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Simplify, Simplify, Simplify

October 4, 2023 Oh my gosh you all, have you ever thought about simplifying your life? If so, what would it do for your daily processes? The past couple of weeks we have been de-cluttering our kitchen and spare room, which we have done on numerous occasions over the years. Each time, we meet the goal of purging things and trash pretty well. But until today, we didn’t actually think about the WHY of doing it. So, why is it worth getting rid of the things that add clutter and visual chaos to your daily routines? And why does purging unnecessary things make us feel so untethered?  We believe there is some comfort in the chaos. The clutter allows us to be frantic, chaotic, always on the move, unorganized and busy! If we keep unorganized homes, we don’t have to stop and reflect and dive into the hard stuff that matters, like keeping a budget, meal planning, creating a chore schedule, wardrobe planning, etc., because there is no room for any of that when living in survival mode. If it takes us 20 minutes to find a pair of matching socks or the bill that we forgot to pay, it leaves us with no time and mental energy to tackle meaningful tasks. So many times, we find ourselves to be too mentally exhausted from just getting through our days that it is all too easy to binge watch a few episodes of our favorite comfort shows on Netflix instead of having productive evenings.  The first step to get this under control is to get rid of extra things including visual clutter, but that is only just that...a first step. The second step is to simplify routines by creating a truly organized home where things get put away in their spaces and are easy to find. For instance, Kelly helped coordinate an event at her company’s conference center last week. The kitchen inside the event space has drawers and cabinets labeled with what is inside, and there is a large storage area that keeps all the extra things stowed away at the ready. Their refrigerator is only full of things that will get used quickly and for specific meals. Kelly loved how working in that kitchen made her feel, and it has inspired her to organize our own home in a way that keeps us all moving with calm and ease. We also did our grocery shopping today, and we carried the idea of simplifying over to this area as well. Travis has been using his cooker while on the road and has been thinking of more ways to improve his single-serve meal planning. This week, we cooked two small meatloaves: one that will fit inside Travis’s cooker and one for us to eat at home during the week. We also planned two other meals, and we are set for the next three days. Having a few meals cooked and ready to heat up on busy weeknights really takes the guesswork out of ‘what’s for dinner?’ and takes the stress out of the equation. Now we can all look forward to dinner being ready for us when we are ready for it! This was also the first week that we didn’t overspend on groceries, so as long as we eat what we prepared at home, there is also an opportunity for saving money! Important areas to simplify:
  • Finances – we have come a long way with this since starting Project Money. We used to have so many different credit accounts, and consolidating them into a means a large savings on interest charges. It also keeps the payment process simple, which equals a better chance at success.
  • Food – meal planning at home and on the road and only getting what we need makes the grocery bill less expensive and less stressful!
  • Fun – finding simple ways to have fun, such as staying home and enjoying what we have worked so hard for, has helped us spend a lot less money and gives us time to relax on the weekends.
Simplifying has been helping us feel more in control of our lives, and we hope to keep it going long after this project is done. ~K&T You might also be interested in Bills used to be a lot easier to ignore, but of course ignoring them was not the right thing to do long term. For instance, the water bill, which arrives in our mailbox on a quarterly basis, always seems to show up when we are least prepared for it. Last quarter, I misplaced the bill, and it was out of sight and out of mind, so it was paid late. This week, we took a few days to go on a trip together! We called it a ‘Midwest tour’ and started out in Wisconsin Dells. The highlight of this stop was taking a ride with the WI Dells Boat Tours and taking in all the natural scenery on a beautiful fall day. We also liked strolling around downtown and had a tasty lunch at a local bar and grill. A favorite part of our travels was taking in the local sights and getting a feel for each place. Our medical bills were processed by our insurance this past week, so we were able to see what our balance is, which allowed us to pay down a large portion of what was owed with the accident insurance policy that Kelly has through her employer. This was the first time that we used this policy, and we are feeling fortunate that we have it to help with the medical expenses.  Having the right amount of insurance has helped us keep financially secure when the unexpected happens. Oh my gosh you all, have you ever thought about simplifying your life? If so, what would it do for your daily processes? The past couple of weeks we have been de-cluttering our kitchen and spare room, which we have done on numerous occasions over the years. Each time, we meet the goal of purging things and trash pretty well. But until today, we didn’t actually think about the WHY of doing it. So, why is it worth getting rid of the things that add clutter and visual chaos to your daily routines? This time of year always has me feeling nostalgic for days gone by. Today, I pulled out some old storage boxes that hadn’t been gone through for at least 10 years and took a trip down memory lane. Our daughter has gone off to college this year which has brought all kinds of emotions. When I pulled out pictures, report cards and art projects from her elementary years, we all had some laughs! I was also so happy to find my college diploma which I thought had been lost to history. I finally had to pull myself away from the boxes when Travis called to remind me to write this blog. This experience of reflecting on the past has again made us realize just how far we’ve come. We just had a busy weekend! On Friday, we paid Travis’s auto payment on time and then stayed home and relaxed with friends outside. Before starting Project Money, we would have gone out for food and drinks on Fridays, resulting in an unnecessarily large bill. Saturday was then my day to look at our finances and pay what I could with what was left over. We really had it backwards! Wow, we just finished up week 13, which means that we have been a part of Project Money for over four months! We are feeling that we are not quite where we want to be, but we’re closer than we have ever been. The past couple of weeks we have experienced some financial setbacks, and there have been moments when we felt discouraged. Travis put it into perspective for me by reminding me of the habits that we changed since starting our journey and that we are spending less money overall. This has been a week of changes for our family, and some of them have been easier than others. Changing places demands on the mind and body and creates stress even if the change is positive in nature. Travis and I are dealing with many loose ends in our finances, including two medical claims, student repayment status and our daughter’s college expenses. Some of the ways we plan to work through these financial challenges are: We just had a busy weekend! On Friday, we paid Travis’s auto payment on time and then stayed home and relaxed with friends outside. Before starting Project Money, we would have gone out for food and drinks on Fridays, resulting in an unnecessarily large bill. Saturday was then my day to look at our finances and pay what I could with what was left over. We really had it backwards! 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