Hello friends, and welcome to the ninth Simple Living Newsletter. I hope you have had a lovely February with your families and/or friends. It’s hard to believe that it nearly has come to an end. March is almost here!
If you are interested in working through a “No Spend Challenge” in March, I have a new printable for you, which is available here. No Spend Challenges are a great motivator to save money.
Thank you so much for your support. I appreciate you so much! Now onto our newsletter.
Making Our Habits Easy to Start
Over some of the last weekly newsletters, I have talked about habits. I believe that habits are a great way to reach goals by breaking what we hope to into smaller chunks.
But what if our habits are not that easy to start in the first place? When this happens, we are unlikely to make any progress. If you have experienced this, I would like to encourage you to break down your habits even more, to make them easier to start.
Perhaps you would like to write a book. Whoa, that is a big goal! Your chosen habit might be to write one thousand words. Well, that habit might be difficult to accomplish each day, and then you end up not writing as much as you would like. Instead, your habit could be to write one paragraph a day. This isn’t nearly as intimidating, and you are likely to accomplish it. Before long, you will be in the habit of writing and your goal of writing a book will not be out of reach.
Maybe you would like to exercise more often. To start this habit, you might decide to walk for ten minutes, twice a day. But actually, you can break this habit down even farther. If you get in the habit of putting on your running shoes each day when you wake up, you will be more likely to take your daily walks.
I have been working through an Aromatherapy course lately, and sometimes I lack motivation to start it. I’ve been trying to get into the habit of working through one lesson daily. That doesn’t always happen, but when it does, it’s usually because I opened a tab on my computer for the lesson at the beginning of the day. This small habit is a reminder to get to work.
So friends, let’s break those habits down! This will make them so much easier to start.
Tips for Maintaining a Peaceful Home
While my home isn’t “perfect,” I strive to make it a peaceful place for my family to enjoy. I love living in a peaceful home, too! It is so nice to have a sanctuary from the world around us.
Today I would like to share a few easy, simple tips for maintaining a peaceful home. Making a few easy changes can quickly bring more peace to our spaces.
- Rise early. When we choose to rise early, we can take care of a few tasks before the rest of our household rises. This sets the tone for a peaceful and orderly day. I don’t always do this, especially because I still share my bed with my youngest. But when we have older or grown children in our household, rising early can set the tone for a peaceful day.
- Make sure your priorities are in line. I have found that my home isn’t as peaceful as it should be when I think about my own needs and wants instead of my families. At the same time, spending a bit of time tending to our own needs is important. It is also a good idea to plan regular family time and date nights with your spouse.
- Eliminate clutter. Our homes are much more peaceful when they are not filled with needless clutter. Now, I love my antiques and the pretty decorations in my home. But everything must have its place. If there isn’t a place for it, it needs to go. It is also a smart idea to reevaluate the items in our homes every few months or so.
- Complete a flexible daily to-do list. When I remember to do this, my home is so much more peaceful! I must admit that I have streaks of writing a daily to-do list that last a month or so. Then I slip back into the bad habit of not writing my tasks down. Yikes! My brain instantly becomes more scattered. When we do maintain a to-do list, we should remember to keep them flexible. Things will come up from time to time that we do not account for at the beginning of the day.
- Make a simple schedule for morning and evening routines. Even the simplest of schedules can create good habits that make our home feel more peaceful. I know my home is quieter and more at peace when everyone knows what to do.
I hope these tips help you have a more peaceful home!
Homestead Happenings
This week has been a good one on our small homestead. We’ve gotten a few things done that have been needing attention for awhile!
First of all, we burned a lot of limbs and small trees that we cut down over the past few months. Friends, when we moved into our home the land surrounding it was so incredibly thick. There are so many brambles, briars, and vines! Oh, and so much underbrush! While we hope our goats will help us out once we build more fences, for now, we are cutting what we can.
It was so nice to see our burn pile dwindle throughout the day!
Next, my husband built a birthing stall for our hopefully-pregnant goat, Nora. We moved the goat’s hay feeder to a new location, and he was quickly able to build a gate with a latch. Oh, I am so glad this task was accomplished. She would be due in April so we had some time. But I know how easily time seems to slip away from me. I’m definitely happy to know that the stall is in place and ready to go.
My son and I also transplanted berry bushes. When we first moved in, I planted several berry bushes in a bad location. They were close to our fruit trees, which seemed like a good choice at first. But I ended up planting a group of elderberries close to my vegetable garden last year, and I like it so much better!
My son and I pushed a wheelbarrow over to the bushes and dug them up very carefully. Now is a good time to do it since they are dormant. There were five bushes in total. After they were ready to be transplanted, we dug the new holes and added some fresh compost around them.
I like their new location so much better! We might cut a few limbs from neighboring trees to give them a bit more light, but hopefully, they will thrive!
