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My husband and I are musicians. And we’re parents. Our “backstage” experiences with our son (our little frog) deeply affect us and our music. Recent insights: 

Happy May! At the start of this month, my family reviewed–and partially redeemed–our 30 Day List. This was an inventory of various stuff we had each expressed wanting or needing throughout the month, but had agreed to WAIT 30 days before acquiring.

You see, the month of April was all about clearing out excess. I orchestrated a thorough review of the contents of our home. And my husband Matt and I ended up donating or selling a lot of things that seemed redundant or no longer joyous.

After all this work, I was determined to be deeply thoughtful about new purchases. After all, it has become exciting to live with less, enjoying what we have and pining less for what we don’t (a home with a driveway, walkable to a business district…)

We all decided on April 1 that anytime one of us had a yen for anything that is not essential, it would go on the 30 Day List. (We decided to not be stingy on groceries and to also allow wine/beer so we felt decadent and satisfied enough during this spending lockdown.)

And on May 1 we reviewed what we still really wanted on that list. Of course some of the stuff didn’t seem as pressing/desirable. And we had the time and patience to make a budget for some of the A list items on the list.

Acquisition day was fun, especially because we got to purchase a few things we’d had to WAIT for. But it’s not disappointing to have to wait another 30 days (or more) for some of the other items on the list. Now it’s a game–and a pledge to be thoughtful and disciplined about our desires.

Leap, Little Frog

a musician's musings on nesting, being creative, traveling, and parenting