On Living Simply and Staying Happy
On Living Simply and Staying Happy
Living within our means is one great lesson I've learned from becoming a mom and a homemaker. I've learned to live simply so we could live comfortably. I kissed my being a one day millionaire goodbye. That way, I've learned to budget, spend less, and be happy with what we have, and can afford.
The first thing that I've learned to do was to save. To give you an idea on how we did it, in our first year of marriage, Alex and I didn't dine out more than thrice a month, brought baon to our workplace every day, and lived a really simple life so we could save up for the baby that we were expecting.
Looking back, it made me realize that from that experience, I've learned to be somehow financially wise. Our keeps didn't increase dramatically but because we've learned how to handle what we have from the very start, we're comfortable. Here are the little lessons I've learned on staying simple and living a happy life.
1. Spend Less. I've learned to find ways to spend less. I create indoor activities for my kid, cook at home for the family, and spend a lazy afternoon just watching TV at home or reading a book instead of going out. I've also unsubscribed from alluring shopping email blasts. ;)
2. Slow down to enjoy what you are doing. I do rebel against my hectic lifestyle by slowing down to enjoy life. Every day, I look forward to playing with my toddler after work. And at night, when I put my son to bed, I share a story, take things slowly, and savor that very moment. When I watch him falling asleep, that is when I can truly say that my day ended blissfully.
3. Really plan your spending. We were so tempted to loan a brand new car last month but after careful rethinking, we both agreed to postpone it. We thought we could afford the monthly mortgage, but then we've realized that it will greatly affect our family's budget for other things. We agreed we couldn't trade spending extra for our simple family dates and pleasures in place of a brand new car. Time will come we know....when we won't need to give up our little joys for a car.
4. Sprinkle your life with little pleasures. Our little boy is fascinated with musical instruments and toy cars; Alex loves gadgets; I like bags and flats. For us to enjoy these little pleasures, we try to save up for them. When we have enough to spend, we splurge a little to keep us energized to work harder.
5. Find other ways to earn. We're working on finding other ways to earn such as establishing a small business someday. I am also thankful for having this blog, it somehow pays the bills. :)
5. Dream together. And make that dream come true. My husband, son and I dream together and we all look at the same direction in order for us to reach that dream. Right now, we are praying for a home. Baby steps we are taking, we started by buying a 204sqm residential lot last year. A few months from now, we dream to see our home in blue print... and in a few more months there after, we dream to see it being built. In God's perfect time, we know we will eventually move to our very own Home.
Simple living is coloful, and beautiful.
