8 Minimalist Ideas For Our Children

Typically my youngsters are the most important reminders of what it means to dwell life extra deliberately. At a younger age, their youthful innocence and unfiltered feedback (usually embarrassingly trustworthy) resonate with me as they take on the planet round them.

The opposite day, my daughter made a comment that made me understand how a lot she actually is perceiving and why it issues. She was noticing how a lot “stuff” another person had and the diploma of litter and overwhelm it had prompted them.

However even at 6-years-old, she realized a major change in the best way our household has chosen to dwell.

My husband and I are nonetheless comparatively new to our minimalism journey and definitely don’t dwell in a “magazine-worthy minimalist house”, however we do have on a regular basis practices and routines which have influenced our want to dwell deliberately.

Selecting to dwell with much less stuff, spending our cash on what we worth most, and deciding tips on how to greatest use our time are habits we’ve chosen to instill into our personal lives.

We’ve seen the advantages for ourselves as adults and wish to share this way of life with our youngsters too, so on this submit I’ll share 8 classes in minimalism that we purpose to show them as they develop into extra unbiased thinkers.

8 Classes in Minimalism For Our Children

Be glad about what you will have.

It’s wonderful how the “maintaining with the Jones’s” mentality kicks in at such an early age. Children discover what others have and instantly the grass is greener on the opposite aspect. It’s actually okay to have needs and needs, however educating our youngsters to be thankful for the objects they do have and never continually wishing for extra is a more healthy strategy to dwell.

You don’t want a buffet of decisions to be completely happy.

In relation to breakfast and lunch, we purpose to maintain our choices fairly easy and wholesome however extra restricted in selection. I’ve realized that youngsters don’t want an enormous quantity of decisions to be well-fed and glad, however moderately consistency regularly in order that they’re taught wholesome patterns moderately than steady novelty.

Extra isn’t all the time higher.

With three (quickly to be 4) younger youngsters operating round the home, they every have their pursuits in toys and actions they get pleasure from taking part in with. Years in the past, I used to assume that so as to have a “enjoyable house”, we wanted to have bins stuffed with toys and plenty of many decisions to keep away from boredom.

I’ve discovered that too many toys create extra overwhelm of what to play with, to not point out a a lot larger quantity to be cleaned up on the finish of the day.

We’ve utilized a toy rotation system (swapping out toys each few months) and permit every of the youngsters to have a “particular toy drawer” of their room the place they will hold solely what suits inside that drawer.

Stay generously.

With a number of siblings and the interplay with neighborhood playmates, our youngsters have alternatives to follow sharing and being beneficiant regularly. Whereas we nonetheless observe some egocentric habits (as a result of they’re nonetheless youngsters in any case), we purpose to assist them see that what makes them completely happy would possibly make another person really feel the identical approach.

Easy notes of encouragement, sharing toys, or doing an sudden act of service are tangible ways in which we encourage our youngsters to dwell generously.

Each merchandise has a house.

When each merchandise has a logical and life like house to be returned to, it permits for lots much less litter from toys, soiled garments, and sneakers. Instructing our youngsters this behavior from a younger age encourages them to place issues again the place they belong as a substitute of on the ground or counter tops.

By limiting the variety of issues they personal (toys, garments, or different belongings) we assist them have a manageable quantity of things to place away regularly.

Contribute as a valued member of our house.

As adults, we tackle many of the tasks round the home. However as our youngsters grow old and extra unbiased, we anticipate them to assist to tackle a few of the family tasks. By giving them age-appropriate chores, we imagine that this teaches them to worth their house and possessions.

Worth experiences over “issues”.

Like most kids, our youngsters undoubtedly get pleasure from getting new toys and “trinkets” (as Mike refers to all of the random little objects they purchase). What we wish to educate them is that each one of our “issues” received’t hold us completely happy perpetually. Toys break, garments get holes/stains, and snacks/treats are a short lived pleasure.

What is going to they most keep in mind years down the highway? Hopefully the household holidays and day journeys we took, splashing within the creek on summer time days, Sunday dinners at Grandma’s, having campfires within the hearth, our weekly do-it-yourself pizza and film nights, or the 1:1 dates we took with every of them.

P.S. Making a yearly household picture e-book is one in all our favourite methods to look again and keep in mind all of the enjoyable recollections we’ve had through the years.

It’s okay to dwell otherwise.

This one will definitely take a few years to understand and follow, however simply because neighbors and pals have sure issues, doesn’t imply we additionally must have them to dwell a cheerful life. What makes others glad won’t have the identical impact on us. We purpose to show them to like others and that life is greater than only a pursuit of our personal pleasures.

Concerning the Writer: Mollie (and her husband, Mike) weblog at This Evergreen Home the place they share their expertise with dwelling merely, deliberately, and relationally on this trendy world. You’ll be able to comply with alongside by subscribing to their weekly publication.