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I read this great article this morning, called Living With Less, and it is such a fantastic reminder to live simply. We often measure success in material possessions, and that is wrong, plain and simple. To have more is not to live better. Don’t get me wrong, having money to provide a comfortable life is important, but do we really need to take it to the level of excess that we have become so accustomed to? I am guilty of exercising retail therapy to make myself feel better after a rough week. We have a 1600 sq ft home for the two of us and our pets, and I know we would be just fine in a smaller home. I’m not going to do anything dramatic like sell our home, or donate all of our possessions, but I’m going to challenge myself to think more about need vs want.

Lately, I have been complaining about my lack of spring clothes, so perhaps the answer is to shop my closet and re-invent a little. Of course, I will buy a few things, but keeping this article in mind will help put my insatiable appetite to buy, buy, buy in check. Let’s be honest here, it’s not the material things that make us happy, it’s the feeling we get when we buy something new. I do have a few possessions that make me happy, but about 90% of my possessions made me happy the moment I bought them, but that feeling does not return when I look at them now. If you think long and hard about what makes you happy, I’m sure there’s a long list, and that this list has very little to do with “things”. Snuggling my pups after a long day makes me happy. Kissing my nephew on the forehead makes me happy. Being outside makes me happy. Holding hands with my husband makes me happy. Today’s BGD is about living simply. Step one for me is to return the new top I just bought. Baby steps, right?

xo