When it comes to the clutter in our homes and lives, it’s often much easier to make excuse after excuse, listing all the reasons it might actually be best to KEEP our clutter than to actually make work of getting rid of those things we no longer need, use, want, or love.
Sound familiar? If you’ve been making excuses to keep your clutter, I hope that today’s post might be the “wake-up call” that motivates and encourages you to clear some of the clutter from your home and life!
About 18 months ago, I posted pictures of our soon-to-be-baby’s closet… and all the cute baby girl clothes inside. It was neat, organized, and everything was in its place — obviously, because there was no person to wear the clothing or mess anything up yet!
Well, fast-forward a little over a year and although it’s not quite as organized, we still have a pretty good system for storing and organizing Nora’s clothes.
When I first started this blog (Sep. 2010) I was spending $20 or less on groceries each week — yes, that’s $20, NOT $200 — and no, we didn’t eat ramen noodles every night!
Fast-forward 2 years and our grocery bill has more than doubled… but I suppose we’re in a different season of life right now and I’m OK with that.
Last week, I snatched up a huge bag of Michigan apples on the discount produce rack… and while many were still good for eating, a few were quite bruised and mushy.
So instead of baking bread or a pie, I decided to make a very small batch of homemade applesauce… in the microwave. After cooking the apples for 8 minutes, the sauce was ready, and my kitchen smelled fabulous!
I’ve been waiting SO long to share our kitchen before and after pictures with you — and I know you’ve been patiently waiting for the after pictures as well.
Last week, our butcher block island counter arrived — which was the last thing we were waiting for. So the kitchen is officially finished! Come take a look!
I get lots of questions from readers who are having trouble selling things on Craigslist in a timely fashion. Sometimes they say it takes them weeks and months to sell one small item — and in my opinion, that’s just not worth the time and effort.
If you’re wondering how to sell your stuff ASAP, I’m sharing three tips that have been helping me to sell my items FAST (usually in less than 48 hours!)
I’m a huge advocate for budgeting because I’ve seen first-hand how living within a budget helps us to simplify and organize our lives (not to mention stay out of debt).
And today, I’d like to talk a little bit more about budgeting — but this time, I’m going to focus on creating and using a budget to manage your space.
I talk a lot about how we save money by keeping our pantry and freezer stocked with extra meals, snacks, baking supplies, cereal, chips, etc. etc. We have a nice-size pantry area downstairs… and honestly, I’d be lost without it!
However… I personally feel like there’s a point when enough is enough and a stockpile becomes “excessive”. Today, I’m sharing my thoughts on excessive stockpiling.
At our old house, we had a really awkward back entryway with 3 doors that all opened into each other. I hated it!
So the other day, when my friend Leslie sent me a before and after picture of her crowded entryway, I immediately asked her if I could share the pictures on my blog. The makeover is fabulous and she did it ALL by herself!
I’m happy to share that after a two-week lull {and tons of debating back and forth} we had our “Ah-Ha Moment” for the kitchen the other day… at about 11:30pm. Believe it or not, Dave actually played a pretty big part in our new game-plan.
So without further adue, here is our {almost} finalized kitchen design.
Two weeks ago, I wrote a blog post about saving and spending. My point was that we all have different priorities and, therefore, we all save and spend our money in different ways.
Today, I’m sharing a few more thoughts based on several emails I received after that post went live… and I’d love to hear what you think about saving and spending throughout different seasons of life.
As many of you know, Dave and I are gearing up for a really messy kitchen renovation this summer.
I’ve been doing quite a bit of “behind the scenes” work these past few weeks… the bulk of which was designing the floor plan. It’s still not 100% set in stone, but as you’ll see by the images below, we’re adding a TON of cabinet space and creating a much more open and user-friendly place to cook, eat, and just hangout.
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