Looking back on this minimalist journey, I wish I could have shared every step with you. I’m a little late, but later than never, right?

I started with two little ones and an idea; to live simply and consciously to contribute to a better future for the two tiny humans I was gifted to nurture.

I started by asking myself one simple question; what can I live without?

The hardest part wasn’t living without the things I had grown custom to having at my disposal. And it wasn’t that difficult to get a rhythm of donating items that we no longer used. I found it most difficult when I had to explain to others.

We live in a world were we are taught having more means we are successful. That if we have less, it’s because it’s all we can afford. What about making a choice to have less? What about making choices about what we have for the sheer pleasure that we care and are living on one shared planet? We are, in fact, connected even at measurable distances.

When I think of everything I tried to find balance between the convenient lifestyle we call modern and living simple, I laugh. From removing all paper and plastic products from my home, but dealing with toddlers breaking glass. To growing our own food and trying to keep up with how quickly organic foods parish.

Each attempt was worth it! Because at least I felt like I was trying.

Now a decade later, I have two daughters who understand to some degree why we live the way we do. After all, the less we consume the more we have to give and share. And the less to keep up with and clean.

This past year, we moved from our home of eight years to a new home. Everything we owned fit in half of our living room. With no storage or garage, I was finally “proud” of myself; I had finally obtain a lifestyle that made my heart flutter.

I let my soul guide me to this point, though I know we all have our beliefs that lead us to a sustainable living. We may call it something different or it may be purely ethical. And I think it’s a little bit of everything for me; it’s spiritual, ethical, sustainable, humanitarian, organizational and simple.

As we get further and further from our roots, we find ourselves full circle, back where we started. So my journey is one of simplifying everything including my spirituality, health, fitness, beauty, home, fashion and parenthood.

To see so many choose to jump on this path to a sustainable future is exciting. I know the challenges living a minimalist lifestyle with busy schedules, little ones, in the city, and working. It’s a juggling and balancing act.

My hope is that I will continue to grow and share the next decade with others. Because we are all in this together!