Simplicity

I'll admit it. I'm a neat freak. I straighten the throw pillows before I settle into a room and I make our bed before I get into it (if for some reason it doesn't get made over the course of the day which does happen, albeit rarely with my neatness obsession). Over the past month, in preparation for listing our town home, we boxed up about 80% of our earthly belongings and put them in storage at my in-laws. I didn't quite anticipate the incredible joy this process would bring me. Well, the process wasn't exactly joyful but the end result has been shocking, even for me. 

All that we have left here are the bare necessities for living and just a few "extras" on the shelves and walls for staging purposes. We're talking 8 or 10 books for the kids, a couple (literally just a couple of toys), my favorite skillet, knives and coffee maker, seasonal clothes and just the essential toiletries. My in-laws, on the other hand, have a wall of their garage stacked floor to ceiling with boxes upon boxes of our who knows what. How we crammed that much stuff into our closets and under our beds will remain a mystery to me! I've even went as far as to go through my pantry and do a thorough spring cleaning, using or tossing anything that was taking up any unnecessary space. We carted countless loads of stuff to Value Village and gave or loaned out many other items that we weren't currently using. 

How are we surviving? Totally and absolutely just fine! There have been some things I regretted packing up but then we've figured out alternatives, borrowed or just done without. The kids read library books and build forts with the blanket and sheets that remain. We go outside a lot and have picnics and explore. Jack sucks on silverware and plays with a watermelon and IT IS ALL AMAZING! Though at moments the packing process was pure torture, parts of me thinks we should do a "stuff overhaul" of this magnitude on an annual basis to keep our lives simple and more carefree.

I am loving this paired down life so much that when we finally do settle into our next place, we're going to have to seriously discuss whether a good majority of those boxes we spent all that time packing might be better served on the shelves at Value Village or in a home other than our own. Stay tuned!