Simplifying My Life

Lately I've been giving a lot of thought to simplifying my life. Of course I've tried to do this before. Usually I would start with trying to declutter my home. But, my husband is a pack rat, bordering on being a hoarder. (He disagrees with that assessment. LOL). This often makes decluttering an unpleasant task. Plus, I have lived in this house since we married 21 years ago. He has lived here twice as long. It's an old house with little storage. I do what I can.

I have come to the conclusion that the best approach for me right now is to declutter my mind. How?

Smartphone. I'm starting with my smartphone. Do I really need to see my email or the internet or Facebook no matter where I am? Just a couple years ago I didn't realize that was a necessity. Now it is always at the ready. I do like the convenience of the cell phone.

And, why do I feel that I can't just print out a coupon for Michael's or Joann's? Not long ago I drove 15 miles to Joann's to use an awesome 60% off coupon on my smartphone. I had accidentally left my cellphone on my desk so, no coupon. If I had printed it out and put it in my purse as I do other coupons I would not have had to drive home and back to Joann's again. Like my friends and many family members, I am going to downgrade to a basic phone. No bells or whistles. However, Verizon is charging me $30 for the "upgrade" fee.

Facebook. I wish I could just give that up, but I do love the photos of grandkids and trips. It's the best way to keep up with family now. If a lot of family and friends need to know some info, you only have to make one post and everyone knows. What I do not like is that some people push their political or religious agendas. Some ideas are better discussed face to face. I feel that Facebook should be fun and bring people together, not make people feel bad. I may weed out a few "friends" who more like just "acquaintances". I am certainly going to limit my access to Facebook.

Internet. Luckily, I have not become an addict of Pinterest. I do stay on the internet waaay too much. I am going to try to find a way to limit my screen time. We will see how that goes. I've been addicted to the internet for 20 years, so this could take a while. Hee!

Blogs. First of all, I "follow" too many blogs. Many blogs I follow because it was a requirement to try and win a give-away. I never won anything, though. I am going to pare down the list of blogs I follow. Some blogs I do really enjoy!

My own blog. I considered giving up this blog. I find myself pushing to find something to blog about. I feel bad when I don't have a new project to showcase. I need to stop stressing over it. For now, I will try to post something at least once a month. It may not be a project. It may just be something random. If I am still stressing in a few months, I will just let this blog go. It should be fun and not a chore. 

I will continue those activities that I enjoy. I am so inspired after my monthly quilt guild meeting. And, I love, love my book club. There are only 3 of us in the group, but we have met each month for 2 years. I would not miss that...and I never have.

How do you simplify your life?

October Already?

Where did the month of September go? I can not believe it is October already! It is raining and gloomy here in Middle Tennessee. The hummingbirds have gone or maybe they were run off by the honey bees. Our hummingbird feeders occasionally have a wasp or two. But, for the last 2 weeks the honey bees have taken over. We have had the feeders every summer, for years. This is the first time the bees have come in such great numbers. This photo is a small sampling. Some days both feeders were nearly covered.

Have you ever worked on a quilt you loved while piecing and then just wanted to stop? I have been working on the Dresden Plate quilt. I loved the cutting and the piecing. But, I truly hate stitching these to the background. I tried different approaches. I am now just doing a straight stitch near the edges. But, all the stopping and turning is driving me crazy! I think I am going to just have to set a goal of stitching one or two a day and that is all until they are finished.

I decided I needed a second quilt project to work on in between the DP. I began to cut fabrics from my stash on Saturday. These are 2.5 inch strips. I love working with these. This is for a throw-sized quilt I'm making for myself. I am not ready to reveal what I'll be working on yet. But, here are some of the fabrics. I need to cut a few more strips and the background fabrics. I know I have the perfect fabric for the background, but where did I put it?