Cleaning Schedules
Posted by SeekingSimplicity on May 4, 2010.Do you have a cleaning schedule?
Scheduling your housekeeping needs can help keep your home in order by reminding you and your housemates of daily tasks.
The image above shows my cleaning schedule. Of course I do other things like dishes, wiping surfaces, and taking out the trash whenever necessary and don’t need to be reminded of them.
Everyone’s list will look different depending on your household needs. You can download a template of the schedule below and edit it to fit your needs. Be sure to post it somewhere you can view it easily every day! I put mine on the inside of my kitchen cabinet like this:
Some items you may want on your list are:
- Laundry
- Sweeping/Mopping Kitchen
- Bathrooms
- Vacuuming
- Trash Collection
- Washing Linens
- Dusting
- Meal Planning
- Lawn Care
- Bill Pay
- Clean Desk
- Project Item – I have project item listed in my schedule twice a week. This is for tasks such as decluttering, cleaning garage, making a repair, or any other projects or chores that will inevitably come up.
The Best Tip for a Clutter-Free Life
Posted by SeekingSimplicity on May 3, 2010.Own Less.
Okay, easier said than done but owning less is truly the ultimate answer to living a clutter-free life.
The need for storage containers, baskets, and organizing items will just add to your clutter. Getting rid of items that you don’t need eliminates the need to organize them. De-cluttering can be a time consuming and frustrating process. Here are a few tips to help you get started:
- Start with one room
- Make a pile of everything you do not use, need, or want. This will be the hardest part. Be honest. Have you used this item in the past year? Would you take this item with you if you were moving to your dream house?
- Go through the room again. A second pass will often lead to another pile of items to get rid of.
- Throw away the trash and put the usable items you have gathered in your car and take them to the Goodwill or other donation location. Most Goodwill’s make house calls for furniture or other large items that are hard to transport. Contact your local Goodwill to find out whether or not pick-up service is available in your community.
- Stop bringing items in your home to help prevent clutter.
- De-clutter regularly
Organization containers can help contain visual clutter but before placing an item in the containers consider if you really need it and how often you will use the item.
30 Fun Family Activities
Posted by SeekingSimplicity on April 28, 2010.- Visit a zoo in a nearby town – if you are like my family you have been to your local zoo numerous times. Why not change up the scenery a bit and visit a nearby zoo?
- Go camping – you can camp at your local State Park or even your own backyard.
- Make smores – you don’t have to have a campfire to enjoy smores. Put a marshmallow on a wood stick or fork to roast over your stove. Add to a graham cracker and chocolate and enjoy!
- Play frisbee
- Make a collage – use old magazines, newspapers, and other items you have around.
- Have a picnic
- Bake a treat – treat yourself and try a new recipe.
- Go on a nature trail hike
- Family movie night – rent a movie, make some snacks, and snuggle up in front of your TV for a family movie.
- Play a board game – break out the old Monopoly, Scrabble, Trouble, or other fun board games that you have.
- Play “find the toy” – hide a small item in the backyard and have the kids find it (my kids love this game).
- Make playdough – mix the following ingredients together: 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup salt, 1 cup water, 2 tablespoons oil, and 2 tablespoons cream of tartar.
- Make slime – there are many recipes for homemade slime, here is my favorite.
- Visit the library – you can borrow CDs, DVDs, books, and more at the library.
- Color – grab your crayons or paint and print a summer themed coloring page online.
- Make a piñata – how to make a simple pinata
- Go swimming or to a water park – Google “public swimming pools” to find public pools in your area.
- Visit a museum – Museum Day 2010 is on September 25. Check for local events here.
- Visit a national park – find your nearest national park
- Make a terrarium – making a terrarium is great fun for everyone! Here is a getting started guide.
- Go to the movies
- Go roller or ice skating
- Have a water balloon fight
- Make crafts – there are a multitude of online craft ideas. Here is one of my favorite resources.
- Eat dinner at a restaurant – find out where kids can eat for free.
- Clean the house together – turn up the music and have a cleaning party!
- Go for a bike ride
- Decorate your driveway – use sidewalk chalk and get creative.
- Family Volunteer Day – participate in a family volunteer day.
- Visit a local theme park – find your local park.
Morning Routines
Posted by SeekingSimplicity on April 13, 2010.Mornings can be a chaotic mess. The rush combined with the sleepiness many of us feel early in the morning can set the tone for the rest of the day. A rough start to the morning can set the stage for a “bad” day.
Planning is key! Here are a few ideas to help minimize the morning blues:
The night before:
- set out clothing for the next day
- prepare briefcase, purse, wallet, backpack, etc
- know what you are making for breakfast
- pack or at least plan lunch
- go to sleep at a reasonable time
In the morning:
- get up when you hear the alarm (no snoozing!)
- eat breakfast
- focus on the positive
These steps form the foundation for an efficient start to the day. Try to stick to the same routine everyday. An organized morning routine is the perfect opener to a peaceful day.
Weight Loss
Posted by SeekingSimplicity on March 15, 2010.I have struggled with my weight my entire life off and on. While I am not a physician or medical expert my personal experience has given some key insights into what has worked and failed. Nothing I am going to say here is ground breaking in fact it is probably what you already knew in the back of your mind.
Diets simply do not work. If you think that following a very austere eating plan is going to work in the long term you are probably wrong. I have tried just eating veggies, fasting, high protein, etc. In the end the mind and body will rebel.
So if dieting doesn’t work what should we do?
Count calories and exercise. It is really that simple.
I have lost thirty pounds and maintained it with relative ease by tracking my calories and exercising regularly. My experience of keeping a food journal has made me conscious of how much I am consuming. Finding your caloric budget for your goal and following it is an absolute must to achieve weight loss. Making better food choices is helpful for your health, but is not essential to lose weight. The number of calories is the key. Exercise allows for more calories and makes you feel good. Try to do a mixture of cardio, resistance, and stretch to keep the body healthy.
Being an iPhone junkie of course I use apps to help me with calorie counting. My two favorites are the LiveStrong.com and Tap and Track apps. Of course these apps aren’t necessary, but it does make it easier to track everything. In addition, when you enter your weight, height, and goal they will calculate your caloric needs and then act as a food and exercise journal. Of course my advice should never substitute for the advice of your physician, but I doubt my thoughts are going to be very different.
The formula is simple: calories in need to be less than calories out. Otherwise we get fat.
iPhone a Tool Towards Minimalism?
Posted by SeekingSimplicity on February 12, 2010.When is a phone not just a phone? When it is an Apple iPhone.
Honestly, I love gadgets and always have, but the iPhone is something special. I believe it can be a tool towards minimalism. How? By using various apps and features of the iPhone to replace other things.
First off, it is of course a phone. This is something I would carry with me anyway. I also read email, send text messages, and surf the internet. All of these things are common uses of almost all smart phones. However, I am able to do even more with the iPhone.
The iPhone has a GPS which allows you to navigate to different places while in the car. The same GPS features allowed me to use it as a replacement for my Garmin 305. It is an incredible tracking tool for running. The app I use is called RunKeeper. It does everything that my Garmin used to do.
I also use it as a food diary and fitness tracker. I plan to discuss this topic in more depth in another post, but this alone has made a huge difference in my overall health and fitness.
In addition, I have replaced my iPod, PSP, alarm clock, and wallet with the iPhone. How did I replace my wallet? I use the case-mate ID and credit card case.
When approached with a minimalist mindset, the iPhone can replace:
• iPod
• Garmin sports watch
• cell phone
• GPS
• PDA
• food/fitness journal
• alarm clock
• wallet (using case)
• camera
• portable game system
Overall, it is one of the most versatile products available easily doing the job of 10 different things! Since I got my iPhone my pockets have become so much less cluttered. Now if I can only figure out a way to open doors with it…
What is simplicity? Why is it worth seeking?
Posted by SeekingSimplicity on February 9, 2010.Simplicity is defined by Dictionary.com as:
1. the state, quality, or an instance of being simple.
2. freedom from complexity, intricacy, or division into parts: an organism of great simplicity.
3. absence of luxury, pretentiousness, ornament, etc.; plainness: a life of simplicity.
Simplicity represents a pure state that does not require extras. It is the removal of unnecessary things. This approach allows us to live more fully and be engaged in what really matters to us, instead of mundane details.
Photo: kevindooley
Examples of unneeded complexities that hinder us include clutter, unnecessary obligations, too many projects, too many magazines, etc. American culture has been obsessed with having the biggest and most of everything. Turning on any television program can instantly point out the destructive nature of this cycle. The desperate seeking that plagues Americans (and now other countries) has sent us down a road of rampant consumerism, obesity and debt. A return to measured simplicity might be the antidote for many of the ailments of modern life.
Our goal is to highlight ways seeking simplicity can improve our lives and how we can remove needless complexities.
How many days have we spent absorbed into nothing while other tasks that truly mattered were left undone? By taking action to seek out simplicity we begin to focus on the core of who we are and what we wish to achieve. Layers of complexity can be cast aside allowing us to be more effective and more fulfilled.
Rethinking Necessities
Posted by SeekingSimplicity on February 9, 2010.by Leo from mnmlist.com
One of the basics of minimalism is that you eliminate as many non-necessities as you can, to make room for what’s important.
If you don’t need a ton of clothing, you get rid of much of it. If you don’t need that new gadget, you don’t buy it. Within reason, of course.
You learn to be content with what you already have, with the necessities, with doing things you love rather than having things.
But it’s funny, because often things we assume are necessities are not necessarily so. The problem is that we categorize things as necessities because we’re used to them, and we can’t see how to live without them. And it’s difficult to make big changes.
Some examples:
A car. Cars are seen as necessities, but amazingly, people lived without them for quite awhile before the 20th century. Even today, some people manage to go carless. And it’s not impossible — especially if you live in a place with a decent public transportation system. And there are car sharing options now in many cities, so you can use a car when you need it, for much less than actually owning a car. It’s possible to bike and walk most places, and take public transit and shared cars everywhere else.
Meat. Many people believe they can’t live without steaks and burgers. And I was one of them. These days, I’m not only vegetarian, but mostly vegan. And it’s not that hard to change, if you do it slowly. It’s also healthier and better for the environment — meat and dairy animals are tremendously harmful to the environment and a huge waste of our natural resources.
Lots of clothes. While I don’t advocate going naked (though some do it) nor do I recommend just owning one outfit, it is possible to own less clothing than most people have. We don’t need to constantly buy clothes to stay fashionable — we can buy quality, timeless clothing, with colors and patterns chosen so that all our clothes go with each other.
A big house. Have less stuff, you need less house.
These are just a few examples — think about all the things you consider necessities. Are they really? What’s really needed, beyond food, shelter, basic clothing, and loved ones?
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