Minimalist

The first time I heard about being a Minimalist was about a year and a half ago. I was reading an article about a couple that had a very small house, with very little furniture, bare walls and very few belongings. They had 1 pot, 1 pan, 1 set of dishes (you get the idea), only NECESSITIES, and they only had about 40 personal item's each. I went home and told my husband about it and said "I so want to be that person!". He pretty much laughed in my face and said I wouldn't survive a week...ok so maybe that exact thing did not happen, but it might as well have. Basically, he didn't think I could do it and until I did it, there was no way he was doing it.
At the time we were living in a one bedroom apartment but were about to be looking for a house. I thought moving into a house would be the perfect opportunity to begin minimalism. 11 months after moving in though, it seems like our belonging's have tripled! How the heck is that possible?!

I was reminded recently about Minimalism by a friend on FB who posted this article: 10 Reasons Minimalism May Be Right For You. And until I actually read this I never really knew WHY I thought minimalism was right for me. Out of the 10 reasons he list's there are 4 that really stood out to me:
(the following numbered items are directly from the post here)

1. Do you spend too much time cleaning?

If you enjoy clean, tidy rooms but don’t like to clean, minimalism just may be your answer. After all, the easiest way to reduce your cleaning time is to simply own less things. It works every time.

2. Is there too much stress in your life?

Physical clutter results in extra stress on our lives. Minimalism removes the clutter and limits the distraction that it causes. Minimalism may be just the breath of fresh air that your home needs to help you relax and unwind.

3. Would you like more time in your day?

Consider for just a moment the amount of time that our belongings drain from our life. Whether we are cleaning, organizing, maintaining, repairing, removing, or shopping, our possessions demand a large percentage of our time. Owning fewer of them results in less time spent maintaining them.

4. Are you environmentally conscious?

Minimalism reduces our impact on the environment by requiring less resources on the front end for production and reducing the amount of waste on the back end.

I came to the realization that I AM ready to be that person, the one who doesn't stress about everything, including cleaning, and not having enough time in the day. I am 49% sure I will fail but the good thing about that percentage is that I am 51% sure I will succeed. I am determined to make this possible and hope that my husband will be supportive. We will be starting this weekend in the Garage... wish me luck!