Emily Ley

Joy, Simplicity and What Matters Most

Search Results for: Simplifying 2017

Simplifying 2017, Part 4: Your Heart

Friends! Welcome to the last installment of our Simplifying 2017 series. This topic is a big one. How many of you spent 2016 frazzled, anxious, and tired? Me too. 2016 was a LOT around here. Good things, but lots of things. I felt stretched very thin. And I reached a point about 3/4 of the way through the year where I realized something had to change. In September of 2016, I was diagnosed with Hashimotos – a journey I’ve yet to really talk about to anyone other than my close friends and family. Hashimotos is an auto-immune disease that affects your thyroid. My “stretched-thin” feeling compounded with my health issues to leave me ready for a fresh start. So, while this post is focusing on “simplifying your heart,” what I really want to call it is “simplifying your frame of mind, focusing on the things that really matter, and taking care of ourselves.”

  1. Decide what lifestyle you’re after in 2017: I love the idea of coming up with a word for every year. My focus next year is “well.” I want to live well, love well, and continue to fill my well so that I can love my people… well. During 2016, after discovering my thyroid issue, I sat down (or laid down, tearily), and took serious inventory of my life. Work, during 2016, was really busy. Travel was at its peek. “Taking care of my body” was pretty low on my priority list. I’d (yet again) fallen into that trap where we, as women, think we have to put ourselves last to love our people well. NO. No. No. We also made a giant business decision that will change the trajectory of our business (and family) for the better.
  2. Make plans for nourishing yourself: Oh how I love the word nourish. “Nourish” is defined as “to provide with the food or other substances necessary for growth, health, and good condition.” YES. Yes. Yes. I invested in nourishment for my body and soul in all the ways after this realization. Vitamins. Water instead of tons of coffee (well…). Sleep at 10pm. Reading fiction books. Learning to cook (oh yea!). Having friends over at least once a week. Saying yes to coffee dates. Finding out what foods support my health and what foods do not (been gluten free since September). Trying new types of exercise (hot yoga! pilates! pure barre!). The idea that I don’t have time for these things is just CRAZY. And wrong. It’s a lie. I made time. That diagnosis snapped me into reality and these changes suddenly became paramount, necessary, and not optional. Do I feel different? I don’t even have words. I speak slower. I sleep better. My “recovery” has been and continues to be a journey, but its one I’m grateful to be on.
  3. Make a simple yes and no list: What are you saying yes and no to next year? I had to say no to a lot of things for 2017. And I chose to say yes to a few things too. Like writing another book. :) By the time this post is live, I’ll be knee deep and my heart is ready.

I’m wishing each of you a 2017 that is fresh and full of meaningful experiences. xo, Emily

—

Check out Parts 1, 2, and 3 of our Simplifying 2017 series for lots of fun giveaways, discounts, tips and more as we head into the new year. And, if you haven’t picked up your Simplified Planner yet, now’s the time! Orders over $100 get FREE domestic shipping until January 2 (and Happy Stripe is almost sold out)! Get yours before they’re gone! AND my book, Grace, Not Perfection, is on sale on Amazon for under $10 (for a limited time)!! The e-book is just $3.99! Check it out here.

—

GIVEAWAY

Today we’ve teamed up with two of our very favorite brands to bring you the last giveaway of our Simplifying 2017 series! We’re giving away a gift card to purchase your very own set of PowerSheets from Cultivate What Matters, a $100 gift card to Amen Paper Company (their inspirational canvases are perfect to hang on your wall in 2017!), a monogrammed Simplified Planner bundle, and a copy of Emily’s book, Grace, Not Perfection.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

join our mailing list for news + special offers

Simplifying 2017, Part 3: Your Routines

This part of our “Simplifying 2017” series was the part I’ve been most excited to write. I firmly believe that traditions, routines, habits, and systems make people feel safe, secure, and like they belong to something within a home. I think repetition like this makes us feel steady. And when we feel steady, we feel peaceful. My mom and dad worked a lot of these things into our family when my brother and I were growing up – particularly around household chores and holiday traditions. And these are the two areas I’ve found myself focusing on within my home. My kids thrive on structure and love to know what’s next, what’s expected, and what to look forward to. These routines don’t have to be complicated, but being consistent with them will really change the game for your efficiency and, I believe, for the ways you love your family too.

SIMPLIFYING YOUR ROUTINES

  1. Create simple traditions: On Sundays, we eat cinnamon rolls. I buy them by the can at the grocery store and pop them in the oven a few minutes before everyone wakes up. The smell inevitably draws Brady down the stairs. And then twins start pointing at the oven saying, “Bite! bite!” as soon as they come into the room. It’s super easy and seems somewhat insignificant but Brady KNOWS we have cinnamon rolls on Sundays. He starts talking about them on Saturday afternoon. There’s something about the fact that he knows it’s going to happen that makes him feel happy, loved, taken care of.
  2. Establish routines for household chores: Laundry. Do I need to say more? Gracious. Sometimes I feel like it’s going to drown me. I’ve gone through phases where I’ll wake up a few minutes early every day, pop a load in, and get it folded and put away before anyone wakes up. Those days are great. But in some seasons, that doesn’t happen. Instead, I chose Wednesdays and Sundays as our laundry tackling days. Bryan knows that once the kids go to bed, it’s folding time (I move it and get it processed through during the day and dump it on our guest room bed). Together, we watch TV and fold laundry, then put it all away. Because I know laundry will get taken care of on Wednesdays and Sundays, I don’t worry about the piling up that happens during the other days of the week.
  3. Decide who does what: Eight years ago, when Bryan and I were newlyweds, we took some advice from my Mom (who did this with our family of four when I was a kid) and wrote every single household chore down on post-it notes. We spread them out on a poster board and started choosing. I took the ones I knew I could accomplish (and some I even enjoyed doing) and Bryan did the same. Eight years later, he STILL takes the trash out to the street and folds the majority of the laundry and I still empty the dishwasher and plan the meals.

—

Check out Part 1 and Part 2 of our Simplifying 2017 series, and don’t forget to come back tomorrow for Part 4, along with lots of fun giveaways, discounts, tips and more as we head into the new year. And, if you haven’t picked up your Simplified Planner yet, now’s the time! Orders over $100 get FREE domestic shipping until January 2 (and Happy Stripe is almost sold out)! Get yours before they’re gone! AND my book, Grace, Not Perfection, is on sale on Amazon for under $10 (for a limited time)!! The e-book is just $3.99! Check it out here.

—

GIVEAWAY

Today we’ve teamed up with our friends over at Minted to give away a $150 gift card (we ADORE their custom art prints!), along with a copy of The Life-Giving Home by Sally and Sarah Clarkson, Make it Happen by Lara Casey, Grace, Not Perfection by Emily Ley, and a monogrammed Simplified Planner bundle.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Simplifying 2017, Part 2: Your Home

When it comes to simplifying your home, I tend to take a little bit of a different approach than what you might see on Pinterest, per say. “Over-organizing” is a thing, friends. There is such a thing (brace yourselves) as too many labels, too many boxes and bins, and too much organization. Here’s why: I don’t know about you, but I actually live in my house. Actually, five of us do! And, truth be told, our schedules are a little wonky, our laundry gets a little out of hand, and we tend to reach points where we simply have too much stuff. So, “organization” for my home is flexible, imperfect, and flexible (oh, did I say that already?). I need to be able to clean up in a cinch and find things with a toddler (or two) hanging from my leg.

SIMPLIFYING YOUR HOME

  1. Declutter. When in doubt, the answer is goodbye: See Justin Timberlake et al explain this concept here. I really curbed my shopping habit this year when I realized how much stuff I gave / threw away. Physical clutter = mental clutter and to me, with a family and a business to manage, I need as little mental clutter as possible. This can take a while and that’s ok. Go through your home and get rid of things. Out with the old, in with the new.
  2. Fresh up, then give everything a home: Now that you have a clean slate to start with, look at the way your home is laid out. Is there any way you could rearrange furniture or even get rid of furniture to make your home work better for your lifestyle / family? Remember this: your home should be a place of rest. Home is where we go to rejuvenate, recharge, reconnect and rest. It should feel comfortable and fresh. That doesn’t mean you need to spend a ton of money on decorations or new furniture. It simply means that you need to make what you have work for you. Once you feel good about the way the big pieces are laid out, make sure everything has a home. Do you have random junk drawers and baskets that need to be addressed? Dump everything from these places in a laundry basket and slowly sort / put away.
  3. Create a command-central spot: When we moved into our new home, we had this random short wall that I wasn’t sure what to do with. I ended up putting a dry erase board calendar (monthly format) on it and setting a small table against it. It serves as the place backpacks are dropped, homework is kept, and our schedules / meal plan lives. It’s nice to know those daily-use items have a place and our family has one spot to go-to to know what’s going on.

—

Don’t forget to read Part 1 of our Simplifying 2017 series, and check back all week long for Parts 3 + 4 and for lots of fun giveaways, discounts, tips and more as we head into the new year. And, if you haven’t picked up your Simplified Planner yet, now’s the time! Orders over $100 get FREE domestic shipping until January 2 (and Happy Stripe is almost sold out)! Get yours before they’re gone! AND my book, Grace, Not Perfection, is on sale on Amazon for under $10 (for a limited time)!! The e-book is just $3.99! Check it out here.

—

GIVEAWAY

We’re thrilled to be teaming up with some of our very favorite brands for today’s giveaway! Enter below to win $250 towards virtual services from The Home Edit, $30 towards “How to Organize Photos” in the Nancy Ray Shop, a $250 Framebridge gift card, a monogrammed Simplified Planner bundle, and a copy of Grace, Not Perfection by Emily Ley. 

Giveaway winners will be contacted on Monday, January 2nd. Open to U.S. Residents only (sorry, International friends!). 

 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Simplifying 2017, Part 1: Your Schedule

Over the years, the idea of “simplifying” has changed a lot for me. Simplifying used to mean “finding ways to achieve perfection.” You know the feeling: you’ve spent all day working tediously and now your home is spotless, everything is in its place, laundry is completed and hung neatly in your closet, a candle is gently flickering on your kitchen counter, the week ahead is perfectly planned, groceries are shopped, chopped, and prepared for the week ahead. You’ve got this. You’ve achieved perfection.

I would pay about a gazillion dollars for that feeling right now. But with three small children (of whom two are toddlers – who should probably each count double), it’s either a very fleeting feeling or one that’s simply unachievable at this stage of life. Ok, so what do we do? Do I simply give in to the fact that this is just the season of chaos? I don’t. Instead, I redefine GOOD. My goal is GOOD, not perfect. A few weeks ago, while reading to the unbelievably beautiful book, The Life-Giving Home by Sally and Sarah Clarkson, I decided to try something new. Instead of redefining perfection during this crazy part of life, I decided to simply redefine GOOD. What does “good” look like? What is it I’m actually after with all my work and chores and plans and tasks and goals?

I’m after slow, sweet, rich, meaningful days. I know they won’t happen every day, but I’m after these moments. I’m after unplugged-ness. I’m after creativity, mess, and imagination. I’m after simple, easily executed routines and systems that are rooted in the foundation of a family who sincerely knows what’s most important. I’m after a home in which others feel loved, cared for, and restful. Redefining what you’re after changes. the. game. Now, let’s look at 2017 with fresh eyes and a fresh heart.

SIMPLIFYING YOUR SCHEDULE

1. Find a system that works for you. COMMIT. No matter what the size of your family is, managing the day-to-day of 1, 2, or 12 people is hard. With so many things pulling at our attention and requiring our time, It’s imperative to find and implement a simple system that works for your life. This might be iCal, a planner (hey, I know of a good one), a dry erase board, or a calendar taped to your fridge. Whatever you choose, commit to it. COMMIT. That means you look at it every single day, multiple times a day. You put EVERYTHING in it. All the things. Do not leave anything out. Do not skip go. Whatever you’re using WILL become messy. That is okay. That’s what magic erasers and baby wipes and pencil erasers were made for. Make your system work for you.

2. Make space. Say no. Unsubscribe. What happens when our closets become OVERFULL? We can’t find our favorite jeans. We have a hard time appreciating the nice things we own. We stress trying to get dressed every day. We buy tons of pricey shoe organizers and none of them “get us organized.” Why? Because we own 17 pairs of flip flops. Sometimes, it isn’t our lack of organizational tools that’s the problem. It’s our overabundance of things. Same can be said for our schedules. When you are overcommitted, over-stretched, and under fed / rested / fueled then it’s hard to even see straight. It’s impossible to manage a crazy schedule well. Take a few minutes to take inventory of your daily, weekly, and monthly commitments. Where can you simply remove some of these? Let it go. (Elsa said it best).

3. Make monthly lists of “must do” fun activities and memories to make. January: Take one bag from each child’s closet to Goodwill together. Visit the library to check out books. Have a movie night at home with friends. // February: Make homemade valentines. Bake heart shaped cookies for our neighbors. Update framed photos in our home with more recent ones. Each month, write out a few things you’d love to do. These should be well-filling, soul-lightening, memory-making tasks. Schedule them like you would a dentist appointment. Remember, these don’t have to cost any money at all. In fact, most, if not all, of the examples here are totally free. All it takes is a little commitment and time to invest in yourself and the ones you love.

—

Check back tomorrow for Part 2 of our Simplifying 2017 series and for lots of fun giveaways, discounts, tips and more as we head into the new year. And, if you haven’t picked up your Simplified Planner yet, now’s the time! Orders over $100 get FREE domestic shipping until January 2 (and Happy Stripe is almost sold out)! Get yours before they’re gone! AND my book, Grace, Not Perfection, is on sale on Amazon for under $10 (for a limited time)!! The e-book is just $3.99! Check it out here.

—

GIVEAWAY

We’ve teamed up with some of our favorite brands to bring you four days of amazing giveaways to help you simplify in 2017. Today’s giveaway includes a three month subscription to Spotify, a $50 gift card to May Designs (some of our very favorite customizeable notebooks- perfect to use alongside your Simplified Planner!), a monogrammed Simplified Planner bundle, and a copy of Grace, Not Perfection. 

Giveaway winners will be contacted on Monday, January 2nd. Open to U.S. Residents only (sorry, International friends!). 

a Rafflecopter giveaway