Walk In The Rain With Me: December 2014

Christmas Approaches

Friday, December 19, 2014

The Complete Guide to Christmas: From a Minimalist

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Christmas is an awkward time of year to be a minimalist. With so much emphasis being put on gift-giving, it's definitely a quandary for those of us who genuinely do not want to get more stuff...

This will actually be my first year celebrating Christmas as a minimalist. As a result, I was a bit unsure how to approach the whole gift-giving thing. How do I avoid getting a lot of stuff I will never use? Do I actually feel right asking for gifts at all, right now?

Through careful consideration and deep contemplation, I have compiled a list of five ways to maintain good habits through the Christmas season.

Five Tips for a Minimalist Christmas

1. Make a highly-specific Wish List. Keep it short, and include items you genuinely need (a new slow-cooker since your old one broke, replacement bike tires, etc) or actually want (a specific pair of shoes, a video camera, etc).

2. Ask for a highly-specific Wish List. If you don't want to contribute to the world-wide clutter, ask exactly what the person in question actually wants. If you want to be sneaky about it, ask their friends or family.

3. Give experience gifts. If you'd rather not give things at all, experience gifts are an excellent idea. Give them a gift-card to their favorite restaurant, and set up a date for you to go together. Give them a "coupon" for one trip to the movies. Your time is possibly the most valuable thing you have to give.

4. Charity gift catalogs and other ways to give. Take this time to support a local charity, sponsor a child, or "purchase" something out of a gift-catalog in lieu of traditional presents. Some great examples are Gospel for Asia's Christmas Catalog, A21's Christmas Gifts, and your local Salvation Army Angel Tree.

5. Focus on and emphasize other aspects of Christmas. Make a point to tell the Nativity story, or read an Advent devotional in the days before. Go caroling, or host a charity drive. Create new traditions for your family that don't revolve around physical things.

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Let's not forget the friends and family, in this situation. If you have a minimalist loved-one, than these next five tips are for you!

Five Tips for Loving Your Minimalist on Christmas

1. Pay attention to their Wish List. If they have taken the time to give you a specific list of what they'd like, it's probably genuine.

2. Something you want, something you need, something to wear, and something to read. This is a guide that a lot of families use for Christmas, but it can be adapted to almost any relationship. You could replace "wear" with "eat" if they don't want clothes. Maybe you could collaborate with a few friends so your minimalist gets an item from each category.

3. Give experience gifts. Minimalists tend to value time even more than the majority, so giving us a little bit of yours will mean a lot. A few examples of an experience gift would be a gift-card to their favorite restaurant, a punch card (or similar thing) for a favorite activity or class, and "date night" coupons.

4. Be intentional. Much like they value time, minimalists value intention and sincerity. If they can tell you've put thought into their gift, they will probably like it all the more.

5. Respect their wishes. Whether or not you really "get it," please try to respect what they've requested. If that means no physical gifts, than the best thing to do is honor that.

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What's on your Christmas list this year? Share it with us in the comment section below, over at my Facebook page, or email it to us at anastasiarosewrites@gmail.com!

Christmas

Don't "Survive" the Holidays!

Monday, December 15, 2014

It seems everyone is looking for "ways to survive the Holidays" this year. In fact, the holiday season has become almost synonymous with stress.

But is that how it should be?

I would say no, and I'm sure almost everyone would agree with me. Most people lament the fact that they never have time to really sit back and enjoy the holidays... So why do we persist in creating such a stress-filled season?

Perhaps it's because we have lost sight of what's most important.

This season should be a time of joy, peace, and celebration with the people you love.

We shouldn't be surviving the holidays...

We should be enjoying them.

But how can we do that when everything is so stressful? With the crazy-busy schedules you're trying to balance, the gifts you're trying to buy, the long-lines at the store, the cranky relatives, and all the other negatives that make this season so stressful...

How could you ever find a way to enjoy it?

Well, I can't pretend to have all the answers, but here are my three biggest suggestions for enjoying your December.

1. Don't focus so much on the things you can't have. Stop dwelling upon the fact that you don't have the money to buy a bigger tree, or set up a huge yard display, or buy tons of fancy gifts for your kids. Instead, take time out to remember all of the things you do have. Because I'm sure, if you look around, there really is so much to be thankful for.

2. Don't stress over the little things. Traffic is annoying, store-clerks aren't always as efficient as you would like them to be, and sometimes a batch of cookies gets burnt. Do not obsess over the things that go wrong. Instead, take a deep breath, remind yourself that these things happen, and move on.

3. Remember the reason we celebrate at all. Regardless of the origins of the holiday, and regardless of what society has made of it, we celebrate because of what Jesus did for us. We celebrate because we have hope.

This week, I want to encourage you to look beyond the stress of the season and remember to enjoy it.

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Do you get stressed-out by the holiday season? What are your tips for making it less overwhelming? Be sure to share your response in the comment section below, over at my Facebook page, or you can email it to me at anastasiarosewrites@gmail.com.

Also, be sure to email me your holiday-themed guest post! I'd love to feature your work here on my blog, but the season is almost over, so get it in soon.

growing up

Where Are You Going?

Friday, December 12, 2014

minimalism

Work Resumes!

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Last month, I began a project... This month, I'm going to finish it.

For the past several weeks, I've been working on unpacking and clearing out the things I don't want. The plan had been to get it done as quickly as possible so it would be finished.

But... that's not really what happened. Instead, the work went really well for the first week...

And then just stopped.

Which was really not what I had planned. At all.

Part of the reason work in my room had been paused for a while was that I was actually really really busy.

I was in a play last week, which meant dress-rehearsals, longer practices, and (obviously) the shows! Then the next two days (Saturday and Sunday) consisted almost entirely of me being at a dance convention, or me being exhausted.

But last night... work began again!

There weren't too many boxes left anyways, but we emptied out several more last night. We got our hats sorted out, our dolls are back on their shelves, and the few knickknacks we're actually keeping now have a place.

We are getting so very close to being done with the Packing Party, and I am determined to be finished by the end of this month. Which is why I am officially announcing to you that I will have our room clean and every box unpacked by January 1st, 2015!

This is going to require a certain amount of work on my part- not only to get the job done, but also to stay motivated.

Staying motivated is probably one of the hardest things for me about this whole minimalism thing. I'm here in the last leg of the race, and that initial burst of energy has worn off. So what's keeping me going at all?

One of the biggest things that keeps me going is definitely the promise of a clean, happy, stress-free bedroom. Another motivator is simply being able to say that I did it.

And sometimes... those two aren't really enough. Sometimes, I just don't feel motivated. Sometimes, nothing I tell myself actually makes a difference. We're at the end of the race, and the big burst of energy at the start has officially worn off.

In times likes those, I have two options- I can either not clean, or I can clean in spite of not feeling motivated.

This month will probably involve a lot of the latter...

(And to finish- some photos. Because what home-improvement blog post would be complete without photos?!)

This is a full view of our room. It's still got work to be done, but we are making progress!

This is our large stack of stuff to get rid of. Isn't that awesome?!?!

This is probably one of the spots I'm most proud of. Look how organized it is!

And this is our mostly-empty-extremely-tidy bookshelf. It makes me very happy. (I must add that this is not the bookshelf that actually hold our books! That's a different one.)

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And now my question for you is what projects are you working on, and what motivates you? Be sure to leave your response in the comment section below, over at my Facebook page, or email it to me at anastasiarosewrites@gmail.com.

Christmas

The Christmas Nail

Monday, December 08, 2014

My Bucket List- FAQs

Friday, December 05, 2014

101 Things in 2015

Wednesday, December 03, 2014

I've been thinking a lot about my Bucket List, and decided to make it official.

A few weeks ago, I shared the Top Ten Things on My Bucket List. Prior to writing that down, I hadn't put much thought into a bucket list. I kept saying there were things I'd like to do someday, but I guess it was just never a top priority. However, after I really set down those ten things, I started thinking about what would actually be on my bucket list if I had one.

I didn't like the idea of an unachievable bucket list, or one that seemed too unpractical. But I recently found a list of 300 things to do in your life, and decided to take that and make it my own. Some of the items on that list I had absolutely no desire to ever do, and there were a few things I wanted to do that weren't listed.

I went through their list, and created one of my own. And from that, I picked out what I wanted to do over the next year.

And now I'm sharing it with you. So here you go... In no particular order,

101 Things In 2015!

~~Participate in Free Hugs~~
~~Watch a sunrise and sunset in the same day~~
Sew something wearable
~~Share your wisdom with someone~~

~~Learn and perform a magic trick~~

Bake cookies for your neighbors, co-workers, etc
Shoot a gun

Give up meat for a week
~~Write letters to 5 people who positively influenced you~~
Participate in NaNoWriMo
~~Take a bubble bath by candlelight~~
Identify 10 constellations
Send postcards from your home city
Play chess
Read The Bible from cover to cover

Make and bury a time capsule

~~Take a jumping photo~~

Write your will

~~Plan your own funeral~~

Host a scavenger hunt
Learn to say hello in 26 languages
Dress up fancy and go somewhere mundane
~~Make dinner from scratch~~
Send a care package

~~Thank a veteran~~

Send a message in a bottle
Plant a tree
Plant a garden
Attach notes to balloons and release them
~~Cut your hair really short~~
Release sky lanterns

~~Play the harmonica~~
~~Take a day trip someplace new~~

Learn to make a good mixed drink
Write a letter to an editor
~~Research your family tree~~
Sew a memory quilt
Write down your dreams for at least one week
~~Leave an inspirational message on a sticky note in a bathroom or public place~~
Complete a crossword puzzle without cheating
~~Listen to classical, new age, jazz and world music for one hour each or longer~~
Send someone flowers, just because
~~Make something out of duct tape~~
Picnic in the park
~~Do something that completely terrifies you~~

Listen to a radio station you don't normally listen to for a day
~~Quit a bad habit in 21 days~~
Memorize "Who's on First"

~~Tie a tie~~
~~Star gaze~~
~~Hand write letters to your friends and mail them~~
Take a great picture, print it, frame it and hang it on the wall
~~Wear a crazy hat out in public~~
Completely plan your dream home down to the fine details
~~Write a note and leave it in a library book~~

Make a giant rubber band ball
~~Have the restaurant staff sing to you for your birthday~~
Learn 5 or more yoga poses

Compost
~~Start a scrapbook with mementos and souvenirs~~
Write a list of everything you're grateful for

Imagine you won $5 million, and plan what you would spend it on down to the penny
~~Do the Clean Sweep test and try to improve your score~~
Do a 365 day photo project

Make 1,000 origami cranes
~~Wake up 30 minutes earlier than usual for a week~~
~~Ask an elderly person to tell you a story~~
Go on a bike ride
Play Rock Band, Guitar Hero or Band Hero
Enter a writing contest
Drink only water for a week
~~Find the coolest thing in your city and photograph it~~

Take a photo from a skyscraper or tallest building you can find
~~Write a letter for future generations to read~~

~~Write a letter to yourself to open in 10 years~~
Think of something you are grateful for every morning when you wake up for at least a week

~~Make a dream board~~
Take a morning jog

~~Create an alter-ego~~
~~Make a blessings jar~~

Go mirrorless for a day
~~Write to your hero~~

Do bookcrossing
~~Start a gratitude journal~~
Write down your regrets then burn them
Give up TV for a week
~~Write your personal manifesto~~
Delete your social media profiles for at least a week
Go on evening walks every night for a week
~~Get a facial~~
~~Memorize a great joke~~
~~Write thank you notes~~
~~Have a photoshoot with someone outside of your family~~
Compliment 20+ people in one day
Read 100 of the greatest books ever written
Complete a novel
~~Start a Youtube channel~~
~~Drive a car~~
Do a Random Acts of Kindness challenge
~~Sleep under the stars~~
Spend the day blind

[Last Updated: 6-17-2015]

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So... what's on your bucket list? Leave your response in the comment section below, over at my Facebook page, or email it to anastasiarosewrites@gmail.com.