This year my goal is twofold.

1. Strengthen my relationship with Jesus

2. Simplify

I’ve decided to challenge myself each month with a theme to simplify my life. Month one is simplify my home. Some things I’ve tackled so far:

Entryway and coat closet. Note to reader…CAUTION this will leave you with an extreme, uncontrollable amount of excitement and satisfaction. We have a small space but I knew it was workable if I changed it up. Our shoes were OUT of CONTROL! Our coats didn’t fit in the closet and ended piled on the floor in a corner (if not somewhere in the kitchen), and the baskets for my two and one year olds’ shoes were a nightmare to find even one shoe from a pair in. Here’s how I took my sanity back. I took my shoes off the shoe rack in our closet, eliminated about 6-7 pairs that I never wear and took the shoe rack out. Instead of baskets for my 2.5 year old and 12 month old, I now use the shoe rack. It’s not the most beautiful thing our entry has seen but it is 💯 more practical.

I am seriously in awe of how in control of my house I feel with some order in the entry of our home.

2. Refrigerator, outside first. Try to trust me on this. So we purchased a new construction home, and were allotted so much money per appliance. It was a reasonably priced upgrade for stainless steel, so we splurged for it. Two years in with kids, our refrigerator has finger prints everywhere within thirty seconds of a wipe down, the freezer has three dents from a new tricycle incident last spring, and the door boasts our two year old’s (to Mom and Dad) award winning artwork along with 10-12 family/friend photos all of which I firmly believed brought me immense joy.