This is where it begins. My journey to minimalism.

For YEARS I have struggled with "stuff". I'm not at all a professional therapist or anything of the sort, but I do have some ideas of how I got to where I am today. A little about myself; I am a 28 year old woman. I am a wife, and a mother. I have been married to my life long friend for a little over 5 years now, and we have 3 children. 8, 4, and 3. My husband is in the Army, and I am a stay at home mom. That in itself is a struggle for me at times because I worked my tail off before we got married, and was a single working mom. Our oldest is mine from a previous marriage. So not working is a bit of an adjustment for me even still.

So, where I think it all started. My parents are closet hoarders. Not the kind you see on T.V. They're not gross in any way, and they don't have items stacked to the ceiling. Well, actually they do in some places. Back when I was younger, they had a lot of stuff, but not anywhere near what they have now. My dad had rental properties, so that's where some of his stuff came from. He really got into yard sales when I was young. He'd go to yard sales, and he'd have them. The amount of time spent going to yard sales, and preparing for his own. Where my dad got into it, I think comes from his childhood. Growing up with a family of 9, they did a lot of hand-me-downs, and they just didn't have a lot. This way my dad can have a lot, but save his money. Makes sense.

And you know, that's fine. That's what they enjoy, and they don't have any issues with the amount of stuff they have. But with me, it makes me crazy. Seriously, I think I turn green sometimes and grow 10 times larger than I am. It takes a big dose of Snickers to calm me down. So, I think I get the habit from my parents. Stuff makes us happy, right? Then when my husband and I got married, we had nothing. I mean, we used our laundry basket as an entertainment center, and slept on an air mattress for a while. Now, we live in a somewhat small house for our size family, but we have SO MUCH STUFF!
So, here are the problems I see with this much stuff. I have ADHD, and Anxiety. The amount of stuff we have us just flat out unmanageable. I can't keep up with cleaning, and there's just too much clutter. When my house isn't clean, my Anxiety, and ADHD is in full swing. When those are in full swing, I am CRANKY. I have read that those who choose to try the minimalist lifestyle, end up with less stress, more time, more money, ect. So, here goes!

Today I am doing my best to get started, but not go crazy. This is going to be a process, and is going to take a very long time to get a real habit going. So, I've started in my kitchen. I want our teeny tiny little kitchen to be fully functional, and not an eyesore. I would absolutely love it if anyone is following along to post your thoughts and suggestions. I am hoping that along my journey, I can inspire others, too.