Please give me your man bag...

This is my new friend T.J. and his work bag that he "bought a looooong time ago" that I am obsessed with 1) because it has my husbands name on it and 2) because it's proof that the previous generation is totally amazing and should be imitated in (almost) every way. Babe, I'm finding you one of these for Christmas. 

Simply

sim·ple

ˈsimpəl/

adjective

1. 1.

   easily understood or done; presenting no difficulty; 

   plain, basic, or uncomplicated in form, nature, or design

BEFORE

The empty space in the picture below represents MUCH more than you would think. For a girl with a blog called "The Shopping Genius" I'm actually experiencing a little bit of retail overload. While I believe that there is never an end to the creativity and fun you can have with clothes, I do admit that there's such a thing as too many clothing items for one person to ever have in their closet. Tom and I are currently enrolled in Financial Peace University, a class on how to live within your means and leave a legacy, and I guess it's inspired me in more ways than just money. 

We live in such a culture of "If it's out there, BUY IT", and beyond just the fact that we are spending WAY more than we can afford to as a nation, we are also cluttering up our lives with pointless things to impress people who could care less so we can feel fake good about ourselves. Yuck. I'm really interested to see what our lives would look like if we just simplified everything a little bit. So, as a step in that direction, I decided to get rid of more than half of my clothes. Yes, I wear these items, and yes, they're still in style, but it's also an easy place to start cutting the unnecessary clutter out. 

I've actually found over the last couple of days that having less options (although still adorable options) makes choosing an outfit a lot easier. I can actually see what I have to work with, and it's forced me to choose different combinations than I would normally wear. 

I have a new philosophy on clothing. I don't want to just get the best deals on trendy things. I want to find one-of-a-kind little thrift store gems (like my vintage Coach envelope clutches that I bought for $12 each) or save up my hard-earned money to purchase classic, quality pieces that will last (and come back around) for decades. And, just like with my wardrobe, I want to bring some simplicity and focus into the rest of my life. I don't want to have too many clothes to enjoy them, and I don't want to have too many books to read them all, and I don't want to have so much to do that I can't remember all the special things I've done. So, yeah, here's to leading a simple life. 

Disclaimer: an obsession with and passion for fashion and clothing when kept in perspective is an amazing tool to enrich lives and bring beauty into our world. I know that the Creator created in me a unique desire for clothes and the history, movements, and culture they represent and can use that passion to bring glory to His name. So don't get me wrong, I'll be forever a shopper.  

AFTER

Update from the newly relocated and totally out of place Bolivarite.

I've always wanted to live in a big city, and whelp, now I do. It's taking some getting used to, but I think I'm going to like it a lot. There's ALOT more going on than there ever was in Bolivar haha. Since the wedding, we got settled in at the apartment (by settled  I mean shoved everything we don't know what to do with in the spare bedroom until further notice), went on an amazing honeymoon to the Caribbean (thanks for all the cash, guys!), opened our mountain of wedding gifts (again, thank you!), I started a new job, and we got a DOG. AHHH!

Things I'm going to have to get used to: traffic. Like real traffic. Like not just a tractor on the road or an Amish buggy traffic. My 20-min commute to work is in reality a 45-min commute. City life...

It has been a whirlwind. Before we know it, Tom and I will have been married an entire month. Crazay. I'm finally getting used to my new schedule and surroundings, which means blogs will be better and occur more often. My super talented wedding photographer and sister-in-law, Katie, (Katie McElroy Photography) is going to show me a thing or two about my camera, so I'm really excited to learn how to take better pictures too.

Next on the list: house train Abi, the Great Dane. I don't want to wake up in the middle of the night and clean up poop EVER again.

Being married is amazing. For all the people who helped make Tom and my wedding so beautiful and amazing, thank you so much. We really appreciate you.

 

The bathroom is my favorite room in the house, because it's the only one I've finished decorating haha!

 

This is the view from my desk chair. And that is a peanut-butter and honey sandwich. The best...

 

 

 

This is Abi, the Great Dane. We took this pic on Friday, and she is literally almost double that size already. Not exaggerating.