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  • Home
  • Raising Outdoor Kids
    • Cooking & Crafting

      How to Make Birdseed Ornaments for Wild…

      November 27, 2020

      Raising Outdoor Kids

      Beautiful Spring Picture Books for Children

      March 28, 2020

      Raising Outdoor Kids

      Playing in Nature Protects Our Children During…

      March 17, 2020

      Raising Outdoor Kids

      50+ Spring Nature Activities for Kids of…

      March 3, 2020

      Crafting

      How to Make a Willow Nature Crown…

      July 2, 2019

      Raising Outdoor Kids

      9 Special Ways to Celebrate Summer Solstice…

      June 1, 2019

      Raising Outdoor Kids

      A Beginner’s Guide to Pond Dipping with…

      May 20, 2019

      Raising Outdoor Kids

      How Pokémon Can Get Kids Bird Watching

      April 30, 2019

      Nevada, USA

      Rock Climbing and Hiking Around Las Vegas…

      April 24, 2019

      Raising Outdoor Kids

      Signs of Spring Nature Walk for Kids…

      April 5, 2019

  • Spring Outside 2020
  • My Nature Adventure Journal
  • Printables
  • Canadian Adventures
    • All Alberta British Columbia Lower Mainland Northern Interior Okanagan
      British Columbia

      Hiking and Camping with Kids at Kokanee…

      July 30, 2018

      Okanagan

      More to Explore in the Okanagan Valley:…

      December 1, 2017

      British Columbia

      Family-Friendly Adventures on BC’s Sunshine Coast

      November 8, 2017

      British Columbia

      A National Park Reserve in the South…

      November 3, 2017

      Okanagan

      More to Explore in the Okanagan Valley:…

      November 1, 2017

      Okanagan

      Hiking Spion Kop with Kids in Lake…

      October 10, 2017

      Okanagan

      More to Explore in the Okanagan Valley:…

      September 28, 2017

      British Columbia

      More to Explore in the Okanagan Valley:…

      August 30, 2017

      Alberta

      Rock Climbing with Kids in Jasper National…

      August 8, 2017

      Alberta

      Family Adventures in Jasper National Park: 10…

      July 26, 2017

      Alberta

      Shaw’s Point Resort

      August 6, 2015

      Alberta

      Apiaries in Northern Alberta

      August 5, 2015

      Alberta

      St. Isidore, Alberta

      August 4, 2015

      Alberta

      The Hoodoos

      July 29, 2015

      Alberta

      Royal Tyrrell Museum

      July 28, 2015

      Alberta

      Bow Valley Campground

      July 27, 2015

      British Columbia

      Hiking and Camping with Kids at Kokanee…

      July 30, 2018

      British Columbia

      More to Explore in the Okanagan Valley:…

      December 1, 2017

      British Columbia

      Family-Friendly Adventures on BC’s Sunshine Coast

      November 8, 2017

      British Columbia

      A National Park Reserve in the South…

      November 3, 2017

      British Columbia

      More to Explore in the Okanagan Valley:…

      November 1, 2017

      British Columbia

      Hiking Spion Kop with Kids in Lake…

      October 10, 2017

      British Columbia

      More to Explore in the Okanagan Valley:…

      September 28, 2017

      British Columbia

      More to Explore in the Okanagan Valley:…

      August 30, 2017

      Lower Mainland

      Visiting the Capilano Suspension Bridge Park in…

      March 7, 2017

      Lower Mainland

      Outdoor Family Adventures in Metro Vancouver

      August 2, 2016

      Lower Mainland

      Biking the Stanley Park Seawall

      July 27, 2016

      Lower Mainland

      Exploring Deep Cove and Quarry Rock Trail

      July 25, 2016

      Lower Mainland

      Visiting Queen Elizabeth Park

      July 22, 2016

      Lower Mainland

      Biking Through Pacific Spirit Regional Park

      July 20, 2016

      Lower Mainland

      Exploring Lynn Canyon Park

      July 18, 2016

      Lower Mainland

      1001 Steps to the Beach

      April 19, 2014

      Northern Interior

      Life at Ness Lake

      September 1, 2016

      Northern Interior

      McMillan Creek Regional Park

      October 8, 2015

      Northern Interior

      Ferguson Lake Nature Reserve

      October 6, 2015

      Northern Interior

      Eskers Provincial Park

      October 5, 2015

      Northern Interior

      Autumn in Northern British Columbia

      September 28, 2015

      Northern Interior

      Wildflowers in Northern British Columbia

      June 6, 2015

      Northern Interior

      Visiting Barkerville Historic Town

      June 2, 2015

      Northern Interior

      Travelling North

      June 19, 2013

      Okanagan

      More to Explore in the Okanagan Valley:…

      December 1, 2017

      Okanagan

      A National Park Reserve in the South…

      November 3, 2017

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      More to Explore in the Okanagan Valley:…

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Backwoods Mama

Family Life

A Preamble to Living Simply

June 6, 2011

North Americans are very materialistic. But, more stuff isn’t making us much happier (American Psychological Association). Maybe it’s because acquiring stuff takes time; time that we could be spending nurturing relationships or participating in peace and joy-filled activities. Or, perhaps we have an unhealthy attachment to stuff and fall for its empty promises to make us happy.

When I think of materialism, the story of Jesus and the rich man come to mind. “As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus answered him […] you know the commandments […] he replied and said to him, “Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth.” Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, “You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to (the) poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” At that statement his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.” (Mark 10:17-22). As I reflect on this story, I wonder how many times I have walked away from God and from being the best version of myself because of my many possessions.

Christ and The Rich Young Ruler by Heinrich Hofmann

Other than making us less happy, another big problem with stuff is that it takes up space in our homes. Before long, drawers and closets don’t close and navigating the storage room requires mountaineering equipment. We can’t find the stuff we need, or forgot we even had it, and buy more stuff to replace whatever was lost in our home.

When Hubby and I married I was very excited and eager to set up house. I had a trouseau full of odds and ends that I accumulated for a few years before getting married. When we moved into our first home I had an insatiable urge to fill in every empty space with something. Now that we have two little ones, finding empty space has become somewhat of a challenge. Over the last couple years I have been trying to get rid of stuff. I find that when we have less we have more. We have more space to play, more time to be with each other and more creativity. I feel less stressed by keeping everything in order because there is less to keep in order!

But stuff keeps on piling up. Granted I do like thrift stores, garage sales and books – those are my weaknesses! After six years of marriage and two children, we’ve got a lot. I ask myself do we need all this stuff? No, we would be just as happy (if not happier) with much less. And so, my friend Elisa over at Elisa Loves and I decided that it was time to reduce clutter in our homes. We’re going to be charitably challenging each other to take a serious, if not radical, look at what takes up space in our home and to pare down.

Every Tuesday we are going to announce the room we’re working on during the week. We will, shamelessly, show you our before pictures. We will figure out our goals for the area and why what we have isn’t working. Everything in each room will need to pass a stringent test in order to stay. It has to have a purpose, be useful, well made, beautiful (to our eyes), healthy (non-toxic), and used within the last year. We also want your input! We want you to give us your two cents about what would make the room better. We also want you to join us. The following Tuesday we will show you our after pictures and what we like about the “new” area and what we did with the old things. We will want you to share your before and afters in the comments of this or Elisa’s blog.

A Preamble to Living Simply was last modified: June 2nd, 2016 by Josée
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