I’m amazed at how long it takes to adjust to getting into a different type of lifestyle flow. When we’re on the road in the summertime, everything is really spontaneous—we don’t make reservations months or even weeks in advance, we hardly know where we’re going when we set out, and we’re pretty much just looking for the next place we’ll find beauty and adventure. 

Is there hard work involved? Absolutely! But because of the circumstances and fun, it doesn’t always feel like hard work. As soon as we pull into a stationary spot I can deeply feel the hard work of getting into a routine. Once again, this last week has been all about getting into a routine.

Home school has been going great, though getting into the flow of THIS type of concentrated learning has been challenging for the kids. I like to have Monday-Thursday set up to work a little harder and have Fridays be a bit more chill and ready for a field trip. By the time Friday came this week, we were definitely ready to chill! It made me realize I’ve got a little more adjusting I need to do to our schedule.

Each week we have a family night where we try to do something fun together. This week I suggested we head to the park and play. Our daughter brought her frisbee and our son brought a toy parachute man and between those two things and the playground, we had a great time. Simple and sweet, but it was the highlight of my week.

My husband has been growing his hair out and wanted some Rambands. Instead of buying them or asking me to make them, he got fabric and asked me to teach him to make them. We had a fun date night of me bossing him around the sewing machine while The Office was on in the background. He’s pretty good with a sewing machine!

I’m always on the look-out for ways I can help the kids expand their skills without purchasing too much stuff. I’ve loved the look of macrame pieces for a long time and decided I wanted to learn, so I watched a billion YouTube videos and bought a spool of rope. I taught the kids the history of macrame and we each made a piece for home school on Friday. It was really fun and I love the way my first attempt turned out! Also, because you only NEED rope (all the other accessories for macrame are optional), I feel like it’s a very minimalist hobby/skill.

Since we’re stationary, I’ve been trying to take more time to organize and do some deeper cleaning. During the summer on the road, it’s pretty hard to give up a hike in a national park so I can wipe down cabinets. This week I got to several projects, but my favorite was the large and deep cabinet beneath the kitchen sink. A potato-gone-horribly-wrong turned my attention/nose to this area, but by the time I was done cleaning it, I was happy I’d somehow lost track of that lone potato. 

Those are definitely my favorite minimalist and simple living happenings this week. What about you? What minimalistic or simple living practices made you happy this week?