LIVING SIMPLY, GOING TINY.

You don’t really realize how much stuff you’ve accumulated until you have to pack it ALL up to move. When we moved just about 12 months ago, I had 3 garage sales within 2 months, filled 4 cars worth of loads to the good will, and overflowed my trash barrels every single Friday. And I was (or thought I was) a tidy and organized person. Nah kid. Seriously where did all this crap come from?! Its been a almost a year since we’ve been in the RV, living on the land. Through this time I have gotten rid of even more stuff. We don’t need 10 dinner plates in here, I have to hand wash everything, so 4 is just fine. We don’t need 8 coffee mugs (but I love my mugs!!), 2 works. My point is, it’s really prioritizing my thought process on buying things and holding on to things. So let’s break it down.

Are you a hoarder? Or are you just a consumer? Or maybe you’re both! Hoarding- I feel like people usually hoard because they feel some sort of emotional attachment to things. That “thing” has a certain memory that goes a long with it, and if you toss it, your throwing away the memory. But I try and remember, I don’t want to store up our treasures here on earth. Our treasures don’t and shouldn’t lie in things. Make memories with your family and with your friends, write down those memories in a journal or note book, and most importantly I ask God to give me a are heart of contentment. Consuming- Ah well, we all do it. In this need and want world we live in, it’s one of the hardest things to stay away from… over buying. I shared on my stories a few weeks ago how I walked into Target and stood there for an hour. Trying to talk myself into getting something from their new line. While at the same time, talking myself out of buying something, because I don’t need it, I don’t have room for it, and I don’t need to spend the money on it. So you know what I did? I came home, looked around at all that had, looked at my kids, and felt so happy. Joy comes from within, not new pillows and that really rad vase on the end cap. Am I saying you can’t EVER buy anything?? Absolutely not. One rule I try to stand firm on is if I bring something in, something has to go out. So there is no room for hoarding and it makes me think before I make a purchase, “what would I trade for this?” Plus, for me its a condition of my heart. Why am I feeling like I “need” that? Living in the RV has sort of tied my hands behind my back and forced me to be in a place where I can’t consume. Making me realize, Im so much better without it. My family is better without it and our home is better without it.

Some Practical steps to living simply and tiny:

I already mentioned my rule about getting rid of something if I bring something in. Thats such a great one, not only do you really think before the purchase, but I tend to really love whats in my house because I can actually see it and enjoy it. Its not covered with a bunch of other stuff. Making things inside your home, pieces that stand out.
This is for the tiny dwellers, removing groceries from their boxes. Wow, what a waste of space and SO much trash. Our recycle barrel is almost full after one trip to the grocery store. I take everything out of the box and if it doesn’t seal, I throw it in a ziplock. Thats really how we make everything fit inside of out tiny pantry space.
Storing off season clothes somewhere else. This can be under your bed in a bag, in the garage or in a box in the attic. But what I like about this is it helps you to focus on what you have inside your closet so when you get dressed you’re not as overwhelmed. Also its great for the process of cleaning out. Since those clothes have been gone for a few months, when they get pulled back out, you can more clearly decide if you missed them or not. If you didn’t, get rid of them.

The biggest point of this goes back to the top. Get rid of stuff. I promise you, you will feel so free without all of it. Keep what you love, think before you buy. That’s how we’ve managed to live tiny and happy for the last year.