Tidy Thoughts
Articles, tips and inspiration all about attainable minimalism for moms and families.
 How to do this [what seems like] daunting and monumental task? Use what you’ve got!
You already have established habits and routines - use them to your advantage and make adjustments; build upon what you’re ALREADY doing. Yes, gaining your time back from all the stuff that was sucking it away is very exciting, BUT - implementing brand new systems and routines will be harder to maintain in the long run. Ease into it. Home systems are the roadmap and routines are the action that will help you maintain a simple, efficient and functional home. These tools are especially valuable for “messy” people [like me] and help establish order, repetitiveness, and most importantly, WILL to get something done and maintain your minimalish efforts. ✨A few ways to get started with home systems and routines✨ 🏠 Establish a loose daily routine that you can stick with about 80% of the time 🏠 Habit “stack”; when you do one thing you typically do, ADD something else you also need to get done - this is also great for adjusting bad habits! 🏠 Use a digital calendar that you share with other members of your household so you are all on the same page 🏠 Begin to create systems around one of these four home tasks - Laundry, Dishes, Tidying, Cleaning Did I help you [I hope]? Please let me know and share with a friend!
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3/4/2022 0 Comments Mindset Shifts with Minimalism Mindset matters - shifting your mindset helps ensure you take baby steps towards accomplishing your goals. The mantra I say to myself on REPEAT now is “progress over perfection” and although whatever I imagined might not be EXACTLY what I envisioned, I get more accomplished and make small strides towards my goals (where as before, I might have had DREAMS, that I wouldn’t even act on).
Here are 3 ways I’ve adjusted my mindset since beginning my minimal-ish journey… 💫 You’ll always have to take care of your home, why not do it in the most efficient way possible? 💫 Make time to make memories; stop wasting it on stuff you don’t need or care about 💫 When something needs to get done, ask for help, make it fun, and take care of it quickly so you can shift your focus to what matters more to you and your family Remember, anyone and everyone can be a minimalist - there is no “end goal”, you can call yourself a “minimalist” if you just decided the lifestyle was right for you! It’s a journey, not a destination. What’s a mindset shift you’ve made recently?  Minimal-ish living doesn't mean getting rid of all your “stuff” - it means making the “stuff” you value work best for you.
💙 It’s saving you time, money and SANITY. 💙 It’s getting rid of the noise and excess. 💙 It’s having a home that’s efficient and simple to manage. 💙 It’s eliminating what’s preventing you from accomplishing your goals. 💙 It’s for both physical AND mental “clutter”. It’s family-friendly, foundation-setting and efficiency focused - perfect for ANYONE who wants to bring what really matters to them to the forefront, but it’s especially valuable for busy, growing families. Spend less time on the mundane and more time on making memories. Interested in minimalish living? Head to my Instagram at @thetidytot for easy-to-implement home hacks, and tips that you can try TODAY to take back control at home and gain back your valuable time. 2/17/2022 0 Comments Is your home automated? Incorporating systems (the roadmap) and routines (the action) increase efficiency at home, saving you time, energy and money.
The term “home system” comes from the home automation industry, meaning a tech solution to automate the bulk of electronic tasks and connected devices. When it comes to this more technical term, I am thankful to have an engineer husband who works to make efficient solutions for customers every day; he incorporated that digital efficiency small-scale in our own home. I have some background knowledge about the home automation industry was just getting big years ago - the possibilities are incredible! When it comes to daily life, home systems for families can be as manual or digital as you like - whatever works best for YOU. Adding digital systems and solutions to your daily routine can significantly increase efficiency and productivity - it sounds contradictory to use technology when you’re trying to live simply BUT, it’s just another, new(er) option to save time, energy and money! Amazon (Alexa) and Apple (Siri), have brought simple automation solutions to the masses in recent years, although I’d argue these are more conveniences and not necessarily true home automation solutions. I’m talking about taking that next step after decluttering - organizing and systemizing for the whole family thru the end of February. I hope you’ll join the conversation!! Do you currently have any home automation systems set up? What do you DREAM of that your home can do? 1/17/2022 0 Comments Three Minimalist Mantras As you’re hopefully relaxing this Sunday, here are three mantras that can help you shift your mindset if your goal is minimalish living.
✨ BE present and intentional ✨ LESS is usually more ✨ LIVE in the moment Remember, dumping the stuff is great and the first step to a simpler, more efficient, minimalist home/life - BUT, it’s a mindset shift that will help you maintain it. I'm working hard to be more present and live in the moment - I've been trying to go from "this age/stage is so frustrating/difficult (...my almost 2.5 year old who has been fighting sleep lately)" to "there will always be new challenges, how can I best meet her/my needs right now". Sh*t's easier said than done. Are you going thru a challenging phase at home right now (I'm sure that's PLENTY of us!)? 1/12/2022 0 Comments Making the Minimalist Choice You’ll always have to take care of your home, so why not do it in the most efficient way possible to make room in your timeline for other things? Things like spending time with your family and actually enjoying it - instead of being present in face only when you play Monopoly on game night because you can’t remember if you paid your credit card bill when it was due last week and you’re internally panicking.
1/10/2022 0 Comments What to Declutter? Although I can’t tell you exactly what to declutter, I can tell you where to start - the “easiest” to “hardest” areas of your home; it can vary from person to person (Want a more specific approach for *your* family? Have a call with me!).
The “snowball effect” often takes over when you get rolling and start to see progress - easy areas get decluttered quickly and harder areas get easier.  New year, new you - like we haven’t heard that before. As a former ecomm marketing manager, that was a favorite catchphrase for January. Ironically, it gets old.
Instead of “starting over” for the new year, why not make specific changes that really WORK for you? Live a life you love, once and for all. When I discovered “minimalism”, and that it was OKAY to let go and make my home actually work for me and not against me, a lightbulb went off. Multiple studies have proven (love this one from Stanford - bewell.stanford.edu/a-clean-well-lighted-place/) that clutter raises cortisol (the STRESS hormone). According to the NIH, stress is linked to the six leading causes of death. If you’re stressed at home, frustrated with your environment and your daily life with kids is chaos, know that it doesn’t have to be that way.  Stop wasting your precious time, re-establish routine and create a beautiful, functional (and uniquely your own) home at whatever stage of life your growing family is in.
As a mom of two toddlers 13 months apart, I get the frustration that is a chaotic, cluttered and messy house. I’ve been there. I had already started on a path of minimal-ish living a few years ago but my “wake-up call” happened as a new mom when a close friend and neighbor had to watch our two month old as my husband rushed me to the ER with a medical emergency (minus one gallbladder later, I’m fine!). I had nothing prepared, no notes, and my house was a wreck - I had two bags of pumped milk in the fridge, dishes in the sink and crap all over my counters (even dirty toilets - yuck). When I returned home I knew I never wanted to feel embarrassed by my home again - something had to change. 10/15/2021 0 Comments New to Minimalism? Start here.Lately I’ve felt like my time is getting sucked away from me. This is a huge red flag and opportunity to reevaluate what’s working and what’s not working.
Time is precious - that’s why I am trying so hard to take it back and I hope I can help you do the same. As we approach the holiday season, I’ll be talking a lot about valuing your time, being intentional with purchases and really using the season as a time to connect with family and friends. You can still use your time wisely, stick to a budget, AND make your season a great one. Going from an “easy” routine to having guests and adding new people, events and activities is challenging. I’ve got messy piles, paperwork piling up and a fridge of chaos. These simple steps always help me quickly get back on top of my home. Want to start living a more minimal-ish lifestyle but don’t know where to start? Try this: 🧺 Put a bin in each heavily used room for “go backs”. Have you ever worked in retail? It’s been a long time for me, but this trick works great in the home. Grab each bin daily and put that lingering stuff back where it came from! 📄 Take that pile of paperwork and go thru it in 10 minutes - set a timer (remember the time trick?!). Dump all junk mail, random offers, catalogs and magazines you can get online, etc. 🌮 Meal plan faster by having a list of family favorites, doing a quick check of what needs to be used in your refrigerator and combining the two to get the most meals with the least waste for the week. I absolutely struggle with PAPERWORK. 📄 I hate it so much. I have a great system for it, but when life gets busy, I don’t always use it and the clutter piles up. What is your biggest struggle when it comes to your home? |
CategoriesAll About Babies 0 To 12M Cleaning Consumerism Decluttering DIY Family Feelings Food Gear Holiday Season Home Home Systems Hosting Intentional Living Minimalism Montessori Motherhood Organization Routine Sustainability Tidying Tips + Tricks Toddlers 12M To 5Y 
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