Contrary to what our culture suggests, simplicity is beautiful.

A vivid painting of a country home amidst magnificent mountains. A marvelous sunset…a peaceful meadow…a crystal clear creek…these are a few of the beautiful yet simple things that inspire me, that bring life to my soul.

 I missed it. I missed the era in which women wore those amazingly big and beautiful dresses, when they used a washboard to do their laundry, hung their clothes out in the sun to dry, baked bread from scratch and wore aprons daily. I am that kind of woman…I think I just was born in the wrong era! 🙂 I want to go back, go back to living a simple yet full life. A life where the things that mattered were the things done. A life that embraced simplicity, contentment, hard work and shuns the westernized culture we live in. So, I am going to do it!!! I am buying a washboard along with everything needed to wash our clothes and in the process teach my sweet girls how to be a Prov 31 woman…a hard working woman. It will be such a bonding time for our family. All of us, washing clothes (barely), talking, sharing, growing together in love and grace.

Sometimes the process is more important than the outcome. This is one of those things. I want to impart in them a desire to work with their hands, to love their family and to be willing to go the extra mile to ensure they have the BEST in every area entrusted to her care. I strongly believe we are a society of women who honestly don’t have much of a backbone (me included). I believe this is the way we were raised. We weren’t taught and encouraged to work diligently with our hands passed the point of tiredness for the good of our precious husbands and children. We are a fast food, drive through, I wanted it yesterday kind of society and I want no part in it. It will be hard making this transition but I am committed to go back. To go back to what I believe is the model of a godly woman. A woman who is not stopped by a mere headache but a woman who pushes through and gets the job done because she has to, her family is counting on her. I have to train myself on days that I do not feel particularly well to push through and get it done…not just to make it through but to do my job excellently. I don’t want to make my own bread for the sake of making it, but I want my children to love making things from scratch. I want them to remember mommy wearing an apron, singing songs about Jesus with them while we made homemade bread for when daddy got home from work. THAT, is the kind of legacy I want to leave to my children. They deserve it.

 I want them to be surrounded by beauty…flowers…grass…a beautiful painting that whisks you away into a perfect place or a good piece of music. I want them to find beauty in simple things that we take for granted every single day. I want them to find beauty in the smell of home cooking, in our clothes swaying in the breeze while the warm rays of the sun do their trick, in a meal together. Beauty in simplicity because simplicity is absolutely beautiful. I want the same for my precious husband. I want him to be surrounded by beauty, beauty that inspires him to be the hero of this story…of my story. A candle…a rose…a a good ol’ book. A woman by his side that offers beauty to him by her quiet and gentle spirit. By her sacrificial love and patience, her motivation and endurance. I don’t want my family to miss it. I don’t want to get so caught up in this world I miss the greater life God intended for us to live. I want to live fully…every moment…every breath and find beauty in the simplest things because someone who finds beauty in simplicity is NEVER disappointed. 🙂  So, I am going back! Are you coming with me? Sometimes less is more. Less tv, less magazines, less business, less worry and more simplicity…more time to soak in the precious moments that only happen once. Our precious little ones grow up so fast. Stop and soak in the moment you have with them. Put the dishes down…stop worrying about how everything should be and embrace what everything IS, ohhh and how beautiful it is indeed. Love on them, spend time with them, teach them…train them up in the ways of the Lord. YES, it will take twice as long to get things done but so what?! They are more important, the journey is more important. Life is a journey NOT a destination. Our role is to be the home administrator…what are we actively doing to bring our family together? Create moments they will never forget! Bring a blanket outside on a starry night and have dinner under the stars and talk about the heavens and the creator of it all, right in your backyard. Grab a sheet and 4 chairs and make a tent for your kiddos, sit under it with them and have lunch…another opportunity to shepherd their heart. Make themed dinners. Like Noah’s Arc…buy the disposable plates and animal decorations (you can even find them at the dollar store), talk about Noah and the flood…There are so many things we can do to shepherd our little ones right to our Savior’s arms. We just need to get our priorities straight. Our house, our dishes, our car, our laundry is not our priority, our children should be. Simplicity will allow me to spend more time with them. It will allow me to make God real to them as I work to build them up as young ladies and men of integrity and character. Hard working, loving, devoted, sold out for Christ!

Live fully and be present wherever you are! ❤