Hello, I'm back!

Well guys, it's been a while. Almost three months actually. Believe it or  not, I've been busy. I went and got married and then worked on winding down my first year as a school-based therapist. As I type this, I'm officially enjoying my first of eight weeks off this summer. It's my first time since high school that I've had a summer off. I've spent my summers working, in school, or in Costa Rica, and I can't tell you how happy I am that I get this opportunity to get things done. Normally I'd joke about how I plan on doing absolutely nothing this summer, but realistically, I plan on doing all the things I already needed to do. I plan on catching up on some projects. I plan on doing housework on a regular basis. I plan on making our wedding album and working on wedding videos. I plan on organizing all the crap we've decided to keep in the house. I plan on going to the gym about every day. And don't get me wrong, I plan on getting tan. I also plan on seeing the ocean at some point. And spending some time with my mister mans. And at some point I need to catch up on Grey's Anatomy! So you see, I'll be busy. ;)

I am really really really working on simplifying everything around here. I've been super anal about getting rid of random paperwork laying around, donating clothes I we never wear, and finding a home for every little random thing I find. As you can guess, Alex has really been enjoying it. Haha!

I do plan on getting back to blogging. I really enjoy it...not quite sure why. I don't know that anyone really reads this thing, so sometimes I feel like I'm blogging for nothing or no one. But then every now and then I'll hear from a friend or stranger who comments about something I've blogged about. So, what the heck! I'll just keep on keepin' on and see what happens. I have some stuff I want to blog about, but I've learned from the past not to make any promises.

Until then, enjoy your summer day(s)!

♥,
Nicole

Live Simply

DISCLAIMER: This blog post is going to make me sound like a horrible, materialistic person who can't tell you the difference between want and need and who has zero self-control. Don't judge me. Just sayin'.

I must admit. I do not "live simply," although that is something I strive to do. I want to embark on a personal journey to live more simply. I'll be honest. My life is chaotic, and I'm always running, and even though I HATE {with a passion} clutter....it surrounds me! I blame it on space. Or, well, I used to. I do wanna give myself props because after moving for the TENTH time in six years, I started throwing things away. Of COURSE I accumulated crap over the years. But now, my closet's tinier than ever before and I am just sick sick sick of so many little things overwhelming my life!

Basically I need to reevaluate what I have "room" for in my life. Unnecessary stress is not needed nor welcomed in my life...and it's something I MUST get rid of ASAP to make more room for the things that are truly important! I know this process will be a baby-step-kind-of thing, but I am willing to make it happen! ;)

NOTE:  These are just a couple things I strive to do in the near future. This list is mostly personal, and is a part of a {more than likely} never-ending list. Again, please don't judge me by my list. ;)

Step 1: Get rid of stupid negativity on social networking sites. Tonight, as silly as it seems, I deleted a bunch of negative people & celebs from my twitter account because I did not want to crowd my life with negativity of all things! So, step one: complete! ;)

Step 2: Organizing all my jewelry that seems to land all over my bedroom and bathroom. I can not wait for Santa Claus to give me my jewelry armoire! We found it at Sears for $85... yes, Santa & I shop together! ;) I can not wait to put all my jewelry in ONE place and keep it out of the way!! Step two is half-way checked of....just gotta wait until December 25th!!

Step 3: Operation Makeup Organization!  My makeup is SUFFOCATING ME! It's literally overtaking my bathroom and I KNOW I don't wear all that makeup! It's time for a purge!! I am wanting a makeup train for Christmas. I need to research the best prices for a good one! Like I said before, I want to have a makeup set I keep in my bathroom, and a makeup set for travel. There's no reason for all this makeup crap to stress me out as much as it does....and getting rid of it {all} is not an option! ;)

Step 4: Minimize the closet. Gastonia is getting a Plato's Closet! I LOVE Plato's Closet in Charlotte & can't wait for their Gastonia Grand Opening! I am going to take a bunch of clothes I don't wear & purses there to consign! And what they don't take I am going to try to sell on eBay. I am doing great at selling stuff I don't use anymore. Facebook has been great for that!!

Step 5: Turn the TV off at 10:00pm. Whatever's on past 10:00, can be watched at a later time thanks to the best invention ever: DVR! I know this might sound silly, but I know this is something I need to do to unwind at the end of the day. I'm not someone who can listen to the TV while I fall asleep. And I'm not someone who instantly falls asleep. I know this is something I need to do to ultimately get more sleep.  By 10:00, I should be hanging out in silence. If I'm not sleepy, that sounds like a great time to work on my to-read list. :)

To be continued....

Do you have any {realistic} suggestions for me on living more simply??

If so, please share them with me! I seriously want to hear them.