Me On Monday - April 29th

 To round off my month of Wisdom quotes about decluttering .. I've linked in two articles that I received in my news feed from Joshua Becker at Becoming Minimalist.  I will say upfront, I am not a minimalist & I don't agree with everything in either article, but like any information given to us, we take what we want or need, & ignore what doesn't sit with us. 

The first article was written by Myquilyn Smith of The Nesting Place. I posted her article about hushing a home.

5 House Rules To Make Minimalizing Work For Any Style

And the 2nd article, also from Joshua Becker at Becoming Minimalist, was also written by him,  is about wants & needs.  I like that he has not made this versus between wants & needs, he's not setting up a battle.

How-to-distinguish-between-wants-and-needs

Hope everyone has a good week.

PS: in case anyone is wondering why I am either not commenting on their posts or making short comments ... Blogger is not being very friendly to me & it seems any comment beyond one line is rejected.  I have no idea why ...

Wisdom

 

Creating space, decluttering, & evaluating our beliefs about what is enough helps us restore our homes to their original purpose - refuge.

                ... Lisa Avellan

Me On A Monday - April 22nd

 Happy Earth Day (Canada).  We'll be turning our lights off at 8pm for an hour with the rest of Canada. 

I had a very social week last week, so this week is all about recovery for me - I need lots of quiet time & thankfully have only one day, two events of people centred activities, the rest is no in person activities.

Monday I met a friend for tea (me), coffee (her). We had a nice catch up with all that is happening in our lives.  She now lives full time at their cottage & only comes into town every 6 weeks for her hair.

Tuesday we met the paint colour consultant that is part of the painters we chose for the task of painting our kitchen, ensuite & hallway.  Picking the kitchen colour was difficult as we were trying to find a colour that works with the cabinets, the flooring & the appliances.  We picked a netural greiege - Balboa Mist.  We decided that this colour would also work for hallway.  The ensuite is going to be a light grey.

Wednesday, my ladies bible study group met in the morning.  We are nearing the end of the series on Exodus & then we'll be taking a summer break after the 15th of May.

Thursday was an emergency run for Mr Man to the city where his eye surgeon is located, about an hour away.  That turned into a long day of waiting & treatment.  Thankfully nothing dreadful; it was the very large medical contact lens that needed replacing. To be on the safe side they injection some antibiotics & then refitted the medical contact lens.

Thursday evening was the first meeting of the library's cookbook book club.  I was one of 3 ladies that showed up.  This first session was about comfort food.  There's no cooking, the librarian selects cookbooks with the session's theme focus, we chose one, decided on a recipe from that book, make it (at home) & then write a book report on the book & recipe at the next meeting, end of May.  I'll give it another try as I am not sure this is for me.  I've chosen to make pie crust from scratch.  The recipe I'll be making has vinegar, & a half & half of butter & shortening.  Of course, the water has to be very cold. 

Friday was income tax day for us, & while not a lot of people contact, it was a stressful half day dealing with government forms. Thankfully done.

Saturday I attended a Women's Breakfast Conference - Seek Him in Prayer. It was hosted by the church where I attend my Wednesday bible study.  It was an amazing morning, every little detail seen to.  I did not have to remind anyone that I was vegetarian - my special breakfast plate was ready for me.  One of the biggest chuckles came when it was announced that for this morning all bathrooms in the church, were women's washrooms.  Now that is truly understanding your audience.  

Sunday I was greeting at my own church & then there was a Parish Brunch.  

This week was much more peopling that I have done in the last year!

Wisdom

 

Decluttering our spaces, invites us to think more deeply about what we want and what we need in our lives.

                ... Leo Babauta

Me On A Monday - April 15th

 

Good Morning All. I hope that everyone is well. 

Currently Reading: just finished up two books, How To Solve Your Own Murder. I did not find this long awaited book all that engaging. I did not connect with any of the characters.

A surprise enjoyable read, The Bittlemores, written by singer/song writer Jann Arden.  "The Bittlemores takes place on a rural farm and follows the story of 14-year-old Willa Bittlemore as she tries to find out what happened to her older sister Margaret.  This family is part fantasy, part fiction, part little bits of my actual DNA. My mom's childhood, my dad's disposition, long dead relatives and dear childhood friends. I had a mighty group of souls cheering us on — me and Willa and Carol and Margaret and the cows and a feisty orange cat," says Jann Arden. 

I loved the cows! 🐄🐄🐄

Currently Watching: One episodes in of Mr Bates & The Post Office. I know that this is a true story. We do like Toby Jones & so many of the cast are known to me via Coronation Street. 

Currently Doing Some Home Projects: painting the walls in the ensuite bathroom, kitchen & hallway.  Neither Mr Man or I are painters, so we have hired decorators to do. Which leaves us free to do some sorting in the basement!  We finished up hushing the living room last week & after spending time with only the big furnishings in the room for a week*, we have put back fewer items to see if we enjoy the reduction of things. Nothing has been given away or donated, they are in a box to see if we miss. I am by no means a minimalist. * Home hushing articles all say 24-36 hours of hushing, we decided we needed more time of quiet before bringing anything back in; that worked for us.

Here's another link to hushing a room if you are interested: House-hushing-why-you-need-it.  I've also included a link to an article that has several contributors with some tidbits of info that could be helpful. What-is-home-hushing?   

For me, I take what I need from any of the suggestions & leave what doesn't speak to me.

And I'll leave you with this thought & chuckle from the internet ... "I leave my house a mess so that when friends visit, they go home feeling better about their own housekeeping skills ... I'm a good friend like that."

Wisdom

 

Decluttering is infinitely easier when you think of it as deciding what to keep rather than what to throw away.

                ... Francine Jay 

Me On A Monday - April 8th

 

• “Nothing ever seems impossible in spring, you know.” — L. M. Montgomery

2024 Potential Daffodils In My Garden

Good Morning. It was a beautiful day on Sunday.  We spent a lot of time in the garden, tidying up from last week's wintery winds; lots of twigs & branches broken off & laying all about the garden. The one thing that continues to baffle us, is all the oak leaves in the garden.  There aren't any oak trees growing in our garden or anywhere on our street.  They must blow in across the farmer's field at the back of garden.

At this time of year, for many of us, our minds & energy often turn to our homes & spring cleaning.  I read an interesting article about loving our home as it is.  One quote from this article really struck a cord with me.

"Making a conscious decision to appreciate our homes in their current state while nurturing a sense of enthusiasm for potential enhancements allows us to create a home we truly love and want to care for.  And you know what’s even better? Gratitude kicks comparison to the curb! So take a deep breath, let go of all those pesky comparisons and unrealistic expectations, and keep them out for good! Instead, focus on being grateful for the unique haven that is YOUR home!"  Yvonne Pratt - Stone Gable. 

A link to the full article: Stone Gable -5 Ways To Love The Home We Are In

• “Your home should tell the story of who you are & be a collection of what you love.” — Nate Berkus

Wisdom

 

Clutter is not just the stuff on your floor, it's anything that stands between you & the life you want to be living.

                    ... Peter Walsh

The first step in crafting the life you want is to get rid of everything you don't.

                        ... Joshua Becker 

Me On A Monday - April 1st

Source: Internet

Rabbit Rabbit Rabbit ... said first thing upon waking to ensure good luck for the month. 

It is an old superstition found in Britain & North America wherein a person says or repeats the words Rabbit three times (or some say white rabbit three times) aloud upon waking on the first day of a month to ensure good luck for the rest of it.

Currently Reading: just finished late last night, After Annie by Anna Quindlen. At first I did not think I would like this book, I struggled in the first 10 pages to engage with the characters, but by page 25 I was all in & it was a book that I found myself staying up late to read just one more page.  " When Annie Brown dies suddenly, her husband, her four young children & her best friend are left to struggle without the woman who centered their lives."  Goodreads rates this book at 4.2 stars & Amazon readers at 4.5 stars.

I also picked up a book of which I thought was something totally different, Subtraction.  This book was not what I was looking for, after the introduction, I gave the book back to the library.  I was looking for more information on a concept about rather than adding to your "to do" list or your bucket list, that you try the approach of subtracting from your lists.  

Currently Watching:  I finally caught up on Belgravia, The Next Chapter.  This was another slow burn for me, but I am glad I stuck with it.  I really liked the first series of Belgravia.

Currently Baffled:  I am really hoping that Scotland is involved in an elaborate April Fool's prank.  But just in case, JK - there are some great homes with lots of land available here ...

Currently 100 Day Project:  I've completed a task within the project of labeling the spines of my scrapbook albums with the year.  In the end I decided against stamping as that was going to take a lot more time & effort.  I printed off from the computer the years, so both the garden & day to day albums have a uniformed look on the spines.   So nice to check off one of the items on my to do list of the 100 Day Project.

Hope everyone has a most delightful day & week ahead.  Me, I'm off to the dentist ... thank goodness I remembered the rabbit rabbit rabbit chant!!!