Simple Living

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I figured I would start this blog with a post about why I’m here. I never really knew it, but I was instilled with the idea of simple living from the time I was a child. My parents lived simply out of necessity. When there is little money you figure out what you can live without. There were no paper towels in our house. We ate out very little, so most of our meals were home cooked. My parents didn’t have new cars all of the time. For a long time we only had the basic, free channels for television. I was taught that credit cards were evil.

Now that we live in a crazy, busy world, I feel it is even more important to carve out areas of simplicity in our lives so we can decompress from everything going on in our world.

Everything you need to know about simple living

What is simple living?

The best definition I can think of to describe simple living is living a happy life while cutting out the excess. Simple living is not about acquiring more. Those of us who want simple lives aren’t out to buy the biggest house, the fanciest car, or owning a closet full of clothes. 

We buy high quality items that are made to last. We aren’t afraid to shop used if that will get us the best deal. We want to be wise stewards of our money and our land. Many people who live simply learn skills like handicrafts, we keep a list of simple living recipes in our back pocket, and we desire for our children to be happier with less.

This does not mean that we reject modern living. My husband and I stay up to date on the latest technology. We strive to mesh our simple lives with modern living.

What are the benefits of simple living?

There are so many benefits to living simply. People who live simpler lives are unbothered by the latest trends. They stick to classic items for their clothes and decor. Because of this, people who live simpler lives are able to spend less money on things just because everyone else has them.

People who live simply have less rushed lives. For example, we strive to cut our activities down to only one per child plus church. We are still pretty busy because we have seven children, but we do try to combine the kids’ activities as much as possible so we are rushing out of the house much less. When all of my children were still very young, we didn’t do any extracurricular activities. It was so nice to have all of that time at home in the evenings.

People who live simply often have a high appreciation of nature and God’s gifts. Many of us own chickens and garden. We spend a lot of time in nature. We understand the relationship between humans and the land. 

Simple living allows those who practice it to learn practical skills. To live simply often means learning how to do things yourself. Many of us make our own meals from scratch, we can and preserve food, we build things ourselves, clean our own homes, and do our own yard work.

How can I live a simple life and be happy?

Start where you are. What are some things you can cut out of your life right now? Begin evaluating what is holding you back from living a simpler life and work towards cutting the excess. Eliminate extra outside activities, start growing your own plants even if all you can do is grow in containers, pick one skill you can learn now and start researching how to improve it. Start small and work your way up to achieving your simple life goals!

Here are some more posts to get you started on your simple life journey.

Living a simple life

5 Tips for Simple Living in the Suburbs

How To Raise a Family on One Income

Simple Living Tips

How To Live Simply When Your Life Is Anything But Simple

10 Simple Living Tips with Kids

Seven Must Read Simple Living Books

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