Last fall I spent a day visiting Old Sturbridge Village with my kids and my parents. I grew up going to this little village, in fact I think we went there so much that I began to take its simplicity and simple beauty for granted.
As we entered the village, just as I had done many times before, I was drawn to the first home we encountered on our left. I'd probably gone into this house as a child, but it didn't stand out in my mind as a favorite. Upon entering though, its simplicity struck me. It was basically one big room, with a small bedroom off of the main room containing a double bed and some hanging herbs & fruits and then an attic room with a few more beds. That's it.
Sounds silly, but I felt like I was in love. I started imagining what life would be like in that home. What life might have been like there over a hundred years ago. Less to organize! Less to clean! More time to do other things! Like quality and intentional time with family and friends.
I told my parents that I want to live in a house like this now. They laughed. How or why would anyone today actually want to live in something like this? There is hardly any space at all. Why would people choose this simplicity?
I thought about it a bit and realized that I live in somewhat of a modern day equivalent to this house. Our main floor has an eat-in kitchen and a living room and the second floor has two bedrooms. And then the basement is our bonus space - playroom/home gym/office. That's it.
I used to really dislike the smallness and simplicity of my home. I really wanted more in a home. But ever since I started intentionally becoming content with my home, as you can read about here, I'm finding that I love it more and more. And I'm craving simplicity in so many other areas of life.
Fast forward a month after the Old Sturbridge Village trip and I received this book for Christmas. It's a book I've had my eye on for a long time. I wanted to read it, but wasn't sure if I really had the energy or motivation or desire for big changes in my life. As luck [or maybe not so much luck] would have it, the majority of our family was sick around Christmas, as you can also read here and the following week, and it was bitter cold, so I got my chance to read the book and make some changes. And it has been amazing. Never did I think that reading a book about simplicity and organization could have such a big impact on my life.
The first thing I did was to go through all of our clothes. I got rid of a lot and also changed the way many of them were folded and stored. This allowed us to get rid of several shelves that were previously housing clothes and to also combine many drawers, thus freeing up several drawers. All of this then enabled us to make a really big change, which was finally moving the Littlest Ginger out of our bedroom and into the room with the other two Gingers. After almost two years, it was time ;)
After the clothes I tackled books. This allowed us to get rid of more shelves, which simplified and opened up more space in our home. I also went through many cabinets and drawers and organized things like electronic cords and dishes and cookware. It also made me get organized in terms of how things are displayed on the walls of our home and using that space more wisely. It basically made us make at least one big major change in every room of the house.
But these changes were not by adding things. They were by removing things and simplifying. We're learning to live with less more and more each day and it is such a freeing feeling.
As I'm moving along in my journey to simple and simplicity, I started to think of simple things in my life that have made a really big difference that I wouldn't want to be without.
Here's the basic list that I've come up with:
1. Room divider from Ikea
Now, I'll be honest, this is kind of see-through and it's probably only 4-5 feet wide, but it works really well for a baby who thinks that if they can't see someone, they're not really there. This has made all of our room sharing possible. We used it in our own room to separate the Littlest Ginger from our bed, and now we use it in the room between the crib and bunk beds. Money well spent.
2. A Portable Sound Machine
We're white noise addicts here. We all sleep with it. It started when darling Daddy and I lived in our first apartment and it happened to be near train tracks with a train that would come through every morning around 3:30 blowing on its horn repeatedly. If we didn't have a fan going, it woke us up every single morning. Fast forward a few years and we had a rough first few weeks with Curly Girl after she was born. Like her crying half the night and me and Darling Daddy taking sleeping shifts. We then discovered the book, The Happiest Baby on the Block by Dr. Harvey Karp. He talks about the 5 S's of calming a baby and white noise was one of them. Curly Girl loved it and settled with it. And slept 10+ hours straight by the time she was 12 weeks old. We thought we were rock stars and had found the magic trick. Turns out she just loved and needed her sleep [still does] and the white noise helped. It's stuck all these years. This machine was bought right before we went on our first family camping trip when the Littlest Ginger was only 4 months old. I was a little worried about sleeping on the ground in a tent with no electricity, but this battery operated sound machine made our nights pretty bearable.
3. The Infamous Bunny Clock
We've been using this clock for about 5 years. I talk about it and post about it a lot. It's amazing. When bunny is sleeping, our kids know that they need to be quiet/sleeping. It definitely takes time & effort & discipline to train on it (we're in the midst of training with the Littlest Ginger right now) but it pays off amazingly well. I can get up hours before my children in the morning and exercise, shower and have my morning quiet devotional time with a HOT cup of coffee before they get up. Huge win and money well spent in my opinion.
4. Beachbody On-Demand
I used to be a YMCA advocate and lover. I was there a lot both alone and with the kids. But let's face it, getting to the gym with a kid or two or three is a chore! It basically takes the entire morning. And you're not always guaranteed a full workout! If they're crying, they come get you! And all of the germs that toddlers can pick up in there... When I discovered this gem a little over a year ago, I was sold. I can choose when and where I want to workout and what kind of workout I want to do and for how long. I have access to every workout program they offer for a fee of $100 per year. That's way less than a gym! And I can do it every morning in my basement before my kids wake up and get a shower in too. [If you think I'm saying that I actually DO it every morning, don't be fooled! I'm not that good. But the option is there and I am good at least 3 times a week...]
5. Pour-Over Coffee Maker
I know I've posted about this before, but it's because it's so great! I honestly will never go back to drinking other types of coffee again. A friend recommended this last summer and I am so glad that I found it on sale on Amazon Prime day! Best coffee ever. So smooth and no bitterness. Now, it does take a bit longer than your normal cup of coffee. I have to boil my water first and then pour it over the grounds, but I'll take a little extra time and work for a good cup of coffee. And I can drink it with almond milk! No need to even buy creamer. It's so smooth and not bitter that the almond milk does the trick.
5. Peppermint essential oil
This little bottle of oily goodness has saved me in the digestive area. As my life has gone on, I've developed more and more digestive issues due to dairy and some other things. This oil has helped so very much. And I had no idea that it would when I got it! It was just part of my starter kit of oils! I put one drop into my coffee grounds of my pour-over coffee maker every morning, mix it up and it does its work. I get coffee with a slight minty flavor and no indigestion and uneasiness like I used to face most days. It also helps to curb my morning hangriness so that I don't overindulge at breakfast. And also, has come in quite handy for motion sickness, as well as some head tension and pressure. As I began to write this, I was feeling some sinus pressure, but started diffusing peppermint and put it on my temples and I'm feeling much better. This is one oil I never ever want to be without!
6. Activated Charcoal
While we're talking about digestion, this one ranks high on the list. Lots of digestive and heartburn issues here over the years. Used to have bottles of Tums and Pepto Bismol and Immodium all over the place. This has replaced all of them. Whenever I feel a little upset, dairy related or something else that I've eaten, I pop a couple of these capsules. Kids can take them too. I just cut open the capsule and add it to juice. I've also read and heard from friends that it can slow and/or stop a stomach bug outbreak in a family once the first person goes down if all other members take it. We've only had an experience like that here once, and it definitely helped and shortened the effects. I always have this on hand.
7. Books & Stories on CD
Yes, that's a discman you see in the picture. You're jealous that you didn't save yours because it's been awesome here. And a CD player, which are SO hard to find these days! These things have been so awesome here though, really. My kids LOVE listening to books & stories all day long. Like today. They've been playing most of the day in the basement. Which means my kids have been playing quietly and entertained in the basement. It's great. We get a lot from the library and we have quite a collection ourselves that we have accumulated. We just love these!
8. Lavender essential oil
The question is not what do I use lavender oil for, it's what do I NOT use lavender for? This is like the swiss army knife of oils and I really really love it. I used to think it was just for relaxing and sleep, but the biggest thing I use it for lately is skin issues. We suffer from dry skin, scrapes, acne, stings and scratches here. If you get these things too, you'd like this. I basically put it on any skin ailment that we get it. And it works. For all of them. I'm not even joking or exaggerating. It's really like a magical oil. I always have it on hand. No more creams, anti-itch things, bacitracin, etc. just this now.
Another amazing use is in my mascara to make it last longer. I'll admit, I'm cheap when it comes to mascara. I wear it every day, but I don't like paying much more than $5 for it. So I always buy some type of Mabeline. But it starts to clump and dry out so quickly! I used to use contact solution (saline) to help it last longer, but I had to do a drop like every 2-3 days. Then about a month ago I heard that lavender oil could do the same thing! I put a drop in and it makes my mascara smooth for weeks! And I think it might even be making my lashes grow?! Making things so much more simple here.
9. Chatbooks
This is basically the reason that I use Instagram. And why I post so much on Instagram. I have my account set up so that every 60 pictures that I post on Instagram, they automatically get put into a book and that book gets mailed to me. And it's like $6 total for the book and shipping. It makes photo-documenting our life SO much easier. I don't feel as bad when I kinda slack on our yearly Shutterfly albums, because I know that most of our daily life activities are on Instagram and being documented with Chatbooks. And I don't have to do a thing! And as you can see, we have quite a collection after 5 years of doing this... But the kids love sitting down and looking at the books! If you want to sign up for Chatbooks (which I HIGHLY recommend if you use Instagram and like photo books!) Use this link and we'll both benefit: http://invite.chatbooks.com/kellykilbourn11i
10. My 3rd best guy, Frank
Ok, so I really didn't want to make this post all about oils, really. But I couldn't leave this one off my list of simple things that I can't do without!!! I first got Frankincense like 15 months ago in my oil starter kit. And everyone raved about him. And I just couldn't love him. I wasn't drawn to the smell and didn't know how to use him. But about 3 months ago, that allllll changed! I changed up my skincare routine to get rid of some bad things I'd been using on my face for many years because I simply could not part with them, and switched to more natural products. Frank has been gold in this transition and is now a staple in my skincare routine. Think of him as a natural form of like retin-A. Lots of skin renewal and helping with inflammation. Love him and don't go a day without him now.
So there you have it. Some simple staples that I just can't live without here.
They get me through the days and I just want to share my love of them with you!
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