Tuesday, March 25, 2014

A Small Step Toward Simplicity

Wow, have we become dependent on technology.  Our computer hasn't been charging the way it should be, so I haven't been on much.  And, unfortunately, when I try to type on my phone, I make a million typos, so I haven't been able to blog as much as I would like.

Today, I don't have anything profound to say.  I'm not in the middle of a big struggle.  Life is good.

But, we made a small change.  One that hasn't affected us too much.

We got rid of cable.

It's interesting.  There are a couple of shows I miss, but the hardest part has been going without DVR.  I thought it was making our life easier.  If we were gone, we could just have our show recorded and watch it when we got home.  If we left the room, we could pause our show (not being able to do this has been quite the adjustment for my little people).  We could multitask while watching, because if we missed something, we could always rewind.

But, to be honest, it wasn't making life easier.  I would go to bed after the hubby so that I could catch up on my shows that I can't watch when the kids are awake.  We were watching WAY too much TV.  And, our DVR probably had 90+ shows on it.

There's freedom in simplifying.  TV has already lost some importance in our life.  We spend more time reading and listening to the radio.  I've become more productive without the distraction.  And, if the kids want to watch TV, they can watch PBS Kids which is educational, or Smile of a Child, which is a God-centered channel geared towards children.

Also, we just bought Frozen, which has been watched (more than) a few times.

Although it is March, I think I'm going to make more of an effort in 2014 to simplify our life.  I plan on getting rid of things we don't need, removing unnecessary distractions, and spending more time (once it's warm again) outside.  We'd like to maybe start a garden - that will keep our hands busy and give us something in return (less trips to the grocery!).  

I'm excited to see how our small changes improve our life this year.  Do you have any simplifying tips you'd like to share?