such small hands: Simplifying My Life

I can't believe it's been nearly a year and a half since I last posted in this blog. But after reading this blog post, "What I Learned About Blogging When I Quit Blogging," shared by my dear blogging friend and sister in Christ, Leann Richardson, I feel confident enough to begin writing again.

Ken and I became official empty-nesters last September, when Amy moved into an apartment/flat with her friend, Julia. I remember taking a break from loading the moving van, clearing out all her college apartment furniture and boxes from half of our garage. I looked up at the six or seven plastic storage bins up in the rafters, crammed with her dolls and stuffed animals since we'd moved in this house in 2000.

"So when you get your own house, Amy," I said, "you'll have to take all these toys of yours with you." She looked at me as if I'd just grown wings and crowed. "I don't want all that junk, Mom!" she said.

"What? Not even to save for your own kids to play with someday?" I whined. She just rolled her eyes.

So began the great "clean up and throw out" of Fall 2012. Out went clothes, books, magazines, VHS tapes and cassettes. Old dishes and ugly knickknacks. About half of the toys and dolls. Frankly, I couldn't bear to part with her American Girl collection, remembering how I had scrimped to buy one for each Christmas. Nope, I'm keeping those so I can be the "cool grandma" someday.

I might have been a little overzealous, donating Amy's "Twilight" trilogy and her favorite ugly Christmas sweater. (Hey, it used to be mine, and I thought it had a sort of ski lodge elan to it!)

Realizing that, at this stage in my life, I need and want less stuff in general is leading me to think I need some personal "clean up and throw out." Restarting this blog is part of that. But so is reconsidering other ways that I spend my time. Ash Wednesday is a week from today; Lent is a good time to repent of the path we've been walking and take a new direction.

So maybe I'll be spending less time on Facebook games, and more time on the things I really want to do: read, write, walk, pray, garden, sew, dream and plan.

I'm ready.