My family. My books and journals. Water?
We were going to go to church this morning but I have a horrendous cough. We stayed home instead and made biscuits with apple butter. Brett and Boo know me way too well because I got books from the two of them this morning:
A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: How I Learned to Live a Better Story by Donald Miller
and
Love Wins by Rob Bell
The Best Mommy in the World. That’s what my card says.
We spent the rest of the day packing up boxes and sorting more things for our move. I did manage to get a photo of Boo and I yesterday at the Mother’s Day Tea at school:
It’s been a process getting rid of 30+ years of belongings and collections as we gear up for a simpler life. Last night we went to our usual pizza place and Boo took all of her 10K+ loose crayons for their almost empty bins. She even refilled them herself:
This has been good for us. The more we get rid of the more we want to get rid of. It’s a domino effect. I’ve made at least 2 thrift store runs a week and we plan to have a big moving sale for the remaining items right before we leave. And the house we’ll hopefully still sell furnished (furniture, plates and silverware, pots, artwork…even the fish in the fish tank!)
Boo doesn’t want to really keep much at all….just her books and her dolls. (Goodbye Barbie Dream House!) Brett and I have narrowed our closets down to the bare necessities. I’ve kept some craft supplies and tools so I can keep doing DIY on the blog but really we are only taking what we can haul with us. No movers, no storage. I feel like I’ve been playing that “what would you take on a deserted island” game for the past few weeks!
Except I do have that one issue: books. I haven’t really been able to get rid of any. Actually not true…I did remove 2 from the pile, but only because they were duplicates. And I sorted my piles by memoir, fiction, self help, etc. OCD. And when I try to pack them I end up rearranging piles: might want to read before I leave. pack last. leave out of boxes. hide in suitcase. hide in camera bag.
I did hand pick some items for the blue label page to help fund our move and the next few months as we figure things out. Thank you for all the support. What’s on the page is just about the last of everything. I can’t wait to get through all of this craziness so I can focus full time on writing finally. We are leaving June 1st regardless of whether the house sells. We’ll just leave it. And rely on faith that it will sell in its right time.
(Note: Need to figure out the best way to get Internet in the car on the way cross country: hot spot phone or just stand alone hot spot?)
Hope you had a wonderful day!
I used to travel a lot for work and recommend the stand alone hot spot. We would often have to fly somewhere, then drive a few hours to our final destination. So quite a bit of time was spent in the car. We had a hot spot just for the car portion of the trip and it made getting work done in the car so easy! Good luck!
Thank you! That’s what I’ve been leaning towards. Do you recommend one? Right now we have Verizon as our cell phone provider.
Here’s a suggestion for the books ~ you can always mail them using the book rate at the Post Office which is really cheap compared to regular mail or UPS. Maybe there is room somewhere at the end to store them in plastic containers until you read them then share with others. Heavenly blessings to you three! Cathy in Idaho
When I first read about your life changing plans, I was thrilled to read that people actually do this type of thing(!) and then I was filled with envy. I have been balking at the rat race so much lately and yearning for a much simpler life. A job that I despise, declining physical and mental health due to stress and children who are feeling the impact…. who wouldn’t be searching for a change? I have been working toward what I thought was a drastic change (quitting my job of 15 years) when a truly drastic change was dropped in our laps. My husband has an opportunity to take an expat position in Europe for a 1-2 year period. We are considering it (I still can’t believe that I am considering it!). Clearly there are a lot of things to think about, but it sounds like an amazing opportunity. Not necessarily a simple one but when you pray and pray for a change, sometimes you have to be prepared for the answer that you didn’t expect! The simplest way I can think of it is that when I look back on my life so far, the majority of my regrets have to do with things that I did NOT do, opportunities that I did not take. I’m not sure what will happen, but I hope to learn from your sense of faith and adventure. I can’t wait to follow along on your journey.
As for my “stuff”…. ugh, I can’t even begin to think about what I will do. I am a pack rat extraordinaire. But the thought of having much less stuff to manage sounds so freeing!!
God bless your family on your journey!
Totally feeling you on the more you get rid of…the easier it gets and so more stuff follows that. It’s awesome. My books are the one thing I can’t purge though. We moved twice since last summer and even though this last place is permanent. Being 3 mos post move… I find myself not wanting a lot of the crap still im the garage unpacked in the house. Oh we purged crap ton with our first move. I just want fewer things surrounding me. I even have a dedicated creeative space but my muse has gone dormant and changed so…. who knows. For me its having grown up in a house with clutter, not dirty or hoarding level but cluttered…5 kids will do that I guess. Each time I go to unpack another box I cringe and my attchment lessens. My neighborhood is having a community garage sale in late June. I’m going to tough it out and keep purging and donating until then. My garage is still less empty than some of my neighbors….lol
I admire how you are getting rid of so much for this move! When we moved, a few years ago, across the country we must have had a dozen boxes of books. My husband kept saying, ” I’m sure they have libraries there.” He just doesn’t get it 🙂 We gave away some of the books to the library, but moved most of them. Good luck on this journey. I look forward to following your adventure on here.
Hi Ashley, my husband and I are in the midst of the same process you are in. I made about 10 runs to Goodwill, and it felt so good. We are in an interim apartment right now while our son finishes his bachelors degree locally, and we are trying to figure out our next chapter. Wherever we end up, it will be a simpler life, that is for sure. What we are finding is, although we’ve gotten rid of a lot of stuff, there is more to do. It is almost like you have to step back after the first purge and say, ” Do I really NEED what we’ve kept?” and then re-purge! Good luck with the home sale. It will be fun to follow along on your journey.
You should check out XCom Global http://www.xcomglobal.com/
I used it when I was abroad for work and had wifi EVERYWHERE (including the tops of mountains).
I am following your adventure with growing excitement and wish I’d learned the lesson of dejunking and following my dream a wee bit earlier. Not to worry, as I was forced through illness, to reevaluate and go for the gusto! I can completely commiserate on the books. I’ve moved boxes and boxes and boxes of them my entire adult life. Books are “my friends” and I love the feel and smell of them. This last move, my then 13 year old grandson asked me, “Grammie, how come almost every box is labeled “Mom’s favorite books? Do you really have ALL those favorites?” I’ve gone from 3000 square feet to 1400 sq ft to a 43 ft boat and a huge storage space, to 1100 sq ft and it’s taken me 3 years to shovel out. It’s very uplifting to rid yourself of things. I’ve given 5 whole boxes of books to the local library. That’s the hardest for me. Probably 30+ to go. I’m still working on it……….You’re doing a great thing, Ashley. It’s a win-win for everyone. Boo is a lucky girl to have you as a Mom!.
You could always mail some of the “must haves” on ahead of you…who would ever know?!
Every time I read your blog…I am blessed in some wonderful way. Thank you.
Ashley, your blog is at once interesting and inspiringly many levels. I am so glad you were brought peace quickly and happily withy our little Diesel. Our pets are our family, yet they are with us for such a short time, and are always in need of our protection. We have a Maine coon who is turning 14 this year, and is clearly getting older, but even with his arthritic ankle he remains so sweet and loving, he never complains. At 16 pounds, and with his need to insert himself when company comes, he is our dog in cat’s clothing. It is we who have to age gracefully with them, as they bless us with us with their short lives. With your move in process, this was a little reminder to stop and pray. I have always called them “little God things”, and they can be good or bad, big or small, anytime, anywhere. When life throws too many crurve balls, I eventually will look upward, and say “okay, God I get it, I am listening”. On the flip side, I do the same when something wonderful happens. Like most of us, I don’t do it often enough. Thank for reminding me of this.
Ashley –
If you are going through Kansas City check out the Nelson Atkins Art Museum (http://www.nelson-atkins.org/) or our new museum in Overland Park – Museum at Prairiefire: American Museum of Natural History ). Also, we are a great food town. Everyone talks about BBQ but we also have some amazing farm to table restaurants and LOTS of options.
I love reading your blog and have been so excited about your move and simple living at The Hemlock Inn. Praying for you and your beautiful family.
Hi Ashley,
I don’t have the time to follow your blog like I used to but just had to write when I saw that you were making such a big move. I read somewhere recently that most people make decisions based on fear rather than joy. Fear that they won’t have enough money, fear that they won’t be able to take care of their family, fear that they won’t be successful, etc. But the decision your family has made was based on joy and I find that so inspirational. I love the idea that you are choosing joy, again.
SOOO excited for you and your family! I spent every Thanksgiving of my childhood in North Carolina, visiting Cherokee and the surrounding area, hiking the mountains, and just enjoying the slower pace. Now that I have a daughter, we’ve started the tradition again.
Suggestion on your books – have you considered either starting a book rental library or adding to an existing one already in place at the inn? Maybe that would be just enough of an excuse to keep them all! 🙂 Visitors could check them out during their stay and return them at check-out.
Good luck! I’ve bookmarked the Hemlock Inn homepage to refer to for our next Thanksgiving trip!