Minimalist Living

Finding happiness through living a more minimal lifestyle.

Planning For the Ultimate National Park RV Road Trip

The Ultimate National Park RV Road Trip

We’re doing it! We are renting an RV and embarking on a six-week road trip this summer with the kids. The total drive time for this route 156 hours and 39 minutes and will cover 9,468 miles, not including driving within the parks. Yikes! It’s going to be a whirlwind, there’s no doubt about that, but we are so excited for this National Park RV Road Trip!

Our Why

Ashley and I have always … Continue reading...

Keep it Boring – Why the Simple Path to Happiness Works

The Simple Path to Happiness
Photo by chaitanya pillala on Unsplash

Want to be happier? Forget about the new car, the big house, the dream vacation, or that huge raise. Focus on the simple path to happiness by making small, incremental changes to improve your life.

Ben Franklin once said,

“Happiness consists more in the small conveniences of pleasures that occur every day, than in great pieces of good fortune that happen but seldom to a man in the course of his life.”

Continue reading...

Reflecting on 40 Years – Words of Advice From the Old Man

Reflecting on 40 years - words of advice from the old man

As of this posting, I have been on this earth for 40 years. 40 years! How often do we hear the phrase, “Seems like just yesterday”? But, it really does seem like just yesterday that I was playing Little League baseball, watching Punky Brewster, and playing Contra on Nintendo. Where does the time go? As more and more gray hairs keep showing up on my head, I have really started to reflect back on the … Continue reading...

I Quit Social Media – And I’m Loving It!

I quit social media
Photo by dole777 on Unsplash

Maybe it was the incessant political arguments on Facebook. Or it might have been the almost robotic responses to so many Instagram posts clamoring for likes and followers. It could be the personal finance “bros” on Twitter mocking another person for not saving $250,000 by the time they turned 30. I’m not sure what pushed me over the edge. Either way, I did it. I quit social media. And I … Continue reading...

What is Minimalism? And More Importantly, What It’s Not

What is minimalism? And more importantly, what it's not
Photo by Nani Williams on Unsplash

Looking back on this blog now that it is just about two years old (woohoo!), I realize I probably should have started with a post on the definition of minimalism. One of my first posts did discuss my journey into minimalism, but I’m not sure I spent enough time truly defining the concept.

There are lots of misconceptions and misunderstandings of what minimalism is, and what it isn’t. … Continue reading...

Lessons Learned from The Minimalists in “Less is Now”

Less is Now Documentary by The Minimalists

The Minimalists have put out their second film, titled Less is Now. It is directed by another minimalist, Matt D’Avella, and is currently available on Netflix. Joshua Fields Milburn and Ryan Nicodemus started The Minimalists over ten years ago. In their second film, they dive into the “why” behind their minimalism, speaking passionately about how their upbringings and experiences have led them toward a more simple, … Continue reading...