Yup. Youngest just ditched all of the Barbies with scary hair and LOL surprise dolls with missing heads. This is the first year where she really understood the process. She dumped out her personal toy bin, picked out what was broken or she didn't enjoy anymore. The broken stuff went into the trash. The stuff that she doesn't enjoy went into the donation bag. All of the remaining dollies had their hair brushed and styled. The toys all went back into the bin and were put away. It took 20 minutes. It used to take 2-3 hours.

If that's your thing, go for it. This was a minimalist thread, and sometimes minimalism and consumerism don't go well together..... Choosing to lean one way or the other tends to lean to differing purchasing decisions.

I often just use evening primrose oil to moisturize....or apricot....but I have my first age spot and other aging skin issues I would love to address.

I had similar problems with Oil of Olay Regenerist. There are some acids in there that I am probably reacting to. Need to sort that out, actually....wish there was an easier way to figure it all out other than trial and error.

Does anyone else volunteer during instructional time? How have your experiences been? I volunteer weekly during language arts to run small group activities.

I like CeraVe’s Skin Renewing Day Cream with SPF. Now that I am older and in a colder climate, I need something heavier than Oil of Olay. It has anti-aging add-ins.

Fwiw, amazon carries a lot of off brand stuff. The Etekcity camping stove is good, with piezo ignition and is $14 rather than $60 like a whisper light. If you are budget conscious, I wanted to share that tip!

Also, if you are close to a REI, joining can be worth it, especially if you take advantage of coupons and sales.

The four gifts rule is crazy in large households. That would be 24 new items in the house! Why does Christmas need to be hyperfocused on gift giving? I am asking sincerely. I wish as a culture we could move away from the consumerism.

Thank you for saying that about Easter lilies. I have the same issue and thought I was the only one who couldn’t stand them for that reason.

The gear list gets to be expensive. If you can ease into it by buying a nice camping pad here or a backpacking stove there....you can have a nice set by the time they are ready to be fitted for a proper hiking backpack.

I filed a warranty claim on our broken ice maker (refrigerator). I always hesitate to buy extended warranties, but the Home Depot clerk urged me to because of claims he was seeing. Our fridge is four years old. Thankfully I bought a five year extended warranty. Repair guy is scheduled for day after tomorrow....we’ll see how this plays out.

A thought: one thing that helps me stay minimalistic is that I have a defined storage space. Like you, I have no attic or basement. So, I have space in my garage for two not-huge storage bins for holiday decorations. I see all kinds of cute stuff in the stores right now but I also know that I have no ability to store more unless I get rid of something so I just don’t buy stuff. I have the same concept for everything else in my house..:everything has a place and if something new comes in, that generally means that something old has worn out and is gone.

We have been working towards eating plant based for some time. It’s more sustainable to ease into it, I think, because it is quite the adjustment. We eat a lot more Indian food than we used to. It’s easier to eat new delicious recipes than substitute stuff in trying to redo old favorite meals. I personally do not like many vegan substitutes. Just the smell of veganaise and cashew cheese sets me off.

We went through a major purge four years ago. We maintained and then did a second round two years ago when we could get rid of all of the baby/toddler gear. We have maintained since then and continue to, every few months, go through and do a mini-purge/deep tidy cycle. I live with naturally unorganized people and they need support—clearing off surfaces, cleaning out hidden storage (baskets,etc). The kids still talk about when we were in an apartment during the last relo—we had very few personal objects but it was so freeing.