Health | The Minimalist Mom

Your Clutter Coach

May 7, 2012 By theminimalistmom 7 Comments

Source: theminimalistmom.com via Rachel on Pinterest

Sometimes you need more help than a book or a blog can give you.

Sometimes you need a friend to remind you to donate those bags of unworn clothing that are sitting in your basement.

Sometimes you need someone to make a plan for you, motivate you and keep you accountable.

Sometimes you need a Clutter Coach.

I get a lot of emails asking for help. I always respond (even it takes me a while) with advice, suggestion and encouragement.

And I always wonder, did they carve out a weekend to clean out that attic? Are they in the throes of home purging and feeling beaten by the process? Did they pull out some boxes from under their bed, lose a few hours looking through old junk, and then decide it was all too much work?

For some time I’ve wanted to help beyond the posts on this blog. Something very personal for paring down and living smaller.

A book wasn’t the answer. There are already some great books out there like Family-Sized Minimalism and Clutter Bootcamp for inspiration and how-to. A book can’t hold your hand, give you a kick in the butt or suggest another method for dealing with all that mail.

I want to do those things.

I want to see closets go from jam packed to roomy.

I want to help people get more sleep.

I want to find solutions for the mud room clutter that can be so hard to reign in.

So I’ve started something new.

Your Clutter Coach

This is for people that:

can’t make the time to declutter even after reading a lot of books and blogs on the subject
get sidetracked by old photos and trinkets every time they attempt to clean out the guest room
have pared down their stuff but it crept back quickly
need motivation and accountability to clear clutter for good

Your Clutter Coach is a personalized decluttering program. It’s tailored to your lifestyle, your needs and your schedule. It’s me kicking your butt and you kicking ass.

You can read more about the services here.

If you’re interested in the program I am currently giving away one free Four Week Clutter Coaching Program at Parenting with Crappy Pictures (if you haven’t visited this site before it is hilarious). The giveaway is open until Tuesday May 8th at 8pm PST. Head on over to read the details and enter.

PS. This will be the only time I mention Your Clutter Coach in a big post like this.

Filed Under: 2011 Challenge, Bathroom, books DVDs and media, car free, Clothing, DVDs, etc, Finances, Furniture, Getting Started, Gifts, giving, Guest Posts, Health, inspiration, Internet, Kids, Kitchen, Media: books, minimalist with kids, Minimize Yo Butt, moving overseas, Off Topic, One Simple Thing, paying it forward: wedding edition, Project 333, shopping mistakes, Storage, Technology, Travel, Uncategorized

game changer

March 22, 2012 By theminimalistmom 79 Comments

WARNING: for male readers or women that don’t want to read about “female troubles” or “aunt flow” or the experience that billions of us have once a month, stop reading now. I am sharing a simple living find that has literally changed a week of my life every month and saved me a lot of money. Back to normal programming after this post.

My friend S has told me many times that something would “change my life.”

Sometimes the thing that was going to change my life was an olive tapenade or a face cream. I do love her exuberance for the little things.

But here is where I tell you, this could change your life.

I’m going to be frank in the next few paragraphs. You might feel that you know me too well by the end of this.

That’s okay.

If I even get a handful of you to consider making this switch, if even one person does make this switch, well then, being candid about my menstrual cycle and the complete and utter failure of traditional feminine protection products will have been worth it.

Today I feel like shouting from the rooftops, I am free. No longer will I deal with pad or tampon failure. No longer will I be stuck wearing panty liners for that utterly annoying pre-period spotting.

I am done with you Tampax and OB. I am done shelling out a lot of money for your expensive products and I am done carting a handful of them around in my handbag. I’m done using bulky pads that leave me wanting to shower five times a day. I’m done with tampons that are uncomfortable and shift and become painful while I’m running or doing a workout.

I’m done with menstrual products that remind me every freaking minute that yes, I have my period and yes, I’m uncomfortable.

That’s no way to live for a week every month.

I’ve found the Diva Cup and I am never going back.

This is a game changer. A GAME CHANGER.

I was hesitant at first. I tried something similar, an early version of a menstrual cup, back in university. It never fit right and at one point I stood up and the thing moved and emptied. Luckily I was at home at the time. I swore off trying alternative menstrual products after that.

But since having a baby I’ve become even more unhappy with what the drug store has to offer. Tampons were painful, didn’t fit right even after testing out going up and then down a size, and let’s just be blunt here: you have to change the thing every time you go pee or you’re walking around with a urine soaked tampon string. Expensive and not a lot of fun.

I tried using pads more but they have their own down falls. Bulky and on a long walk I’d get chaffage. They’re also fantastically messy. No skipping through a field of wild flowers when all you can think about is taking a bath.

The Diva Cup changes all of this. I literally forget I have my period. Sure there has been a learning curve for inserting it and for emptying it. Especially for emptying it. Be patient. Your bathroom might look like a crime scene the first few times. But after some practice I am now on easy street.

The other amazing perk of this system: put it in when you think you’re about to get your period. No more SURPRISE, you need to ditch that lunch date to rush home and change everything below the waist and find some upholstery cleaner for your car. No more wearing a stupid panty liner for three days hoping to “catch it” and then it comes on full flood and you’re up red creek without a paddle.

And I think it’s totally minimalist. Just this little cup that you can get up to a decade of use out of. It has it’s own little bag and is very small. Easy to tuck into a handbag or a cosmetics case while you’re on vacation. Again, no more last minute dash to a corner to store for very overpriced (because they’re already overpriced) tampons.

Okay, I’ve said my bit.

If you are interested in knowing more I’ve linked to sites where you can read more about the Diva Cup. These are not affiliate links and I haven’t been compensated by Diva Cup for writing this. I just feel more women need to know about this awesome alternative so I am shamelessly using my blog to get the word out.

DivaCup.com

To Purchase Canada & Worldwide: Luna Pads

To Purchase in the UK: Moon Times

Has anyone else tried the Diva Cup?

Filed Under: Bathroom, Health

Stop Washing Your Hair: An Experiment in Simple Grooming

March 7, 2012 By theminimalistmom 28 Comments

This might sound like a dare. A dare in the vein of Jackass or a bizarre reality TV show based on personal hygiene stunts.

It’s not.

I just wanted to try something new, something that could simplify my life and save a bit of cash, and see the results. I have a sensitive scalp and get dandruff when the seasons change and if I move and the water is harder or softer than the previous city. So I…

On the no 'poo system

Stopped Using Shampoo on My Hair

If you follow this blog on Facebook you may have seen me post a picture of my hair back in January. I was testing out the no ‘poo method: a light baking soda and water rinse to the roots and apple cider vinegar and water rinse to the ends of the hair (you can get more info on this method here). I tried it for two weeks and then gave it up.

There were two things I didn’t like about the no ‘poo method. The first was fairly legitimate, I didn’t like how my hair felt. It felt quite dry. Now, I have read a lot of comments from others that use this method and have coloured hair as well and there was a mixed bag of “fantastic!” and “couldn’t make it work for me.”

The second reason I didn’t like the method was that I didn’t like pouring cold water on my hair and scalp in a hot shower. I know, what a baby. But the shower is a little haven of personal time for me. I didn’t enjoy getting the shock of a cold water mix on my scalp in the middle of it.

Some of you asked on Facebook if my hair smelled from the no ‘poo method. I didn’t notice any odours, either from the apple cider vinegar or from lack of shampoo. I even got my husband to give it a whiff and he said there was no smell to it.

So after a couple of weeks of the no ‘poo method I went Full Monty.

I Stopped Washing My Hair

Don’t freak out. I still rinsed with water but I gave up on shampoo and the no ‘poo mixtures.

As expected, there was an adjustment period. Even after a good rinse my hair felt heavy at the roots and oily. I kept at it though and the heavy feeling at the roots went away after two weeks.

I got in the habit of brushing my hair before bed and first thing in the morning. This pulled the oils from my scalp further down the hair shaft and I had less of the ‘greasy roots and dry ends’ look and feeling that I had with the no ‘poo method.

Interesting to me is that normally I avoid brushing my hair once it’s air dried or been styled (blow dry + flat iron). More brushing usually means huge fuzzy hair. When I stopped washing my hair, brushing actually kept it styled longer and looking shinier.

My scalp initially felt worse with no hair washing and I was getting dandruff. At the two week mark it started to improve. A week after that and my dandruff was almost gone. This defies the info I found here in a Huffington Post article about not washing your hair.

The plan was to keep going with this method for a few more weeks. I wasn’t convinced it was for me, my hair felt a little too stiff without shampoo, but I wanted to give it a little longer. I hit a roadblock when I got my hair coloured last week. The stylist said he had to use shampoo to get all the colour out.

A Shampoo After Six Weeks of Uber Minimalist Hair Care

You’re probably thinking that getting my hair washed after a month and a half without conventional hair products would be orgasmic. Like a first meal after being stranded on an island.

It wasn’t.

Even the person that shampooed my hair said it didn’t feel dirty or overly greasy.

Sure, it was shinier and felt a bit lighter but it wasn’t a dramatic change.

5 days after getting a cut and colour - haven't washed it yet

After this experiment I’ve decided that while the no ‘poo method isn’t for me, I do like the results from washing my hair less. For now I’m going to play it by ear. I’ll do some stretches of just rinsing my hair and then when I feel it needs a pick me up, I’ll use shampoo.

Anyone else tried the ‘no poo method?

More posts about hair and grooming:

Programming note: I won’t be able to respond to comments or emails for the next day or so. Our little Henry is going into the hospital for surgery to help him breathe and hear better. Fingers crossed for a speedy recovery.

Filed Under: Bathroom, Health Tagged With: bathrooms, hair, no shampoo, toiletries

Why Is The Good Life So Hard?

March 1, 2012 By theminimalistmom 29 Comments

The good life sure takes work.

Decluttering is work.

Buying less is work.

Not watching television can be work.

Eating well, exercising, staying calm when your two year old dumps his scrambled eggs on the carpet, it’s all work.

If the good life is so good, why is it so hard to fit all the pieces together? Why are so many of us overweight, in debt and avoiding all the stuff that’s in the garage?

This has been on my mind a lot lately as I pursue my 2012 word: wellness.

I’ve been eating Paleo for about 70% of my meals since September. When I am off grains, gluten, dairy and anything processed I sleep better, I have more patience with my son and I’m on an even keel emotionally. Hiccups in the day (or night) don’t phase me. I can laugh at the scrambled eggs on the floor instead of doing a “gahhhh!” and adding it to a list of things that went wrong that day. I feel really good when I eat that way.

So why am I not sticking to it all the time?

It’s a big question. And it’s not an easy answer.

When I consider other areas of my life that are going well, particularly ones that I have made big changes in, I can see that it wasn’t one thing that lead to a big change. It was small choice over days, weeks and even years. Many of these choices flew in the face of what is conventionally seen as the good life: car ownership, a bigger home and more stuff.

The modern world has a different idea of what the good life is.

Consumption and convenience are in.

If you’ve decided you want less stuff you’re going to have to fight for it. You’ll be faced with temptation daily. Well meaning friends will innocently invite you on shopping trips. If you’re go-to on a bad day is to walk through Home Sense and see what’s on sale, you’re going to have to find a new stress reliever.

When I’m eating the foods I want to be eating, less than 5% of what’s in most supermarkets is available to me. There’s almost nothing at a convenience store for me to nibble on in a pinch. It’s not convenient to have an unconventional diet. I’m hoping that much like decluttering and getting out of debt, continually making small changes and new habits will help me eventually make the big change. And that…

Living the good life does gets easier.

Making new habits and changing your consumption patterns takes work. It’s not easy in the beginning. I’m reminding myself of that when I falter on my nutrition plans, when I have afternoon tea at Rushen Abbey (if you’re ever here go visit – lovely) and when I wonder if it will ever get easier.

We’re in a nice spot with our stuff and lifestyle, almost on automatic now, and all the work has been worth it. Hoping I get to the same place with my nutrition.

Anyone have tips for making big changes and making them stick? Or comments on the good life being hard.

Below are some good reads on the hurdles, and rewards, of less stuff.

Why We Can’t Buy Happiness – But Try to Anyway If we can’t convince ourselves that money and material possessions won’t bring us happiness, we are forever going to be chasing that golden ring.
12 Ways a Small House has Improved My Life: from Zero Waste Home, a great blog about living small and living green.

Filed Under: Getting Started, Health, inspiration Tagged With: good life, health, wellness

4 easy ways to change your world this Christmas

December 15, 2011 By theminimalistmom 17 Comments

Source: westelm.com via Martha on Pinterest

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. – Margaret Mead

It’s easy to get overwhelmed with the more, more, more and bigger and better this time of year.

I still struggle with it. I see people in town with huge bags of gifts and I think, am I taking something vital away from my son’s childhood or my family’s happiness? Are we missing out by turning our backs to the commercials and urgent call to buy more?

We’re not missing out. We’re leading a richer life. We have less stuff but more time for the things that really matter to us: health, hobbies and each other.

We’re also slowly changing our little corner of the universe. And that feels really good.

You can do it too.

Four easy ways to change your world this Christmas.

Volunteer/Donate: it doesn’t have to be a big cheque or weeks at a soup kitchen. Give what you can where you can. Think different. Instead of sending holiday cards, Jo donates to a cause. See this list from Vicki for different ways to give (if you’re reading this site you’re probably already donating goods to a local charity – well done!).

Buy Local. If you can’t find, or don’t need, something locally made, support a local retailer. Independently owned shops need your business to survive. I know, I know, you can find it cheaper on Amazon. I’m not saying buy everything local this year but aim for 10% of your holiday gifts from a local independent retailer. Enjoy shopping in person in your community and watch your dollars stay where you live. Also, think climate change while you shop.

Give less stuff. Giving more is actually seen as giving less according to this study cited in a Globe and Mail article. While that should be reason enough to curb the overspend this year I will give you one more: the environment. It’s overwhelming to think of the carbon footprint of all that we purchase: out of season produce, electronics manufactured overseas, anything that wasn’t grown and produced locally. Let go of the guilt and simply buy less. One great much wanted gift rather than a sackful of junky filler gifts from the dollar store.

Smile. An easy way to spread abundance and joy this holiday season: smile. Smile on the street, smile at your children, smile at your spouse. It is contagious. It feels good. It’s good for your health. A smile is the easiest way to go viral.

My last tip: put up some mistletoe. I found fresh mistletoe the other day and couldn’t resist. Christmas 2011 will now be known as the kissing Christmas in our family.

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