An Experiment to Declutter Toys - Part 2

My experiment partially worked. Within 24 hours of picking their 3 toys each, they really didn't play with them and asked to switch out toys. I ended up allowing them to switch during the week. I found out that some toys are more novelty to my girls and they are excited to play with them for 10 minutes after being in storage and then they are done with them (I want to declutter these out of my home). By this weekend I found the girls being more creative with other toys (these are the toys I want to keep).

I have moved away from the girls each picking 3 toys. It wasn't a successful exercise for us, but putting toys out of sight was a nice step. When the girls said they wanted more toys out of storage, I had them ask for specific things.

Here is where we are at now:

1. Bin of Legos

2. Stuffed Animals/Dolls

3. Piano & Radio/CD player

4. Bin of Coloring Books

5. Wicker Basket of Toys - princess dresses, hair design kit, doctor kit, play computer, Noah's ark, stacking cups, Uno Moo Game, Brain Quest

The big unknown at the moment is the Barbies. The girls haven't asked to play with them yet. 

My hope is that we can get to the point that all toys we own fit in the wicker basket, no more.

An Experiment to Declutter Toys

Play, Imagination, Creativity, Fun, Favorite, Few: These are the words I would like to associate with the toys in my home.

And while I have made a lot of progress in this direction, I still feel we have an abundance of toys that sit outside these descriptions.

So I decided to create a bit of an experiment with my girls. I grabbed a large cardboard box and told the girls they were going to clean up their toys. All toys were going in the box except 3 toys each. They were to pick their 3 favorite toys to keep out.

The exceptions: Their stuffed animals/dolls on their bed, coloring/art supplies, the box of legos in the kitchen, the large chalkboard in the kitchen, and their imaginations! These stayed available.

They did pretty good. They each had a bucket to place their favorite toys. They originally filled their buckets with more than 3 toys and then they paired it down. Here is what they picked:

N: Brain Quest, a pretend Lego Cell Phone, and a set of Cardboard Cards made with return address stamps

B: a Barbie, a Wand, a My Little Pony

A: a Wand, an Exercise Band, a Headband 

Toys picked to keep out

Toys put in storage (barbie house not shown)

I did not expect these results, but the girls seemed satisfied. I told my girls that the following Friday they could trade out their three toys if they would like. I don't plan on taking out all the stored toys; instead they can make their requests from memory.

Over the next few weeks, I am hoping that favorite toys come to light, that my girls use more of their time playing make believe, and that the toy clutter eliminates itself. We shall see how this experiment plays out!

Have you successfully paired down the toys in your home to a special few? If so, how?!!!!

Declutter like a Minimalist: Books & Movies

I loved decluttering our home. I know - that's weird!

I'm weird. I'll own it.

And now I'm sharing how I decluttered my home with you in bite size pieces. I'll give you directions on how to declutter different areas of your home and how to keep them decluttered forever - like a minimalist!

Today's Topic: Books & Movies

Donate almost everything to your local library. You can get a tax deduction and still have access to these items - its a win win!

Devotional & Library

Step 1: 

All adult books go except for Bible/Daily Devotional.

Step 2:

Keep only 5 treasured children's books. The rest can go to the library or recycled if falling apart.

Right: Library Books    Left: 5 Favorites

Step 3: 

All adult movies go. You don't need them!

Step 4: 

3 Girls = 3 Favorite Movies

Have each child pick their one favorite movie and donate the rest. You can reassure your kids that they can always get them again through the library.

Step 5:

Going forward don't buy books or movies. Rent them from the library. If the library doesn't have a book you really want to read, consider buying it and donating it after you read it.

By filling your donation box with your adult stuff, you will be setting an example for your kids - you are in this together. Also, start regularly getting books from the library. We also get a kids movie each week. I think our girls have forgotten we even own any movies!

Have any decluttering topics you want me to address? Let me know!

Becoming a One Vehicle Family

Can a family with 3 kids, living in the suburbs, survive happily with only one car? That is the question and most people would say - IMPOSSIBLE!

But I am here to say it is POSSIBLE. 

We experimented with being a one car family in the summer of 2014. You can read about it HERE. At the end of our experiment we stayed a two vehicle family, but knew that one day we would want to make a permanent change.

Time went by and we continued to talk about selling our PRIUS - some day. Or maybe our mini van when our kids are out of car seats. Then the most amazing this happened while talking to a friend from college. I was sharing our decluttering stories and our experiment with almost selling our Prius. 

Her first question: Are you still looking to sell it? We are thinking of buying a Prius!

I  was shocked and at first I said: I'm not sure. I loved our Prius, but after my shock settled I realized that is was an answer to my silent prayer. We could become a one vehicle family, sell our beloved Prius to friends, and the transaction would be easy for both of us. It was a win win.

I haven't missed the Prius since it left our drive way and I am so happy that we have friends who are able enjoy it.

But how are we doing it? 

Monday/Wednesday

The girls and I drive my husband to work.

I drive my twins to Preschool (not walking distance).

We pick up my husband after work.

Tuesday/Thursday 

If its nice, I walk my oldest to school (no preschool these days). 

If its not nice weather, we drive my husband to work and pick him up.

Friday

My husband works from home - no car conflicts.

Saturday/Sunday

My husband doesn't work weekends - no car conflicts. This is usually when I grocery shop & run other errands (we rarely have other errands).

Do you think your family could live with one car? What do you think limits your family's ability to downsize to one vehicle? Comment below - maybe I'll have an idea for you.

Sit Back, Relax, & Read

Experimenting with Less in 2015 improved my life in so many ways. I found freedom and the joy of reading. Here's what I read this month!

January 2016 Book List:

Non-Fiction

The Nesting Place: Myquillyn Smith
Quiet: Susan Cain
Essentialism: Greg McKeown
Garbology: Edward Humes
Parenting Your Powerful Child: Leman
Simplicity Parenting: Kim John Payne






Fiction

Delicious!: Ruth Reichl
The Heist: Janet Evanovich
The Chase: Janet Evanovich
Hero at Large: Janet Evanovich








Have you read anything lovely recently? Let me know and I'll add it to my list of books to read!

Thrifty Purchase: Chalkboard

I love HGTV, especially the show Fixer Upper! It's great! I love seeing their visions for each home and family come to life. My love for Fixer Upper inspired me to continue following my visions for our home. I have been painting our wood trim white and I recently started painting our kitchen cabinets.  

Our kitchen/dinette area has a huge blank wall and I kept envisioning a large chalkboard in the middle. One that my girls can enjoy drawing on and I can leave fun quotes or special messages on for our family. 

I started looking on craigslist for a chalkboard. I found exactly what I wanted, but it was already sold. Bummer! But I was surprised a few weeks later from the seller - he had another chalkboard available! I replied immediately and my husband picked it up a few hours later.

Did we need the chalkboard - no. But I really really wanted it. A chalkboard the same size brand new would easily be $250. I saved $200 buying it used. I would call that a thrifty success!

Our Thrifty Experiment

My husband and I decided to pick a theme to lead us through 2016. We chose the word THRIFTY. This word has so much meaning for us. 

First, my husband launched a thrifty system this year that allows you to track all your spending. You can categorize your expenses and compare months. This makes it easy to see how you spend your money so you can make changes, helping you reach financial freedom. Check it out here. We have been using my husband's system since August 2015. It has been eye opening to see how much we spend in a given month.

Second, I've read a few articles about people who didn't buy anything new for a year (With a few predetermined exceptions - hello, underwear). This seemed like a fun experiment. 

Having bought a few things from resale shops in the past year I am more comfortable with not buying new. I know that I am a bit of an impulse buyer (hello pretty smelling candle at the grocery store that costs $13) If I bought this candle once a week that's $676 dollars on candles in a single year. And now I ask myself - Do I need the candles? Can I hold off on buying a candle this week? 

So to help us take our minimalist lifestyle to the next level we decided to be thrifty this year. Here are the rules we are following:

1. If we don't need it. Don't buy it!
2. If we need it. Can we buy it resale?
3. If we can't find it resale, can we hold off and keep looking?

We do have a list of exceptions. Here they are:

1. If we need underwear - we will buy new. Same for running shoes.
2. Vacations don't count (souvenirs: one/child)
3. Remodeling our home - there are some things that we won't be doing resale on.

There are two things that my husband and I want to be able to do financially - vacations and remodeling our home. And that is why they are on our exceptions list. By becoming more thrifty in other areas of our life, we will be able to save more money for these exciting adventures.

Over this year I'll share the things we bought resale, decided not to buy, and decided to sell. This is a big experiment. Before we make any financial decision we will be asking - is this thrifty? I'm excited to see what this year brings!

Have you ever spent a year being thrifty? Share your experience with me! How did it benefit/change your life? What did you learn? And did you keep it up the next year?