House Overhaul: 1/3 Less Phase 1

I mentioned last week that what finally jump-started me putting together our "family purpose statement" was this great book, "Organized Simplicity" by Tsh Oxenreider. (Available on Amazon)  It jump-started a lot of other things in my mind, too.

I realized in Alaska that I have a problem.  Ok, some problems.  My mom has this great pearl of wisdom that she's shared with me since I was little:

"If your environment is chaotic, your entire life will be chaotic."

And that is my problem.  Well, much of my problem.  We had lived in our house for 4 1/2 years, the same place for 6.  We'd had 2 kids-and their stuff.  We had a huge house-filled with stuff.  We had a lot of activities going on-and they all involved stuff.  Basically, we went to Alaska with 8,500 lbs of stuff, and left with 14,500 lbs of stuff.  I was grateful that we didn't exceed our poundage, which is 16,500 lbs.  Or 17,500 lbs.  Either way, I was thankful we didn't blow it.

We got to Georgia, and into a house that's actually bigger than our last.  Great storage, a 2 car garage, a comparable kitchen.  We do have some areas that aren't so wonderful (laundry room and pantries), but there's no reason we can't be comfortable here.

What I found when I got unpacked is that I had a bunch of "stuff" that didn't have homes.  And it piled up.  My mom's little pearl of wisdom proved true: I missed things, like ordering school pictures, fulfilling commitments, even paying bills.  I just couldn't get my act together!  My environment was chaotic, and my entire life felt that way, too.

So, my first step toward mental health was to begin working on my physical health.  I'm down about 8 lbs since the first of the year, and I'm averaging 4 trips to the gym a week.  I'm up to 45 minutes on the elliptical, and I'm not keeling over at the end of the kickboxing class.  Improvement.

Then, I read Tsh's book.  Oh, buddy.  Mom's words came back to me, and I knew I had to do something.  We put together our family mission statement.  We tackled The Hubs one "domain" (the garage) before he left, and I can not tell you the sense of satisfaction that came with having it done.  The Hubs and I stood there, looked at each other, and we asked each other if we could sleep there!  It was so beautiful....as beautiful as a garage can be.

The feeling has stuck with me.  And has inspired me to do more.  My goal is 1/3 less.  As in eliminate 1/3 of the "stuff" in our lives.

So far:
-I've gone through the kitchen cabinets, uppers and lowers.  (I'm holding off on eliminating too much there, really being conscious of what I use.  If it doesn't get used before The Hubs gets home, its gone.)
-I have gone through my "hoosier cabinet," which acts as my command center.  Its been cleaned out and completely organized.  I know what's in there, and I know what's SUPPOSED to be in there...not just stuffed in.
-I went through my cookbook cabinet, and I eliminated 2/3 of my cookbooks.  I realized that every Weight Watchers recipe and (probably) every Pampered Chef recipe is online, so I kept only our "Joy of Cooking," a big game cookbook, and fundraiser cookbooks.  No joke, I got rid of 2/3 of our cookbooks!  I also ditched the side-table and sad-looking fake houseplant beside it.
-I went through our china cabinet.  I did eliminate 1/3 there, but I feel like I use everything that's left.  If, in a year, I haven't used it, its gone.  (I had the great idea to mark items with fishing line.  You can't see it, and if I use the item, I'll remove the fishing line.)

*Another weird discovery:  The Hubs and I have spent the last year thinking our china cabinet had frosted doors.  I'd been dusting them, but not "Windex-ed" them.  Yeah, they're not frosted.  They were that dirty. (I can't take the blame for that one....we inherited it that way.)

Here's some pics of my progress: The completed "hoosier."

Before and after of my cookbook cabinet:

China cabinet before (above)
And After (below), clean glass doors and all!

Stay tuned for much more.  1/3 more! Or would that be less?

The H_____ Family Purpose...

Last year, The Hubs did a Bible study with our church in Alaska called the "Quest for Authentic Manhood."  The study is for men, and is about taking spiritual leadership in your home, what it means to be a provider and a protector for your family.  The Hubs thoroughly enjoyed the study, and has embraced those principles in our family.

Just last month, "Organized Simplicity" was a free e-book on Amazon, and word just flew around Facebook.  I downloaded it to my Kindle, and devoured it in just a couple of hours.  It is a GREAT book, is worth purchasing. (The "free" offer expired.)

http://www.amazon.com/Organized-Simplicity-Clutter-Free-Approach-Intentional/dp/1440302634/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1330130740&sr=1-1

In both of these studies/books, they encourage you to create a FAMILY PURPOSE STATEMENT.  We were going to write one last spring, then all craziness broke loose with moving and everything else, and we just never got around to it.  I got spurred on (again) by "Organized Simplicity" to write one, and began brainstorming.  Tsh Oxenrider (I think that's how you spell her last name) encourages you to write one, and says that's the tool to use to determine every aspect of your life.  If something doesn't fit into your family purpose, seriously consider whether or not you want to pursue that path/purchase it.

The Hubs and I finally sat down, looked over Tsh's tools for building a purpose statement, and here's what we came up with:

The H_____ Family Purpose:
-To faithfully serve God, our country, each other, and our community.
-To joyfully "bear with one another" with the Fruits of the Spirit.
-To have our home be a place of laughter, peace, and comfort.
-To have our experiences be fun, educational, and uplifting.

We also developed a motto for our family:
"Remember Whose you are, and who you are."

I typed these up, and printed them out on pretty paper.  I've gotten a simple frame to put them in, and to leave where I can see it.

From here on out, I will be weighing my decisions based on our Family Purpose.  What we buy, what we commit to, our extracurriculars, how we live.  We-as the family with said purpose- have the right to tweak our purpose, but these are goals we can work towards for the rest of our lives.

Here we go again....Deployment #4.  This one is a little different.  Ok, a lot different.  It's 7 months, instead of 12-15 months.  We're not in Alaska, and I'm not shoveling snow.  We're 6 hours (by car) from family, instead of 12+ hours (by plane).  The Hubs is basically an "individual," not part of a large brigade mobilization.  Little 1 and Little 2 are older, and actually cognizant of what's going on.

(Wow...not sure what's going on here.  Gotta figure out this blog stuff...)

This was supposed to be a "non-deployable" job.  Anyone who knows the military knows how laughable that is.  "Non-deployable" means that we'll tell you that, get you into the job, let you and your family get comfortable with that idea, then POOF!, orders hit.  And your hubby is off to do whatever he does.

How The Hubs came to be in this position, and thereby deployed, was under terrible circumstances.  He was the 5th "alternate," and all 5 people on the list ahead of him had family tragedies...deaths, illnesses, car accidents.  It makes it really hard to complain.  Little 1, Little 2, and I are healthy, along with our more extended family.  We've had no tragedies, nothing is falling apart, and we're equipped to handle this.

All this is to say that:  I'M GRATEFUL for this deployment.  It puts thing into perspective.  If it weren't for our health and safety, The Hubs would be home.  So, I praise God for His blessing, provision, and His trust in our abilities to survive this, and lead others.  I just hope that I'm worthy of His faith.  And I hope I don't go crazy! :D