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Simplify and Downsize...You can do it too! - Page 8

post #141 of 319
10/10/06 at 12:04pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Caitlin320 View Post
Delight, I LOVE your vintage tablecloth. Awesome.
Yes! I LOVE your tablecloth so much that I went to the thrift store and bought one for myself!

Now, my question is: how do you keep it clean? or do you let it get dirty & wash it frequently?

I have a two boys - 4 & 2 years old. Needless to say, meal time is a mess here! I'm wondering if I should just let them make the mess and wash the tablecloth afterwards or take the tablecloth off the table at every meal...

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post #142 of 319
10/10/06 at 1:11pm
Subbing.
post #143 of 319
10/10/06 at 2:01pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Caitlin320 View Post
Delight, I LOVE your vintage tablecloth. Awesome. I have a small collection of vintage cooking aprons, I am trying to think of a way to display them creatively but practically . . . right now they are just all hanging on a nail in the storage room which is right off of the kitchen. I'm still thinking about it, maybe something will come to mind.
A cute peg shelf would work nicely. I've also seen curtains made from vintage aprons. Or frame them.

Quote:
Originally Posted by SaraMama View Post
Yes! I LOVE your tablecloth so much that I went to the thrift store and bought one for myself!

Now, my question is: how do you keep it clean? or do you let it get dirty & wash it frequently?

I have a two boys - 4 & 2 years old. Needless to say, meal time is a mess here! I'm wondering if I should just let them make the mess and wash the tablecloth afterwards or take the tablecloth off the table at every meal...
It gets dirty. I pull it back when Bella eats, but it still gets dirty. That particular one has a few small holes in it too. Gives it character!
post #144 of 319
10/10/06 at 2:35pm
Awesome and inspiring, Thanks so much for sharing Maybe I can use this to try and sway my dh towards downsizing our living space...
post #145 of 319
10/10/06 at 3:17pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by thenaturefreak View Post
Awesome and inspiring, Thanks so much for sharing Maybe I can use this to try and sway my dh towards downsizing our living space...
Hi! I had the same idea. I showed my H Delight's blog and pictures. He thought they were pretty cool, but I still have a long way to go in convincing him.

He is a packrat and it will be a huge change for him to not keep everything. Good luck to us both!!
post #146 of 319
10/10/06 at 3:31pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by hipcoolmama View Post
Hi! I had the same idea. I showed my H Delight's blog and pictures. He thought they were pretty cool, but I still have a long way to go in convincing him.

He is a packrat and it will be a huge change for him to not keep everything. Good luck to us both!!
I've been trying to work on DH. We're in a small 2 bedroom apartment right now because that's all we can afford (because of lack of planning and debt from past stupidity). I've been telling him about energy savings of a small home, more time to do things we enjoy instead doing upkeep on the house, more time together as a family, etc. But he dreams of having a total McMansion. Huge rooms for each child, exercise room, office, guest rooms, family room, living room, dining room, home theater room, etc...filled with knick-knacks and "decorations".
post #147 of 319
10/10/06 at 8:27pm
We lived in a 500 sf apartment for a long time, ten years or so. We now live in a 1000 sf apartment, and despite having tossed a bunch of stuff before we moved, have found it hard to fit everything in here. I inherited a large dining room table from my late mother, and my grandmother's cedar chest also came to me after my mom died. These two things take up a lot of space, and really didn't fit well in our 500 sf place. Also, another issue is ds's toys -- he won't let us get rid of any of them, and they have really piled up. Yuck.
How do you decide what to keep? How do you say goodbye to family heirlooms? How do you get your child to part with things? And how do you work with the space you have? You have some major parts of your brain that I just don't have in the spacial area, I'm thinking. And the letting go area.
post #148 of 319
10/10/06 at 8:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Aguazul View Post
I've been trying to work on DH. We're in a small 2 bedroom apartment right now because that's all we can afford (because of lack of planning and debt from past stupidity). I've been telling him about energy savings of a small home, more time to do things we enjoy instead doing upkeep on the house, more time together as a family, etc. But he dreams of having a total McMansion. Huge rooms for each child, exercise room, office, guest rooms, family room, living room, dining room, home theater room, etc...filled with knick-knacks and "decorations".
Yeah, I fear my H's dream is a giant screen tv, a huge recliner and the remote not far from his hand. Oh, yeah, and he once told me how awesome it would be to buy one of those reclining couches with the built in mini-fridge so he can stock beer and pop within arm's reach.

Sigh. He doesn't mind clutter and he wants typical American home creature comforts all around him.
post #149 of 319
10/10/06 at 8:33pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pookietooth View Post
We lived in a 500 sf apartment for a long time, ten years or so. We now live in a 1000 sf apartment, and despite having tossed a bunch of stuff before we moved, have found it hard to fit everything in here. I inherited a large dining room table from my late mother, and my grandmother's cedar chest also came to me after my mom died. These two things take up a lot of space, and really didn't fit well in our 500 sf place. Also, another issue is ds's toys -- he won't let us get rid of any of them, and they have really piled up. Yuck.
How do you decide what to keep? How do you say goodbye to family heirlooms? How do you get your child to part with things? And how do you work with the space you have? You have some major parts of your brain that I just don't have in the spacial area, I'm thinking. And the letting go area.
Not sure of the answer but I will be interested in what others say! I guess I would suggest only hanging onto pieces of furniture that have special meaning, utility, or fit well with your life.

Lately, I've really been thinking of minimizing what I own so that I am not accumulation belongings just for the sake of accumulating them, you know? I want to be more purposeful and mindful.
post #150 of 319
10/10/06 at 8:38pm
Alright, I'm so inspired! We just moved and I did a buge muti-phased purge of STUFF but our new (smaller) space still feels cluttered. I see some organizing and more purging in my future. Thanks for the inspiration...
post #151 of 319
10/11/06 at 1:14am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Delight View Post
Ever wondered what a 478 sq. ft apartment looked like? C'mon in and check it out! Blogged here. Photos here.

Has anyone else gone REALLY small and loved it?
Hmmm, that sounds nice. We went from a 1500sf 2 bedroom 2 bath house to a 3200sf two story 4 bedroom 3 bath on 4.5 acres....and I'm so missing my little 2 bedroom. If it weren't for the fact that my IL's also live on our property I'd be begging my hubby to sell and get something smaller......I think we could fit 4 kids in a 1500sf house easily....they all sleep with us...why do we need all the extra bedrooms???
post #152 of 319
10/11/06 at 2:09am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pookietooth View Post
Also, another issue is ds's toys -- he won't let us get rid of any of them, and they have really piled up. Yuck.
How do you decide what to keep? How do you say goodbye to family heirlooms? How do you get your child to part with things? And how do you work with the space you have? You have some major parts of your brain that I just don't have in the spacial area, I'm thinking. And the letting go area.
Regarding his toys...is it something you can discuss with him, instead of just you getting "rid of them"? Can he be involved in it? Choosing which ones to give to other kids? Or maybe choosing which ones he would like to sell? For us, getting Bella to part with something is easy...we just do it. She doesn't notice. She's only 2.5 and is not attached to certain toys too much. She even helped me to sell her toys at our garage sale. A couple of times she would come to tell me that someone was taking her toys, but I explained to her that we sold those to them and now they are taking them, and she would say "ok!".

Family heirlooms: We honestly just don't have any family heirlooms. Anything that was my grandma's went back to my parent's house for them to deal with. All photos and keeksakes from our childhood are in a few plastic totes and are in my parent's basement.

Quote:
Originally Posted by veganmomma View Post
.I think we could fit 4 kids in a 1500sf house easily....they all sleep with us...why do we need all the extra bedrooms???
Exactly! So much money in mortgage payments for extra bedrooms you don't use....this is soooo common. And it's one of the reasons we moved!
post #153 of 319
10/11/06 at 5:20pm
I just talked to DH and I think we are really going to try and move in the next year or so. That was kinda always the plan but instaed of finding a house we are going to look for a condo in the more expensive area that we really want to live in!! We could find a condo with similar sq that we have now but everything would be updated and we would live where we really want to live. Houses in that area start at about $600,000. Condos much less. I am so excited!!!!
post #154 of 319
10/11/06 at 5:38pm
i have a question.. how long do you plan on living in this small apartment? short term, long term, forever? i'm just thinking when your little girl grows up, she may eventually want her own bed/room/space... what will you do then?
post #155 of 319
10/11/06 at 6:28pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by shelley4 View Post
i have a question.. how long do you plan on living in this small apartment? short term, long term, forever? i'm just thinking when your little girl grows up, she may eventually want her own bed/room/space... what will you do then?
Only for a year...until our debt is paid off. Then we want to live out of our VW bus for a year and travel the US and possibly Europe. She'll have much more space then Eventually, we'd like to build a small cottage...mortgage free...with a couple small bedrooms and a loft. In the mountains I would be fine with never having a "traditional" home ever again. I just don't have the desire to "live the American dream". I have my own dream...to live as simply as possibly, raise my children to be amazing and passionate people, and to be happy and content.
post #156 of 319
10/11/06 at 7:01pm
that is an awesome dream, one that i share
post #157 of 319
10/11/06 at 7:06pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Delight View Post
I would be fine with never having a "traditional" home ever again. I just don't have the desire to "live the American dream". I have my own dream...to live as simply as possibly, raise my children to be amazing and passionate people, and to be happy and content.
That is just so awesome, Sara! And totally inspiring!
post #158 of 319
10/11/06 at 7:22pm
omg, i'm gooshing with jealousy. wow, i want to do all that. i'm really jealous that you and your dh are on the same page (i think it's wonderful). mine thinks i'm looney as it is. :
post #159 of 319
10/11/06 at 8:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Delight View Post
Only for a year...until our debt is paid off. Then we want to live out of our VW bus for a year and travel the US and possibly Europe. She'll have much more space then Eventually, we'd like to build a small cottage...mortgage free...with a couple small bedrooms and a loft. In the mountains I would be fine with never having a "traditional" home ever again. I just don't have the desire to "live the American dream". I have my own dream...to live as simply as possibly, raise my children to be amazing and passionate people, and to be happy and content.
Ooohhh, I hope you realize your dreams and blog about them. I would be especially interested in your mortgage free home!!

I like your goals for living and for your children.
post #160 of 319
10/11/06 at 8:51pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by kellid View Post
omg, i'm gooshing with jealousy. wow, i want to do all that. i'm really jealous that you and your dh are on the same page (i think it's wonderful). mine thinks i'm looney as it is. :
Yeah, I know what you mean about being envious about couples that are on the same page.

It's hard when you have long term, simple living and sustainability goals and your partner does not. *Bummer*

Good luck!

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Mothering › Mothering Discussion Forums › Natural Family Living › The Mindful Home › Decluttering, Organizing, & Simplifying › Simplify and Downsize...You can do it too!