Simple Food

Photo by Johnny Martinez on Unsplash

The food you eat can be either the safest and most powerful form of medicine or the slowest form of poison.                                                                                           

Ann Wigmore

A friend sent me a chicken soup recipe that calls for 16 ingredients.  Sixteen.  Including ditalini pasta, whatever that is.  (Okay, I Googled it.  It's the pasta I've seen in macaroni salads.)

A Simplified Kitchen

Does the kitchen you've created support the healthy body you want to have?

Photo by Dinh Ng on Unsplash

Small daily choices lead to a cluttered or an uncluttered home, just as they lead to a thriving, active body or its opposite.  It's hard to change, but we really can choose freedom and vitality!

Since better eating habits are hampered by a cluttered kitchen, let's start there.

Does This Clutter Make Me Fat?

Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash

If your house is out of control, it's possible your eating habits are too.

Clutter guru Peter Walsh wrote Lose the Clutter, Lose the Weight because so many of his clients struggled with obesity.  "What you weigh isn't just about calorie counting or doing stomach crunches," he writes.  "What you weigh is about how you live."

We All Want the Same Thing

"Kathryn Blowing Bubbles"

by April Moore-Harris on Flickr

I spend a fair amount of time on this blog pointing out differences between minimalists and the majority of people in our consumerist society.  Sometimes the easiest way to understand something new is to contrast it with something familiar.

But minimalists and materialists have a lot in common.  We're generally seeking the same things:

Happiness.  Fulfillment.  Freedom.  A good life.

It's just that our philosophies and methods for getting there are different.

Una Bella Vita *

Does the home you've created support the life you want to live?

"Tuscany" photo by Ky0n Cheng on Flickr

Tell me where you would rather be.  At the beach?  In a ski cabin near Lake Tahoe?  In Paris?

House Beautiful

Does the home you've created support the life you want to live?

Photo by Jorge Garcia on Unsplash

You don't need to add on a master suite or put in a swimming pool to make your home more supportive of the lifestyle you want.  Instead, figure out what bothers you, and use your creativity to improve it.

Home Improvement

Photo by Pablo Merchan Montes on Unsplash

Does the home you've created support the life you want to live?

You don't need to remodel the bathroom, install granite countertops, or buy new furniture.  Instead, figure out which details have the most impact on your daily life, and approach them like a minimalist.

Re-Decluttering

Our rooms shape our thoughts... our moods.  By improving the state of our surroundings, we can improve our state of mind....  It's clear that for most people, outer order does indeed contribute to inner calm.

Gretchen Rubin 

Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

A Real Home Makeover

photo courtesy of Magnolia Home

Imagine your dream home.

Walk up to the front door.  Open it, step inside, and look around.  What do you see?

Maybe you picture one of those HGTV makeovers.  The "after" reveals are beautiful, but notice what's missing:  no piles of magazines on the coffee table, no unfinished quilting projects taking over the guest room since last November, no unmade beds, no toys scattered dangerously over the floor.  The refrigerator door is clear of magnets and the dining table is set for a beautiful meal, not covered with a backpack, keys, sunglasses, a jar of peanut butter, cat toys, and the TV remote.