Resolutions

I was going to start writing about my resolutions for 2015, but I realized I never did a post of how my resolutions went last year. (I also never really reflected fully on 2014, that is for another post).

Last year I had one goal: Simplify. OK, nothing is going to get simpler by having a second baby, and I did not have specific goals to measure whether I succeeded. But, I still can evalute how I did a bit. I failed at decluttering. I did not get to any of the crawl spaces I wanted to. I did not get rid of nearly as much stuff as I had hoped. I did (and still do) though feel a change in the way I think about life. There were a lot of things last year where I chose the simpler path - chose not to buy something I don't really need, chose to throw out something now instead of later, chose to turn down an obligation, delete a game, etc. It was not every time, but there was change. This is a change I hope to continue, expand upon.

And.. I know. It is late to be writing about resolutions, I am already through half a month! Also, my resolutions this year are not very well defined. That said, I do have things I want to do differently in 2015.

First, I want to get the decluttering process really underway. And I want to keep a positive attitude about it and get some momentum going. I have joined an internet group to help me in this. The Facebook Group is called Declutter 365 and is linked to/run by this blog: http://www.home-storage-solutions-101.com/declutter.html. Basically there is a Daily "Challenge", a 15 minute decluttering task. Today's is to declutter the tupperware/food storage containers. Its nice to have it broken into tiny little tasks, its nice to make a tiny bit of progress everyday and not stress about trying to get it all done or get overwhelmed by the amount that needs to be done. And, if I miss a day, its easy to catch up. And each little task I do, whether I do it well or poorly, is a tiny step forward. Its nice. I am enjoying it. There still will be some heavy lifting tasks... you know. Crawl spaces. Basement.

Second, I want to continue the mental move to simplicity. I want to be conscious of what I take on, and whether it is really something I want in my life, whether it be a new hobby, an internet game, or a new toy. I want to be selective when making purchases and think about not only the money it will cost, but the time it will cost to upkeep and the space it will take up in my home.

Third, I want to worry less and be more generous. I do not want to let fear of rejection, breaking social norms, looking stupid, fear about money, whatever, stop me from doing things that are nice for other people anymore.

I am really hoping that the first and second of these goals will make more time to work on other things... like reading good books, and writing, and eating healthier. But I really want to work on making room before finding things to fill the room, so we will stick with the resolutions.