The Leap into a Little House Lifestyle

Let me explain how this will work.

Each week (or succession of weeks) I plan to take a principle or practice from the Little House on the Prairie series, or other great classic book, and apply it to our modern family.

It might be a craft-- like candle making (excited to try that!).  It could be a recipe, like maple candy.  Some weeks will be skills, like sewing or carpentry.  Other weeks will be more principle based, like "early to bed and early to rise" (that one will be tough---I am writing this at 10:30pm).

But each week will be different.  Some of the weeks will need to build on each other and others will stand on their own completely.  I'll try and keep a good follow-up on how we, as a family, are doing with principles and practices from previous weeks.  Some posts might be confessions, others pleas for help and advice.  We'll just have to see where this takes us!

 I'm looking forward to the adventure and I hope you are too!

If you have any insight, thoughts, questions, or requests on, or for, any of the content of the "Little House Lifestyle" blog, principles, or practices, please let me know!

© Allison T. and "Little House Lifestyle", 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Allison T. and "Little House Lifestyle" with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Disclaimer and Disclosure

I feel like it is only appropriate to start a new blog with a clear explanation of what the blog is/ is not and who I am/ am not.  So to that end, the following!

I hope the "Little House Lifestyle" blog will be a way to:

• keep a record, for myself and my family, of my efforts to live a simpler lifestyle
  
• motivate myself and hold myself accountable to live a simple lifestyle
• promote getting back to the more worthwhile things in life (in my own family and in others)--ie time with family, hard work, self-sufficiency, community, etc.  The list goes on and on!
• promote getting away from the less important things in life (in my own family and in others)--ie video games, tv, movies, addictions, dependence [on government, welfare, parents, debt, impulsiveness], etc.
• explore and celebrate wonderful classics in literature--mainly the Little House on the Prairie series
• try various recipes, techniques, arts and crafts and lifestyle principles of our ancestors
• get a better appreciation for the incredible strengths and sacrifices of our ancestors
• connect with other like-minded people

What the "Little House Lifestyle" blog will not be:

• politically charged (though I do have certain political stances that you may be able to make out from my blog)
• proselytizing (though I am Christian and Mormon and will occasionally reference my beliefs)
• condemning--- I understand that we may differ in any number of ways--faith, lifestyle, political or social affiliations, background, age, family make-up, education, socioeconomic status, and more--but the "Little House Lifestyle" blog will always strive to be respectful and welcoming to all.  However, I do reserve the right to moderate and delete disrespectful, condemning, or otherwise offensive comments on the blog.
• expert information.  I am very much a novice in simple living and will be learning as I go! However, I'll share any expert information I find that would be helpful and pertinent to individual blog posts or topics, both within the posts themselves and under "resources" and "links" on the blog's right sidebar.
• exhaustive.  There's so much in living a simple lifestyle that there is no way that I will cover every aspect, nor any aspect in the depth it deserves.  But the sampling I give you should be interesting!

 What I am:

• very grateful for and to my husband, Heavenly Father, and friends and family-- they are all always willing to be supportive of my 'next great exploit'
• interested in history and the lives of our progenitors
• devoted to living principles that are based on and promote solid values 
• excited to learn and try new things
• concerned about negative influences on my loved ones (sexualization, violence, irreligiousness,
  
  estrangement from parents/ family, disrespect, horror, crude or harsh language, poor health habits, and more)
• passionate about trying to protect my family from negative influences and making the world a better, more wholesome place
• friendly, social, probably a little overly ambitious and a little scatter-brained, but excited for this new challenge!

What I am not:

• a perfectionist.  I spend little time on Facebook and even less time on Pinterest.  I do love to craft, but I do not care to 'keep up with the Joneses' and I do not want to worry about whether something I do is good enough for someone else.  If it's good enough for me, my family, and God--- it's good enough!
• an expert.  I am going to be learning and experimenting and you'll probably laugh at how much of a novice I really am.  Please comment on things that can be done better, knowledge or experience you have, or stories you want to share.  

So now that you know, let's leap into the "Little House Lifestyle"!

 

What has brought you to "Little House Lifestyle"? Comment below!

© Allison T. and "Little House Lifestyle", 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Allison T. and "Little House Lifestyle" with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Real Simple Living

Have you read the "Little House on the Prairie" series?

On a Sunday morning, my sister and I used to love watching little Laura Ingalls run all over the South Dakota prairie with her pig tail braids flying behind her.  We used to love despising the snotty behavior of Nellie Oleson and we used to wish we could carry lit candles all over our house in the evenings.



Was that you too? Well, 'Hi', Kindred Spirit!

Though I loved "Little House" episodes on television, I never read the series until this last year.  And reading them was like opening up the figurative windows of our home and letting all that clean, fresh prairie air invigorate my sense of what is important in life.  These were real people doing amazing things and living simple, beautiful lives.

A deep breath of "old fashioned" freshness!

My husband and I made the decision a few years ago that we wanted to have depth and meaning in every aspect of our lives.  I grew up watching every kids movie and romantic comedy ever released up to about the year 2000, he grew up spending hours on end playing with Legos.  He built (no pun intended!) on his Lego skills to become an engineer.  I....well, the hours I spent watching TV hasn't really served a useful purpose yet-- except, perhaps, to teach me that I don't want my kids to waste their time in the ways I did.  There's just so much more to life than tv, video games, and smart phones, and there always has been! 

A common maxim in parenting is "learn from my experience," and that's just what I plan to do myself.

I have often thought about the pioneers and pilgrims of our past and been impressed by their moral strength, physical stamina, bravery, and home-based values.  Then, on top of all of that, when I think of the vast and detailed repertoire of skills that they had to master in order to survive each day, I am left with a profound feeling of respect and admiration. 

"I want to be more like they were," I say to myself.  I want to know how to be more self-sufficient, like they were.  I want to make the time for the important things, like they did.  I want to spend my time interacting with my kids and teaching them and laughing with them.  I want my kids to explore their surroundings and be fascinated by bugs and know how to be respectful.

There's just so much to learn! And how do you keep the beauties of the past alive in the world today?

That's my challenge and my goal.  My family and I are going on a journey and taking however long it takes us.  We're reading and re-reading the amazing classics of the past (primarily the "Little House on the Prairie" series, but other great books as well) and finding principles and practices to try out for ourselves in our modern family living in this Big World.

We're creating our own "Little House" (with indoor plumbing, gas, and electric!).  I hope you'll enjoy the journey with us and try some "old" things yourselves!!


What was your favorite story from "The Little House on the Prairie" books??  Comment below!


© Allison T. and "Little House Lifestyle", 2013. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Allison T. and "Little House Lifestyle" with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.