I have dabbled in minimalism on and off since my early twenties.
I’ve purged my wardrobe, cleaned out bathrooms, cleared out junk drawers, and removed countless belongings, only to have them pile back up again over time. I’ve always been drawn to living a simpler life, but through various events (marriage, moving, having kids, moving again, starting new jobs, becoming self-employed, moving some more), it never seemed to stick. I was chasing outward minimalism without truly examining my inner desires.
That all changed once my husband and I peaked in our maximalist ways and moved to a mansion, and quickly realized it was the antithesis of everything we valued. On the outside, it looked like we had everything we could ever want: a giant home, an au pair to help raise the kids, and our own successful business. But on the inside, something was definitely missing. Our life was not aligning with our values.
That experience was sharply eye-opening to me, and it drove home the point that our stuff does not make us happy. In many ways, our stuff detracts from our happiness. We had bloated our life in more ways than just by living in an extravagant, excessive house. We also had over-complicated our schedule, our family life, our commitments, and our daily routines.
As soon as we got out of that house, I vowed to return to the simple life.
I wanted more slow mornings letting the kids sleep in, and less time picking up clutter around the house.
I wanted more barefoot days on the beach, and less time commuting to preschool.
I wanted more time raising my kids, and less time working in our business.
My husband and I started talking at length about living the simple life, and what that meant to us. We’re still figuring it out, and I hope by starting this blog I’ll be able to connect with other moms, dads, wives, husbands, sons and daughters who also feel like something is missing in their life, and long to simplify.
Here’s to building a happy, simple life.