuff, but figuring out how we can save up to send our kids to gymnastics (because every other kid in the world is signed up for something, right?) or get a new stainless steel fridge because our old black and white one that came used with the house is just embarrassing. But if you dig past that gut level, and stop comparing yourself to the bubble of rich people that you're surrounded by (which, by the way, American=rich), you can probably find a few things.
First of all, we decided to change our satellite package to the cheapest one that only includes the local channels. Right now, we only have the one right above that, and since we don't have HGTV or TLC now, it's not much of a sacrifice to me. Jono's actually gonna check on us getting rid of the satellite all together and buying a hi def antenna. Then we'd have no more money spent on the tube each month!
Second, I brought up the car issue. I am really not a car person, evidenced by my driving a minivan. I have never had the need to have a cool looking car. I just want a big one that I can cram all my kiddos in that works. It doesn't even have to have a/c. I've been driving around without that since August. So I asked Jono if he would look to see if there is a mini out there that would cost less than the one we have now. This is sort of a sacrifice to me because I do love all my buttons that make loading up a little easier. Both sliding doors and the trunk will open and close with the press of a button which is wonderful when you're coming out of the grocery store pushing a buggy and carrying a baby and dragging a whiny kid. I know that by going cheaper that I'll probably lose those features, but I keep reminding myself that I'm in the top 2% of wealthiest people in the world just by having a vehicle at all. It's a constant perspective check.
I then proceeded to tread on Jono's territory and said that we are paying too much for him a car when he works less than 1 minute from his place of employment. I even think that we could pull off being a one-car family. Can you imagine the money we could save?! On days like yesterday when I was home all day, he could have the van. If I was going to need it, we could all just load up and run Daddy to work. Or he could walk, which he scoffs at. Usually if he goes anywhere during the day it's with someone, so he could catch a ride. Anyway, I'm not sure that I've talked him into that yet, but he is going to look into trading down both of our cars.
Me and my girls agreed that from now on every time we go visit our sweet refugee friends that we will take them a gift. A toy, some clothes, a jacket...something. God didn't give us all this stuff to hoard, right?
I even mentioned during our talk the possibility of downsizing our house. I've always been convinced that one day we would upgrade, but lately God has changed my heart on that. I've stopped wishing for a bigger kitchen or a finished basement. And then tonight during our convo, I was like, "Hey, what if we sold our house and got an older, smaller one?". Jono didn't seem to think that we could make that big of a difference, and plus we really have to stay true to our home study for now anyway. But I'm just excited that I have grown from being discontent with my house and wanting more to being willing to live in less. That's a HUUUUGE step of growth for me.
And, back to the hair thing, I AM going naturale this fall and winter to save some money. And everytime I look in the mirror and think "BLAH", I'll remind myself that all these little changes are making it possible for us to have a bigger giving budget. That really does make it worth it.

On the Fence about Flowers

Alright. When it comes to flowers from my hubs, I have quite a mixed philosophy. There's part of me-we'll call it "Cheapskate"-that immediately wonders how much he spent on them and then thinks about the things I could have bought for that amount that would not die in a week. Then there's the other part of me-we'll call this one "Romantic"-that is just not willing to give up the notion of a surprise bouquet. Now, I've never fully talked this out with my dear Jono, but it seems that he has picked up on my flower quirkiness and found the perfect middle ground. Today, which by the way is our 9 year anniversary, he popped home for a minute from work to deliver a fresh bunch of buds to me. They were winners! No, it wasn't 9 red roses. I love roses, but I'm always drawn to those mixed bouquets that have lots of colors and different flowers. And that's exactly what it was. There were a couple of roses, some daisies, chrysanthemums, and some other flower and really cool greenery that I have no idea what they are. It was great because the Cheapo part of me didn't kick in since it wasn't a huge "Flowers R Us" rose presentation. In fact, for the sake of this post, I asked Jono to reveal the price. After much promising that the cheaper they were, the more wonderful of a gift they are he told me that they were just $10!! Now that's romance-that-will-die-in-a-week I can handle. And they're so bright and colorful and happy!
Now here's my trick to always making these cheaper bouquets look their best. For some reason, most people get a bunch of flowers, grab a vase big enough to hold the bunch, and stick them all in. This works sometimes, but I much prefer to find a bunch of my smaller vases and distribute all those little flowers around. They look better because they aren't all crammed together and those non-rose, small buds seem to stand out more when they're cut down a little shorter. Plus, more rooms in your house get to be graced by their presence. So, for $10 I now have 4 arrangements (which reside by my kitchen sink, on my pub table, in my living room, and in the guest bathroom) instead of one. It just makes me wanna sing!!
So there you have it. Unless you just can't appreciate a flower that isn't a rose, save a bundle of money and go for those mixed, grocery store bouquets. Split 'em up and it'll look like you just went for a walk through a meadow with your basket and collected them yourself!!
And, since I'm hoping that my girls are reading this one day in their twenties, I thought it would be neat to mention how in love I am with my Jono on our 9 year anniversary. Since it fell on a Wednesday and he had to teach, our surprise festivities begin tomorrow afternoon. But I made him an adorable (read:embarrassing) little badge to wear at church that said: "Heather's Hubby: 9 years of marital bliss. 09-08-01". It may have even had a little glitter on it. Of course he cringed, but it's kind of a tradition for me to make him wear some ooshy-gooshy thing on our anniversary. But we are madly in love and the best of friends. My babies may have weird parents, but they at least have parents that love each other like crazy. And I'm seeing more and more that that is not as common as it should be.

"Purge the Kitchen Week"

I realize that this is the third post in a row about food. What can I say? I like to eat.
Every now and then, to test your creativity, you should resist restocking the ol' pantry and fridge and see how long you can create meals out of all of the random things that have been sitting in there forever. Dinner may look a little funny...frozen corn, wild rice pilaf, and turkey sandwiches. Or maybe baked beans, alfredo noodles, and Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Regardless, it's fun to stretch your grocery money an extra week and start seeing some empty shelves in your pantry/fridge/freezer. Plus you find the things that it's time to throw away or maybe donate to a local food pantry. If you're not willing to eat it during "purge the kitchen week", you're probably never gonna eat it.
Tonight was nearing the end of said week at the Long house, and there was hardly a side to be found to go with our leftover bbq sandwiches. I'm proud to say that my dear family didn't voice one complaint at the white rice that I served alongside it. And then we had a bowl of muscadines for dessert. I was just determined to get another meal or two out of what we have. It may have something to do with my aversion to grocery shopping on beautiful days like we've been having. But whatever the reason, our bellies are full and my cupboards are quite bare. And I love seeing empty spaces in my house. There's just something relieving to me about it:)

Meals on Wheels

Today's project that I would like to pass on to my dear daughters is...take a meal to someone. A sweet couple that we are friends with have a 1 month old baby girl and the daddy had to have surgery this weekend, so we delivered a meal to them and got to check up on them, talk a little, and of course hold that precious baby. I know from being on the receiving end of many good meal deliveries that having such a basic need met during seasons of transition and/or recovery is priceless. And it's one of the few forms of help that people are more apt to be willing to receive these days. For instance, I begged that new mommy to call me one night when she realllly needs some sleep and let me get up with the baby and handle feedings and just hold her. But I doubt she'll take me up on that. I probably wouldn't. You just feel like, "I can't ask someone to do THAT much for me.". But if you call someone up who has had a baby or surgery or just got home from adopting or even just for no good reason other than spreading some love and say, "Hey. I wanna bring you and your fam some dinner tomorrow night. Is that ok?", you're much more likely to get a green light. And if you aren't of the culinary type, there's always Pizza Hut and KFC and even grocery store delis. No one really cares if it's homemade. It's showing you care and relieving someone of cooking duty for a night.
A lot of people in the church world are quite familiar with the idea of delivering meals to fellow members, but I say let's bust it out of the church. What about feeding the fam of someone you work with or a stressed out mom you know from your kids' gymnastic class or maybe one of your kids teachers or someone at your gym whose husband left them. It doesn't have to be ran through some church calendar meal ministry. There's something even more sweet and charming about it if someone knows that you just came up with it on your own instead of "signing up for it". Then again, I got a lot of "signed up for" meal deliveries after having each of my babies and they were appreciated as much as any spontaneous act of love, soooo...
Anyway, there's your challenge. Break out your best recipes, buy some disposable bowls and pans (it's always better when they don't have to worry about returning dishes to you), and be someone's dinner fairy. You'll be hard pressed to find someone who will turn you down.

The Lost Art of Potluck

There's just something about a bunch of people-some you know and some you don't know-getting together and each bringing some food to share. Hanging out, catching up with friends, getting to know someone new, all the kids off playing together...it's one thing that can make it feel less like the "modern age" with all the cell phones and technology and busyness, and more like a hundred years ago. A friend of mine had the genius idea to start a new tradition where she's inviting anyone at all to come over to her house for a yummy lunch the first Sunday of every month, and the first one was today. It was so much fun.
You can really break down a potluck dinner and find many amazing aspects:
1)They're cost efficient. In exchange for a homemade mac-n-cheese casserole and a chocolate peanut butter cake (which didn't really turn out that well), we fed our family of 5 an extreme amount of food.
2)There's something about eating with each other that just levels the playing field. In any other context someone's better and smarter and more experienced, but we all gotta eat and we're all pretty darn good at it. A conversation that I may be too intimidated to have in a meeting or over the phone seems to flow just fine over a big, ol' plate of fried chicken.
3)It can totally improve your mood. Now, this wasn't the case today, but there have been times when I was grumpy and had enough of the kiddos and mad at Jono and then went to eat with a big group of people. I start off faking my happiness and loving kindness towards my family and by the time we leave, that fake attitude has rubbed off and I'm really feeling quite pleasant towards them. Go figure.
4)It's free entertainment for the kids. Children who otherwise would be complaining about being bored at Six Flags are running around having the time of their lives with a stick and empty solo cups. When it's time to leave, they'll be begging you to stay a little longer.
I think that everyone should be a part of a consistent potluck dinner schedule. And not ones with ulterior motives, although those are fine. But to experience this phenomenon in its fullest glory, there can't be a meeting snuck in there. It's gotta be just food and whatever sweet convos happen to happen. So never turn down an invite to one. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that you should cancel anything that would prevent you from going to one and choose the potluck. And if you don't have a genius friend in your life who has instigated it, be brave and organize one yourself. It will be totally worth it. I've heard so many people go on and on about what a great time they had today. It was really wonderful. And there was no music or skits or clowns or magicians or tv or even games. Just- try hard to imagine- people talking and eating. That's all. It's surprising how simple we really are.

Make do with whatcha got...

...or at least try to. If you're anything like me, the time will come when you're tired of all of your furniture and ready for some brand spankin' new stuff. That time has officially arrived for me. I'm 7 years in and ready for a change. But all new furniture is expensive and I have 3 little ones out to destroy all things new (not to mention a little one on the way from the Democratic Republic of the Congo). I did consider saving up for new stuff, which is usually my method, but that just seems unattainable. It would take forever for me to stash enough moolah with all of the other things that we are saving for right now (adoption, Long Outreach Ideas, etc.). So today I decided to take what I have and do my best to make it look like what I want. We had day 2 of our yard sale today (which ended fabulously...$500!!), so since I was stuck out on the driveway anyways, I decided to do a little makeover. I have this side table in my living room that was this cheapo looking blonde wood finish that I've been hating for quite a while now and have often tried to sneak into yard sales only to hear Jono say, "If we get rid of that what are we gonna use?". Uh, exactly! Then we would be forced to purchase the awesome white one I want from Target! Anyway, so I had my dear hubby haul it out to the garage, I Googled some tutorials about painting furniture, then I started my project. An electric sander, some primer, a few coats of white paint, and some polyurethane later, I have a pretty amazing looking side table! To use some "interior design lingo", it really did have some great, clean lines. It was just that yucky wood color that had me grumbling. But no longer. Jono and I both love it and it only cost me the $17 can of Minwax that I sent him to the store to buy. I already had everything else. It looks so good that there were a few yard sale customers trying to talk me out of it, but I told them that unless they were willing to pay me the same amount as the new one that I would have to purchase, no deal.
I'm so glad I did it this way instead of springing for something new. 1) It is totally wipeable and waterproof so no need to stress about kids spilling or forgetting coasters. 2) When the kids ding it from throwing random toys while dancing, I won't be freaking out saying "Do you know how much that cost?!". 3) I am super duper proud of it and will probably blurt out to everyone who enters my living room, "I painted that!".
So if you ever find yourself grumbling about how much your blue sofas disgust you -Yep. They're blue...but only underneath the nice khaki slipcovers I got from Target. $100 in slipcovers is waaaaay better than a couple thou in new seats- take a deep breath, refrain from nagging your poor hubby, and think, "How can I take what God has already given me, be thankful for it, and reinvent it to make it last a little longer?". There is seriously very little that a can of paint can't do.
And it's almost as good as a visit to the spa when you get to say, "Hey, babe, keep an eye on the kids. I gotta go out to the garage alone with my Pandora radio playing and apply another coat to the table that I'm painting to save us from having to spend your hard earned money on a brand new one. Ok?" Ahh. Pure bliss.

Shed the Stuff

Never underestimate the therapeutic qualities of a good, old-fashioned yard sale. We had one today and I absolutely LOVE the feeling of bringing armful after armful of junk out of my house knowing that it will never again enter it. I literally spent the whole day going through every closet and drawer and nook and cranny in my entire abode and lugging it out onto the driveway where quite a crowd of people were digging through it and, get this, GIVING ME MONEY FOR IT!!! It was amazing!! Especially since every penny earned is going towards the adoption we are currently in the middle of. I found myself saying, "I truly am a minimalist at heart." And then I thought, "Actually, I guess we are all really minimalists at heart...wired that way by our Creator." You know? I really think that "stuff" is toxic in a way, and every now and then we need to strip our household down to the bare necessities. Kinda like how people fast to get the toxins out of their bodies (I'm referring to the diet, "health nut" fast...not the spiritual kind). And you would be surprised at how you just feel less stress when it's all said and done. It's like a diet for your house. And if money is not an issue for you (or you just hate the idea of spending a weekend bartering with complete strangers), pare down your belongings anyway and haul them off to a charity or thrift shop. It's never really about the money. In fact I always go into a yard sale reminding myself of this. It's about decluttering that special place you call home and knowing that everything that's left are really things that you love, use, or need. I mean, why does someone who doesn't drink wine need 18 wine glasses? And how did my extreme cheapness in the area of gift bags culminate in a HUGE bin of them for every occasion taking up at least 10 square feet of space? There are literally families in Brazil whose entire living quarters equal my ex-gift bag storage!! Absurd!
So go through your junk and quit holding on to those shorts you may wear next year or that microwave casserole bowl that some recipe may call for using one day. Even the little things that grandma gave you or are from high school...if it's not special enough to put in a prominent place, let it go. I make this promise to my kids: I will never come to your yard sale and have hurt feelings about things you're getting rid of that I gave you. In fact, I'll high five you and be proud of your ability to keep material things in their rightful place...they serve you, not the other way around. When they cease to serve you because they're crammed in the back of the junk drawer, send 'em packin'.
And let all that work be a reminder to try your hardest to accumulate less from now on. ("Hmmm, I just sold 3 tons of flip flops that I have never worn so maybe I won't go crazy this time when Old Navy has their $1 sale.")

Blog Revamp

So, if you haven't noticed, I'm lacking a little in the motivation department of blogging. Pretty much, I only blog when Jono guilts me into doing it. I am very thankful for my 8 sweet followers (including my mother, husband, friend that I begged to follow me, and sister that I happened to be on her computer and made follow me), but that's just not enough to get me typing regularly. And, the thing is, I really enjoy writing. I mean, not enough to stay up late at night writing a memoir or anything, but a paragraph or two a day sounds good. So I decided that I need to have a specific goal in mind to make me do the deed. I had the idea of posting every day about redoing my house little by little, but realized that there would be MANY days that there would be nothing to talk about due to time and money limitations. I also considered doing it "journal-esque", but, no offense, I really don't want my every thought and feeling floating around on the world wide web. So I finally decided that I will write a post a day about things that I would want my girls to read when they are in the season of life that I am now. My goal is to post about something that I learned, thought of, or did THAT DAY in order to motivate me to accomplish some projects as well. For instance, if I want to post about the importance of keeping your kitchen cabinets organized, I'll have to actually bust out the pots and pans that day. No vague posting about what could be. This way, I won't be able to talk myself out of blogging because, "What's the point? No one reads it." The main recipients are my precious daughters, and if anyone else happens to benefit from it (or get a laugh, or feel better about themselves), that's just icing on the cake.
I am actually extremely embarrassed and ashamed about what I would like to share tonight. But there's nothing like good ol' transparency. Do not give in to the temptation to get acrylic nails (or gel, or whatever new-fangled type fake nails they'll have 23 years from now)! I know that it is hard...especially when you see others with those perfectly manicured, shiny talons. And the way you love your cheapo press on nails now, I see it coming. I have given in to the temptation numerous times since my senior year (1999), and then swore them off...only to give in again. But as of today, I have a NAIL FUNGUS from those disgusting things. Stick a fork in me, I am done. Now, I know that you may think "That hardly ever happens", but there are a few other reasons that I would encourage you to stay away from those nail falsies.
First of all, short, clean, well-filed natural nails truly are the nicest, most sophisticated look. Time may change things, but never do you see a classic beauty sporting acrylics. Fergie, maybe, but not the Jackie O's of the world.
Secondly, what a waste of money they are!! You're talking $20-$35 dollars every 3 weeks (or 5 weeks if you try to stretch them like me)!! That's an expensive habit. And all for vanity. Do some research and you'll find that there are people in the world living off of about 30 cents a day. How dare I blow more than that on such a trivial part of my beauty regimen?! Really, how often do you hear, "Her best feature is her awesome, long, thick nails."?
So I hope that you will do what I am going to do. Every time I'm tempted (though, after having a stinkin' fungus I don't see that happening ever again!), I will figure out how I can give the amount I would be wasting away.
Let me pray about it: "Dear God, thanks for this $30 You gave me. Would you rather me give it to someone in need and show Your love to them or use it to bling out my nails?"
See. That makes it a little easier, right? :)

P.s. For all non-daughters reading this, I do not pass judgment on anyone who chooses the fake nail route. This is just a decision I've made and the advise that I would give to my babies.