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ALLOWING THINGS TO HAPPEN AS THEY ARE

/ OrganizedWithJoy / Leave a comment

Earlier this week I shared an Erin Loechner quote on Instagram. I really love her book Chasing Slow. So much so that it is one of the few books I will keep in my collection. The quote says, “I begin to learn to allow things to happen as they are, rather than how I want them to be. I begin to learn, quite simply, the art of peace.” This quote really resonated with me. This idea that contentment isn’t found in some perfect definition of life. Contentment is found in the accepting. Accepting that things are the way they are. When we resign to this truth, we will find peace.

I think this quote resonated so much with me, partially right now, because I feel like I am in the in between in life. I just returned from visiting my son in Portland, and it really brought up that feeling of discontent in my heart. We have been considering moving to the Pacific Northwest, however now is not the time… yet. Currently our daughter is still living with us as she finishes her graduate school work. Graduation is in December, almost a year away. It doesn’t really seem like that long with how quickly time has been passing, but it also feels like I have already been waiting so long to downsize and move. Visiting Portland reminded me how happy my heart is there. For those of you who don’t know, we actually used to live in Portland. I really loved living there! We moved to Austin for my husband to go to graduate school, and that was now almost 24 years ago.

When our son got a job in Portland after graduating from college, I felt like that was almost like a sign we should move back. Our daughter has also always wanted to live in the PNW (although we shall see what happens with her career.) But reading this quote: “I begin to learn to allow things to happen as they are, rather than how I want them to be,” reminded me that I must fight for contentment everyday. When I accept where I am and find the joy and beauty in my everyday life here, I begin to experience that contentment and peace I long for.

For me, it’s not just about living in the PNW. I mean, it is – I think it will be an upgrade in lifestyle as I am an outdoorsy type person for sure. There are more opportunities to do outdoor activities there than here in Austin. But it’s also about downsizing. This is something I have been dreaming about for quite some time. If it’s not obvious by now, I long to live a more simple life. This is especially true as I age. I long to have less and do more. I long to take care of less stuff and take care of people more. I guess I just see that dream on the horizon and I’m ready for it NOW. I have been ready for it.

Me in my happy place! Hiking in Oregon!

Funny side story: I have always been adventurous! When we were graduating from Indiana University and my husband got a job offer in Portland, OR I said: “Awesome, let’s go!” When he wanted to go back to school for his MBA and got into the University of Texas I said: “Awesome, let’s go!” When we thought about moving within Austin to get our kids into a better school district I said: “Awesome, let’s go!” I have told my husband before that I am pretty much up for any adventure! I would sell everything and move half way across the world if we had to! I think some of what I am feeling is just too settled maybe? We’ve lived in Austin for almost 24 years and lived in this home for almost 17 years.

But back to the topic… I really want to challenge myself to a mindset shift. I find this to be one of the most important strategies to learn in life. And this quote sums it up. If we want peace, if we want contentment, we must learn to allow things to happen as they are. We must look for the joy and beauty in our lives here and now. We must CREATE joy and beauty in our lives in the here and now. Experiencing the art of peace isn’t as complicated as we may think. Look around you – be grateful for what you have, look for ways that you can grow and flourish in this season, in this very place where you are NOW! It’s okay to make plans for the future, but don’t let your contentment hinge on your future. I’m not just saying this for you, I’m reminding myself as well!

This is the YouTube video I shared in conjunction with this blog post.

NO BUY YEAR NOVEMBER RECAP

/ OrganizedWithJoy / Leave a comment

Okay friends, for today’s Thoughtful Thursday I will be sharing my recap for the month of November for how my no buy year has been going. I usually share the last Thursday of the month, but since last week was Thanksgiving I did not share at all, so I decided I would share today. I will be sharing a wrap up on my overall thoughts on how the no buy year affected me, and what I plan to do moving into 2026 the first Thursday in January. But for today I will share how I did in November.

Y’all, these last few months have been a true struggle! Okay, let’s be real – half the year has been a struggle! One of my brothers got married in the month of November and they had a dress code – everyone was instructed to wear black. I thought it was a bit odd, but let me tell you it looked so classy! Even though I have in my rules that I can purchase items for events, I thought to myself – I have several black dresses to choose from, there is no reason I need to purchase another black dress. So, I found the outfit I wanted to wear to the wedding, but then I thought to myself – what jacket will I wear? They were getting married in Indiana in November, so I definitely needed a jacket. Living in Texas, I don’t have very many jackets and I didn’t have any jackets warm enough and nice enough to wear to a wedding. WELL, there is a jacket that I have honestly been wanting all year. It is a khaki colored trench coat. At the beginning of the year I was keeping track of the items I wanted to purchase but did not, and this trench coat was on the list. You can probably guess by now that I decided to purchase the coat since I did not purchase a dress. It is amazing how easy it becomes to justify spending! With all that said, I really do love this coat and it is versatile. I also wore it with jeans and I got a lot of compliments on it!

Me with my four sisters at our brother’s wedding!

BUT, this was not my only slip up in the month of November. UGH! Ya’ll, it truly pains me to confess this… but you know what, I am keeping it real here. My birthday was the day before Thanksgiving and of course many stores already had black Friday sales going on. There is a pair of boots that I have actually been wanting for years, but the exact ones I wanted are the Frye brand and way too expensive for what I would usually spend on a pair of shoes – even the used ones I found on Poshmark were too expensive, BUT one of my favorite stores had a similar boot ON SALE! Not only was it cheaper to begin with, but also on sale! AND it got me! There is still a chance I will return them as I need to try them on with a few outfits to see if I really love them. They just came in the mail yesterday.

I feel so frustrated with myself that I have really failed almost every month since June! I know a year is a really long time to do a no buy, and I know I wasn’t going out and buying tons, just a piece here and there, but my perfectionist personality is irritated with my failure! I keep thinking about why this is such a pull for me? I want to be content with what I already have, and I have plenty! It makes me wonder about a deeper root issue in my heart. Spoiler for what I will share in my final recap: I will not go back to buying whatever in 2026. I might not do a full on buy nothing year again, but I do still need to deal with my heart and why I have a desire to purchase or have new things.

As I evaluate my heart, I realize a lot of why I like new clothing in particular is because it is a creative outlet for me. I love fashion, and putting together outfits and I really have my whole life. When I was younger, I grew up with four sisters and my parents were both teachers, so we didn’t have a lot of disposable income for me to get what I wanted. Not that I spend frivolously as an adult, but we are comfortable financially, making it easier to spend. If I look at it from a more sinister perspective, I think in my heart I may not be content with what I have, which in my opinion needs to be dealt with. I will talk more about all of this in my next recap which will happen the first week in January! But for now, that is all I have to share for the month of November!

Here is the YouTube video I shared in conjunction with this blog post!

NO BUY YEAR APRIL RECAP

/ OrganizedWithJoy / 2 Comments

Okay friends, this is the last Thursday of the month, so I am sharing my recap of how my no buy year has been going for the month of April! I will say right up front that I have continued to have success! Although I will mention again this month that I wonder if I made this too easy for myself.

So the big test this month was going thrift shopping with my son in Portland. There was a skirt that I saw in one of the thrift stores that I was tempted to try on, but I bypassed it! I did buy several things for my son while we were out shopping while I was there. I even bought some things for his cat too cuz I have a grandcat after all! And her new collar and harness look adorable on her! At one point I was processing with him and I said, you know I wonder if buying you things is giving me that same dopamine hit feeling I get when I buy something for myself. I said it in a joking way, laughing, but there might be more truth to that than I would like to admit. Although it is okay to buy gifts for others within my rules, I’m still wondering about what I was processing last month – where it is still a heart issue for me. Even though I am staying within my rules, I still have this desire to purchase stuff.

I will say though, in addition to the skirt I saw at the thrift shop, I have seen other things online that I was interested in purchasing but I refrained and scrolled past! Clothes are definitely still my biggest temptation! But I really want to learn to keep the spending to a minimum after my no buy year is over because I am still trying to figure out a way to minimize my wardrobe!

And speaking of my wardrobe, I did want to share about my minimalist closet challenge that I was doing in the month of April. I honestly feel like I could have removed even more from my closet for this challenge in hindsight! My plan is to go through the items that I put in my husband’s office closet and see if there is anything I can declutter, then I am going to remove even more from my main closet for the month of May. One thing I did notice is that packing for my trip to Portland seemed much easier than packing had in the past. It might be in part because I have traveled quite a bit over the last couple of years so I am getting to be a pro at packing, but I think it really was also just not having as much to choose from. Which just makes sense!

Honestly this month I didn’t really have any big revelations. I think I am just continuing to see the value in spending money on experiences over stuff. Like I mentioned, I have traveled quite a bit over the last couple of years and it just makes me appreciate those travel experiences. Not only are those life-long memories but I have no physical thing to manage and take care of and one day make a decision about decluttering. For my son’s birthday we went out for a really nice steak dinner at this restaurant in Portland, Portland City Grill. Not only was the food fantastic, but it is located on the 30th floor of a building downtown with beautiful 360 views. I would much rather spend money on an experience and food like that than to have something tangible.

That is all I have to share for the month of April with regards to my no buy year! I am considering reevaluating my rules as I do feel like maybe I was not strict enough with myself. I see to be having no problems with refraining from spending within the rules I had set up for myself! I will keep you posted! Stay tuned for next month’s recap!

Here is the YouTube video I shared in conjunction with this blog post!