LIFESTYLE MAKEOVER

Some of you may know by now that my home is undergoing a massive renovation. That means my whole family of five has moved into a very small portion of our house that is 'yet-to-be-renovated'.

That is the bed for my husband and myself, right next to - yep - the kitchen bench. It's become the lounge for the family to relax, watch T.V., do homework on, etc. The three children have moved into what used to be my office. I presently do my writing and administrative work from our kitchen table, the bed/lounge/hangout zone, or the laundry, depending on what 'ergonomic' position and level of noise I'm looking for.

I've discovered the 'closeness' of our family - you literally can't take three steps without tripping over someone - has been a real bonding experience, and the limited space and storage has created a need to really address clutter and excess.

We decluttered lots. I mean, LOTS (we've even decluttered since the above photo was taken). We've put a good amount of clothes, books and other items into storage, but after living for nearly two months (we adopted our 'minimalist' lifestyle through necessity on 4th August), I've come to realise I've stored a lot of stuff that I could actually do without permanently (not looking forward to the next declutter when we remove our 'stuff' from storage).

It's made me look into other areas of my life where there is a little too much 'clutter', and making me consciously think of what I want my life to look like, what experience I want to live. The Scandanavians have a saying: "Less things, more life." I'm slowly beginning to realise that, and I'm looking at my professional and personal life and taking a health check. One area I really need to pay attention to is my weight (I know, so many of you will be nodding at this, too!). I'm now just 2kgs shy of my heaviest ever weight, and wanting to bring those numbers down for a whole host of reasons, mainly to do with general health, but looking better in clothes and swimsuits is also a bonus. 😊

For the month of October (and just for that month, only), I'm doing my own Oct-sober program - starting tomorrow as I'm drinking a white wine as I'm writing this. After all, it's the day after NRL Grand Final, and a public holiday where I am, so I'm enjoying my 'life-focus', and will start my Oct-sober tomorrow, Tuesday, 2nd Oct. I'm doing this as an approach to detoxing my life, and I'll post any interesting side effects/results on Monday, 6th November, along with another selfie. During that month, I'll also look into some other life hacks, like drinking loads of water, and finding out what the hell 'macro nutrients' are.

So tell me, what other 'life hacks' can you recommend that have improved your own experience of life? Anything that made cleaning or cooking faster/easier/better, to losing weight and keeping fit - I want to know! Comment below, and share your inspiration and motivation!

Also, feel free to try this Oct-sober thing with me! The more the merrier! Let me know how you go, and I'll let you know how I go. You can comment below, or email me at: contactme at shannoncurtis.com (no spaces, at becomes @, just to avoid bots and trolls) - I'd love to hear from you. I'll do some regular posting on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Shannon.Curtis.Writers.Ink/ and we can hangout and cheer each other on.
Take care, everyone, and looking forward to this new journey!

Shannon
xxoo