Simplifying Life, Step 1

     In my last post, I said I was going to blog some ideas I have for simplifying my life and helping my kids to be more selfless instead of selfish.  The first thing that we are going to do at our house is an extension of something that I did over Lent.  I saw this idea on a blog called 40 bags in 40 days and since another friend invited a bunch of us to do it on Facebook with her, I was in.  The point was to get rid of 40 bags of stuff over the 40 days of Lent.  Sounds like a wonderful idea, right?  It was an incredible idea, and since I love to make lists and have contests, I also got my mom and aunt involved and we had a contest to see who could get rid of the most stuff.  I won (I normally do, I am insanely competitive), but I did not get 40 bags.  Not that I don't have 40 bags of stuff to get rid of, I just got really busy and then had pneumonia.  The object is not to just throw away 40 bags of stuff, but to really look at what you have and decide what you need versus what could bless someone else and get rid of things to charity, consignment, or trash. 
     I really loved this idea, and I am going to make a game of it over the summer with the kids.  I am going to call it "A Summer of Simplifying" and the object is to find one thing each day to bless someone else with and one thing each day that goes in the trash or recycling.  I think the kids will really like it, and I am going to get some boxes from my grandfather's grocery store that we can pack things in and then take them at the end of each week.  I think this will be a great way to not only get rid of some of the massive amounts of stuff we have in the house, but also help them think more about what they really need versus the extra stuff.  It will also help in preparation for their birthday in August since nothing else is coming in until some stuff goes out.  I am really looking forward to sharing the idea with Mr. B and the kiddos.  We will do a box for giveaways and a box for recycling, with trash just going in the regular can.  Any ideas for ways to decorate the boxes?
     In other updates, Alyssa has started playing softball, and for the few weeks that dance, softball, church activities, and school are all overlapping, it is kinda crazy around here.  B is having a blast, just being normal B.  That kid is crazy and inquisitive and it really fills my heart to watch him knowing how sick he was when he was little.  Mr. B has been working a lot, as have I and we are just trying to muddle through getting things paid off.  Lots of medical bills are still calling, but hopefully once we get them all paid off, things will be better.  We have a new addition to our family.  Her name is Daisy Mae and she is a lab/weimaraner mix (we think) and is about 16 weeks old.  She is lots of fun and the kids are absolutely in love with her. 

 

Really?

Well, for someone who was planning on blogging at the very least once a week, I am still having issues remembering to get on here and blog.  I really shouldn't say issues remembering to get on here, I think about it, but it is when I am in the car or at work and can't blog.  Anyway, I have been reading lots of blogs and noticing lots of statuses on Facebook, and I can't help but be surprised at some of the things I am seeing.  Some of the nastiness I expect, it is an election year and I do have friends that can't seem to remember what our mamas taught us about not talking politics.  Some of this is a little more unexpected though and as been very disappointing.  I am opinionated.  Always have been.  I also tell the truth with my opinions.  Most of the time I try to be nice about it, but if you ask my opinion, then be assured that you will get it.  That being said, I respect the fact that there are opinions out there that aren't mine.  Granted, they are wrong (LOL), but they do exist.  What I have been surprised at lately though is the amount of people who are using Facebook and blogs to state opinions or rants that are hurtful.  Writing about how wrong it is for people to be overweight, that you are a better mom because you don't use Pinterest, even things as mundane as food preferences are turning up on my feed as people not  just saying that they prefer carrots over broccoli, but that they don't know how anyone could be so dumb as to prefer broccoli over carrots.  I am a little confused at what point we lost the common courtesies of the world and gave over to this self-centered world.  Have we become a society that is so focused inward on ourselves and the petty little things that are going on that we can't even see what else is going on? 

This may seem like I am doing exactly what I am unhappy with, but I write this more as a question.  I don't want to raise my kids to be selfish, I want to raise them to be selfless.  Thinking I was doing just that was going pretty good until Easter, when A started fussing that the Easter Bunny didn't bring her enough.  Looks like we will be spending a little more time discussing how very blessed we are.  We have been working on trying to simplify more and spend more time together, and going into the summer, when kids are out of school and sitting around waiting on something to do (yes, I know this isn't always true), how can we focus some of that attention on doing for others, as well as keeping up with some of their own stuff?  I think my next several blog posts will be some ideas on how to do that in our everyday lives.  Not how to do a huge project that will take a day or a week, but how to consistently do something that will benefit others daily.  If you have any thoughts, shoot them my way. 

Until next time,