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About Me

Hello! I'm a stay-at-home mom with a passion for personal finance and healthy living. Join me as a I explore budgetting, eco-friendly brands, gluten-free recipes, capsule wardrobes, and everything in between! Want to learn more about me? Subscribe below and check out the About tab!

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My last post was about the cost of Christmas. Because it shouldn’t all be about gifts. But I recognize that a lot of people get joy out of giving gifts. So let’s talk about more thoughtful gift giving on this #lesswastewednesday. These are a few reusable items I’ve either been given or purchased using gift money. Because sometimes the utilitarian gift you would never think to buy for yourself is the best one. I use all of these items weekly, if not daily. If you know me IRL, chances are you’ve seen me with my @keepcup at least once. The market bag and @simple_ecology always come with me to the grocery store. The safety razor and @plaineproducts body wash are also used daily. And there is no better way to make pour over coffee than with a @coffeesock. Chances are you also know someone who goes to the grocery store, drinks coffee or tea, removes hair, washes their body, or might actually enjoy cleaning up crumbs with the prettiest little wood hand broom and metal dustpan. If you want to give a gift this year or someone is asking you what you want, let’s consider making purchases that support less waste practices and/or are plastic-free. Shop your local stores first and then venture online to shops that treat their employees well and use less packaging like @wildminimalist or @zerowastestore.

🎶 It’s beginning to cost a lot like Christmas. So much you can buy. Take a look at all the decor, another thing bought at the store. Say it’s a need, but that is just a lie. 🎶 The average household spent $1,536 additional during the Christmas season last year. That is 50% more than the average mortgage. But the question isn’t necessary how much you’re spending, it’s should you be spending it. 22% of individuals reported last year that they believed their holiday spending was putting them into (or further into) debt. Another 6% refrained to comment. Maybe because they didn’t want to admit the answer. Or they are so uninformed on their finances, they couldn’t truthfully answer. Do you have a plan for your holiday spending? Do you know where that money is coming from? Is the spending on these items and experiences in line with your values? It’s not too late to sit down, ask yourself these questions, and make changes accordingly. Make this holiday season the one that is full of financial peace, love, and joy.

My home is not a minimalist home. In the truest sense of the word ‘minimal’ I would need to have the very least amount necessary in my home for it to be considered minimalist. When I talk about minimalism, I don’t mean the literal definition of the word. I am talking about my home and my life being “right-sized”. I have the right amount of space, the right amount of stuff for me in this moment in my life. I’m not forcing myself to live in the smallest space with the least amount of stuff foregoing comfort and enjoyment to reach an extraneous goal. I’m not proclaiming I’m the ultimate minimalist because I have only 1 purse or only 6 books. I share photos of my life in this space because they are a snapshot of my right-sized life, not because they are the blueprint for what minimalism looks like. Because you can’t see true minimalism. Minimalism is in how I make time for what is important to me. It’s in how I don’t care to keep up with the Joneses. It’s in how I continually choose happiness and gratitude every single day. So when you scroll through my feed or anyone else’s, don’t think about how you need to model your life after their’s to be a minimalist. Be intentional, choose what is right-sized for you, and do away with the idea that a minimalist life is a competition.

At the start of the season, Emma announced that she wanted to make her Christmas wish list for Santa. She sat up at the countertop with paper and a pencil, and set to work writing it all out, stopping every so often to ask me how to spell a specific word. When finished, she asked if she could read me her list. “Visit the Christmas tree farm. Bake cookies. Sing Jingle Bells. Go to a bakery...” At the end of her list, she had not ask for one toy or physical item, but, instead, listed about a dozen experiences. My minimalist mom heart was ready to burst with pride. I, coincidentally, had just ordered a print of this holiday bucket list to display for the season. Since framing it, I’ve read it out loud to the kids several times, stopping after each line to allow them to do a happy dance and shout “yay!”. I’ve realized going into this holiday that the kids don’t view Christmas as one day where they get presents, but instead a whole month (or more) when they get to do fun, festive activities. I didn’t grow up with this point of view, but I’ve realized it’s never too late to make a change. My Christmas will feel complete if I focus on joyful experiences and giving to others in need, regardless of whether or not (heavily leaning towards the not) there are presents under the tree.

I can see the end of the semester on the horizon. I have class today and next Monday, and then 3 final exams. And then my first, full-time semester since going back to school is complete. I spent the morning at home today, missing my first two classes, and it allowed me to finally breathe, even if for just a minute. If you are a parent, you can attest to how amazing the stillness of your home is when the kids are away or napping. I just sat and quietly drank my coffee on the couch, reflecting on what I’m grateful for, but also on how I allowed myself to feel overwhelmed. Part of it was obligations, part of it was expectations. Both of which I can control. So I did what I do best - I made a list. Actually, it was a bit like a worksheet. I wrote about the things in life that are important to me, doing my best to rank them. Then I added some actions to each item of importance, things I can do to support those values. Lastly I estimated how I can fit those actions into my life, how much time and money they will require, when they would fit best. For example, feeding myself and my family nourishing food is a high priority because it makes us feel good, and we are better able to meet the challenges of the day. Actionable items to meet this goal are using Friday mornings to meal plan and shop and Sunday to meal prep for the week. Which will require me to protect those blocks of time every week and budget at least $1000/month for food. If your personality attributes are anything like mine, I’m sure you can imagine how in control and optimistic I felt, just by writing everything down. And I invite you to workshop your values in the same way I did. If you are feeling any level of overwhelm or dissatisfaction, it will help get you back on the path towards a more fulfilling life. ❤️

I pulled out the Christmas decorations last week, just in time for this cold snap to hit. I’m normally pretty strict about when I start celebrating holidays. It just makes sense to me as an Enneagram 1 to follow the rules and respect the boundaries around each celebration. But this year, I just felt the need for Christmas to come early. I felt the need to inject some joy into my life after months of feeling overwhelmed and incapable. I went into this first, full-time semester, convinced I could manage it all. By the end of the first three weeks, I realized how wrong I was. But I failed the first time around, so I refuse to fail again. I pressed on and gradually let responsibilities slip. Things that are important to me. I was talking with my husband about how wrecked I was feeling, knowing I was giving everything to work and school, and giving just the little bits that are left to my family. And how I internally tore myself to pieces when I realized I had not been diligent enough in my course scheduling, and I would be graduating a semester later than expected due to prerequisite requirements and course availability. “This is what you deserve for not looking further into this earlier. No wonder your kids are going to school without assignments done. You are a mess!” I am ready to quiet this inner critic. I am ready to be done with school. I am ready to throw myself into my business. I am ready to give my best self to my children and husband. I am ready for some joy in my life. I don’t know what I’m going to do to make spring more manageable. But I know I have to figure it out soon. I don’t share all this looking for pity, more so actionable items to allow me to get back to a place where I feel content and in control, again.

Hello and a Happy #fridayintroductions to y’all! 👋🏻 I’m Lauren, a Finance student and Pure Barre instructor living my best minimalist mom & wife life in North Alabama. But you probably already knew that about me if you know me IRL or if you read my tag line. Some things you might not know about me are: (1) I am extremely excited about getting gray hair. Every gray hair that sprouts up on my head makes me giddy. I’ve had a big streak of gray in my hair since high school, and when I had my hair colored five years ago, I asked that my stylist keep the gray streak intact. (2) I dream of renovating my home to remove all the closets and just have freestanding wardrobes or clothing racks. Our master bedroom walk-in closet is, by far, my least favorite. Resale value, be damned! (3) I am an ESTJ, 1w2, Conscientious Upholder....aka I’m really into personality tests, and I use the results to improve how I manage myself and interact with others. I would love for you to share a fun fact about yourself so we can get to know each other better! Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

Jack the Pumpkin King and a Kitty Cat (and Mom and Dad) made it through an hour of trick or treating in 33 degree-equivalent weather before we retreated to the house for grilled cheeze, tomato soup, and a viewing of “The Nightmare Before Christmas”. Happy Halloween, y’all! 🎃👻🍬 #hoopertwins

Unpopular opinion alert - the absolute best use of pumpkin is in a curry. Yes, I know, the muffins and the pies and the coffees are all yummy. But nowhere near the level of this super easy and insanely delicious dish. So easy, I’ll give y’all the recipe right here, right now: 4 cups cooked chickpeas 2 cups cooked lentils 1.5 cups whole fat coconut milk 1.5 cups pumpkin purée 2 tbsp curry powder Mix it all together and let the flavors simmer on the stove. Serve over rice and top with cilantro and lime juice. You are welcome.

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