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minimalism

How I Got My Book Deal

May 23, 2020 by Allie Casazza

In case you missed my live announcement on Instagram…

I GOT A BOOK DEAL! ⁣

GUYS! I’M GOING TO BE A PUBLISHED AUTHOR!

⁣Things like this can sometimes seem like luck, so I’m sharing a few pieces of what led to this moment you’re seeing in that pic above (that’s the moment I signed my deal!).

Before I start, please know that I am sharing certain dollar amounts because I think it’s important for other business owners and hopeful authors out there. And I am passionate about normalizing wealth for women. I’m also passionate about normalizing success for moms! You don’t have to wait on your dreams until your kids are grown if you don’t want to 🙂

Also, as I venture into teaching business to other women with families, it’s important to me to be transparent. I view what I do as an example of what other women can also accomplish- and even more!

One final note: I realize that not everyone’s goals and desires are the same as mine. I realize that this is MY story, MY dream. I realize that it’s me who wanted to push hard and fight for something very specific, and very money related.

I’m certainly not saying that authors who go a more traditional route or accept book deals at a different phase than me are dumb. A book deal is a book deal, and a publisher won’t sink money into you unless they believe in your message!

But what I’m about to share with you is what felt right to me. I believe money is good, not evil. And I believe when good people make good money, they do great things. Like creating jobs for other people, like helping orphaned babies, like stopping sex trafficking and building safe houses for abused women. This is what I want to do, and if it’s not your vibe, that’s okay!

The Road to Authorship

In 1998, I was a kid who loved to read and loved writing my own versions of classic stories. I thought I could make the stories better and cooler, so I did just that in my little journals.

One day I read a book called The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and it changed my life.

I wanted to be just like the person who wrote this book and get paid to write words that changed people’s lives one day. I looked at the side of the book to see who made such an amazing thing happen – Harper Collins Publishers.

It stuck in my head for forever for some reason. I didn’t realize that I had just made a goal that would stay with me.

I still have the very same copy that inspired a life-long dream!

⁣In 2010 I started a blog. I began sharing my heart with the world via the written word, and was instantly smitten. I felt made to be a leader who empowers others.

In 2016 I decided that enough of being beneath the US poverty line was enough, and I turned that blog into a business. 

⁣I self-published a tiny little book that I was so proud of, but at launch, it didn’t even make enough for me to pay a utility bill. SO discouraging!

⁣I got back up and I kept going, following the tug in my gut to pursue this new thing called digital courses, and shelved my dream to be a published author.⁣

⁣In 2017, I got an email from a publisher I had never heard of offering me a book contract. The idea of getting to be published like I always wanted was so enticing!

They wanted to give me $5,000 and take ownership over so much of my intellectual property. I had ZERO pull in this potential deal, and I could feel that I would be owned by them if I took it. I didn’t like that. #enneagram8 ⁣

⁣A few months later, I got another offer from a semi-major publisher. They offered me double the money, but again, they wanted to take what was mine. The contract they sent over just did not feel good to me- my gut was screaming at me not to do this. ⁣

I had worked (and still was working) so deliberately on building a personal brand that people trusted and followed. Why should I take a few thousand dollars that will help my family for a little while, but not as much in the long run as I knew it could?

I decided that my business was safest in my own hands for now. I turned it down and kept pushing forward. I decided that I wanted to be published by a top 5 publisher (maybe Harper Collins or one of their divisions???).

I was going to wait to be published until I was in a position to not be taken advantage of.⁣

⁣I continued to work hard on my business. I felt like I was co-creating with God… I was so in tune with what my next right step was. It was like I was on fire and couldn’t stop growing this company. It turned it into something bigger than I was even envisioning!

I grew my email list to over 175k engaged, active women who want to hear my message.

I grew my revenue from $0-one million in 18 months.

I sold over 700 courses in a few hours one day.

I learned who my people are, and I learned how to help them. I learned how to enroll them in the programs I offer, because I know those programs will change their lives.

This led to a business that has power and influence. It also led to the possibility of a book deal that took my message way further without limiting me or my business.

⁣At the end of summer 2019, I felt like the timing was right. And in January 2020, I submitted the final draft of my book proposal to my agent and I waited. ⁣

⁣There were NINE offers submitted, all from major publishers. I never expected so many offers! I had no idea what sort of money to expect in these offers, but I knew that it needed to feel good to me. It needed to feel right, and the most important thing was that I had pull in the deal and could retain the rights to my intellectual property.

After lots of meetings, asking a billion questions to pub house leaders, loads of taking walks with God, I chose. ⁣

⁣I CHOSE. I got to CHOOSE. That’s the power of listening to your gut, and building something that is yours, not waiting around for another company to come in and do the work for you.

My contract doesn’t hold me back, it launches me forward. My publisher isn’t trying to take from me, they’re supportive of me. They’re cheering for me.

I am being paid what I deserve to be paid based on what has been built with my two hands and the guidance of a Higher Force. There is abundance in this book deal, and I worked on myself to be open enough to receive it. I became ready, and it came.

This was snapped the moment I got word that the counter offers had surpassed half a million dollars. Beyond. My. Wildest. Dreams.

KEEP GOING, GIRL. DO NOT STOP OR GIVE IN.

⁣I am writing a book that will be published by Nelson Books, a division of Harper Collins Publishers, after more than 20 years of dreaming of this very thing.

⁣Declutter Like A Mother will release in fall 2021. ⁣

Get ready, gals. This has been a long time coming. ⁣

Filed Under: Business, minimalism Tagged With: author, book

A Minimalist Baby Registry

January 31, 2020 by Allie Casazza

A guest post from Jessie Martin

Jessie Martin is a wife, mama, photographer, and educator. She writes at Jessiemartin.com and hosts the Grace and Intention podcast. She is passionate about empowering moms to see how incredible their everyday motherhood journey is. One way she does this is through teaching moms how to take beautiful pictures of and with their families (even if they don’t have a fancy camera).

Jessie is a mom of two little ones with another on the way. She lives in the woods with her family and loves all things photography, minimalism, and simple living.


This baby registry is for you if you are trying to be more minimal, you value quality over quantity, and you love neutral colors!

Many of the items in this post are affiliate links. You don’t get charged any extra, but my family receives a small commission when you shop via one of my affiliate links & we are so grateful for your support!

Over the last few years, minimalism has really influenced the way I run our home. Allie has been one of my biggest mentors and role models and I’m honored to be a guest on her blog.

The effects of being on the more minimal side has transformed not only our home, but me! I’m less stressed and I’m able to manage our home way better than ever before. I’m able to spend less time cleaning up and more time with my family doing what matters.

When we got pregnant with oldest, I knew I wanted to keep minimalism in mind as we prepared to bring a baby into our home.

Below is a list of my favorite baby gear. I’ve been compiling this list over the past three years. I’m three kids in and I feel like it’s truly the essentials and only what you’ll actually need.

 

SLEEP

Graco Pack ‘n Play Playard Portable Napper & Changer

This alleviates the need for a bassinet when you have a newborn and is a must for your baby registry. It can be used for many years as a portable crib & a safe play area. We use it every single day.

Graco Pack ‘n Play Playard Fitted Sheet, Grey

I recommend getting 2-4 sheets to have as backups when one gets dirty.

Little One’s Pad Pack N Play Crib Mattress Cover

I recommend buying 2-4 sets. This keeps the Pack n’ Play mat from getting ruined.

Ikea Sniglar Crib

We bought our crib from Ikea and love it. This is a very similar one from Amazon & it has great ratings and reviews.

Graco Premium Foam Crib & Toddler Mattress

This mattress has worked great and feels super comfortable!

100% Cotton Jersey Knit Fitted Crib Sheet

I would recommend buying 2-4 fitted sheets.

Waterproof Fitted Mattress Pad Cover

I would recommend buying 2-4 mattress pad covers.

Mom Hack: Make your baby’s crib like normal with a waterproof fitted pad and a fitted sheet, but add an additional waterproof pad and sheet on top of the first set. This makes for really fast bedding changes in the middle of the night when everyone is tired.

White Noise Machine

This. Every Nap. All night long. When the dogs bark or my car alarm randomly goes off, our son doesn’t wake up thanks to this life saver.  A sound machine is one of the best baby items I can recommend.

The great thing about this sound machine is that it grows with your kids. We still use it as a sound machine for our one and two year old, but we also use the “Time to Rise” function for our two year old (the light turns green when it’s time to wake up and he knows he can call for me to come get him).

If you’re looking for a cheaper sound machine, we’ve used THIS one. I’ve had three and they all break after about a year of using them, but they’re only $20, so they’re great in a pinch or on a budget.

Baby Monitor

I use this for every nap and all night long. It’s priced much lower than a lot of video monitors and it’s a really great quality. It shows the room temperature as well, which is a feature we love. I can’t recommend this one enough.

Swaddles

I am a swaddle snob. I will be the first to admit it.

My absolute favorite swaddle blankets are Max & Moose. They’re more like t-shirt material and they are bigger than standard swaddles, so they’re easier to use. I have purchased 7 of these between my two kids.

Another similar brand is Mebie Baby. These swaddles are a little thinner and super stretchy (make sure you get the stretch swaddles, they work much better and your baby won’t bust out of them as easily). I like using these for warmer nights.

I recommend buying 6-8 swaddle blankets. They have to be changed almost as much as outfits due to diaper mishaps 😉 

Bibs Pacifiers

Bibs is a newer family owned business. They have a million colors and their pacifiers are really super cute. Alivia has loved them and took them right away. I also love  Ryan and Rose pacifier clips.

Baby Swing

I don’t think you need a million baby gadgets, but having one swing or rocker that moves on its own is extremely helpful for when you need to cook dinner or shower. This swing is great because you can disconnect the rocker portion to fit in tighter spaces. I use this when I need to shower or get ready in the mornings. I bring it into the bathroom with me and the rocking keeps the baby happy.

The big size makes me die inside a little bit, but the smaller, cuter rockers (like the 4Moms MamaRoo) only has a gliding motion & a lot of babies don’t like it. I’ve researched it a ton and read so many reviews in all of the mom groups because it’s just so much cuter and smaller. Ultimately, I always come back to the Graco swings because they seem more functional. We use ours for the first 5-6 months and then break it down and store it away for the next baby.

 

BATHTIME

Angel Care Baby Bath

When we had our first, I loved the Puj Tub for sink baths. Now that we have two kids, I really like this little bath seat because I can bathe the kids at the same time. I realized really quickly that doing two separate baths was going to take forever.

Primally Pure Baby Products

After almost three years, I’ve finally found a natural line of baby products that actually work. I use all of Primally Pure’s baby products for my kids (they’re the first natural products that have ever actually worked for my son’s eczema, too!). Click here for 10% off!

I use the Bottom Balm as diaper rash cream, nipple cream, eczema cream, and to help treat cradle cap. It’s the only natural cream I’ve found that actually works for my son’s bad eczema.

I use the Primally Pure Baby Oil as moisturizer after every bath and before bedtime.

I use Primally Pure Baby Powder for diaper rashes and I love that it’s talc-free.

I use the Primally Pure Baby Bar as soap + shampoo for both kids as well.

 

FEEDING

Burp Cloths

 

With Locke I used the standard white cloth diapers as burp cloths, but they got pretty gross and stained. For our second baby I bought these grey ones from Burts Bees and I have loved them! I bought two packs and it has been the perfect amount.

Nipple Butter

I use Primally Pure Baby Balm as Nipple Butter and it works amazing! Breastfeeding can be a little rough the first few weeks and this stuff helps so much! Click here for 10% off!

Medela Pump in Style Breast Pump

I’ve been super happy with this pump & use it every day. Your insurance will probably pay for this, so call and chat with them before you purchase one.

Mom Hack: You are going to want a hands-free pumping bra. You can buy one like this, OR you can make your own for way cheaper. Buy a few cheap sports bras like these & cut two small holes in them.

Medela Quick Clean Micro-Steam Bags

These make for super quick cleaning of pump parts and alleviate having to boil your pump parts to sanitize them every day.

Baby Bottle Brush

I ordered this 2 pack of bottle brushes. They look cute in my kitchen & it isn’t some huge pack of different size brushes that I need to store or hide away.

Breastmilk Storage Bags (BPA and BPS Free)

You need these to store and freeze your pumped milk. I’ve tried several brands and I haven’t noticed any difference. These are the best price I could find, so it’s what I buy.

Sarah Wells Wet Dry Bag

I store my pump parts in this both at home and at work (I got the black & white one).

Mom Hack: Schedule an appointment with a lactation consultant for a few days after you give birth. You’ll need all the help you can get. This helped me SO much in the very beginning & gave me a lot more confidence.

Washable Nursing Pads

For the first several weeks you will leak breastmilk even when you aren’t nursing. I tried multiple brands of disposable nursing pads but I thought they were itchy so I switched to reusable ones.

Como Tomo Bottles OR Glass Bottles

I start with 8oz bottles and skip over the smaller 4oz bottles. I didn’t want to store multiple sizes that they would grow out of anyways. We have one bottle for each kid and that’s really all we’ve needed. You’ll probably have to try a few different brands to find what works for your baby. (Always start with the slowest flow nipples).

The Como Tomo brand has worked really well for both of my kids as newborns, but if my babies were exclusively bottle fed I would opt for glass bottles like these. I’m going to try one of these with the new baby before I try the Como Tomo Bottle just because I’m trying to move to all glass or stainless steel products.

Organic Baby Bandana Scarf Bibs

If your kid spits up a lot, these will save you a ton of laundry and outfit changes. They’re also super cute and my kids get so many compliments on them. These are another cheaper option that have held up very well.

High Chair

We love this chair because it hooks right onto our table, it’s easy to clean (just throw the cover in the washing machine), and it doesn’t take up a ton of space. We have one for each kid and I love them so much. They both still look brand new.

If your table has a lip and you need a traditional highchair, this one from Ikea is highly recommended by my mom friends.

Spoons (BPA Free Silicone)

We have four of these spoons and use them daily. They’ve held up great and I even put them in the dishwasher 😉

Note: I ended up rarely using our boppy pillow + cover. (Some people swear by the boppy though, so it’s definitely personal preference). I just used a normal pillow until I got the hang of nursing and now I just hold him. If you are someone who leaks a lot while you nurse, Milkies Milk Saver is an awesome product that saves your milk from being wasted.

Nursing cover

You can absolutely just use a blanket, but I like the nursing cover because they grow with your baby. You can put it over highchairs at restaurants to prevent your baby from touching a bunch of germs. I always have one in my diaper bag.

 

TRAVEL

Chicco Keyfit Infant Car Seat and Base

This carseat is easy to get babies in and out of. It’s lightweight and comes with a base that stays in your car. It comes with a newborn insert that is really easy to remove and wash.

With our first, I was torn between buying an infant carseat or a convertible carseat, but decided on the infant seat. I’m really glad I did because it’s so nice to be able to take them in and out of the car without unstrapping them or waking them up every single time.

We bought THIS convertible carseat for Locke when he was around one, and we love it!

We just bought the same Convertible Carseat for Alivia, so now we have two!

Mom hack: I cut one of these in half and put it at the bottom of the carseat under the kids. This is a lifesaver after blowouts & makes for easy clean-up.

BOB Revolution SE Single Jogging Stroller

I LOVE this stroller. This is an item I found second-hand for a fraction of the cost. If you can find one second-hand – do it! When you have a second baby you may want to upgrade to a double stroller anyways.

I wanted a high quality running stroller, because running is hard enough as it is. This is easy to maneuver and it fits in the back of my small trunk. It’s super light-weight so it’s easy to get in and out and set up quickly.

I use it at the mall, grocery stores, etc and haven’t had any problems with it fitting anywhere.

BOB 2017 Single Infant Car Seat Adapter

This adapter is specific to the Chicco infant carseat and allows you to snap the carseat into the BOB stroller.

Ergobaby 360 All Carry Positions

I have this Ergo and it’s great. It came with a newborn insert and it’s easy to get them in and out. I like the simple colors and it’s easy to store. Because we are a pretty active family this was a must-have for hiking. This is an item I didn’t want to skimp on price wise because I knew I needed something that would be comfortable for my back. The longest hike we’ve done so far was seven miles and it was comfortable the entire time.

Note: Tons of mamas swear by wraps and slings. I would recommend borrowing one from a friend to see how you like it before you buy one. Some people love them, but some people never use them. I love my Solly Baby Wrap the best for newborns.

Diaper Bag

Our Fawn Design diaper bag was a big splurge, but I love it so much. I have been so happy with my choice and it still looks brand new three years later. Click HERE for $10 off at Fawn Design.

Portable Changing Pad

I carry this in our diaper bag for changing the kids on the go. Gathre Micro+ mats are more expensive ($30), but super cute 😉 If you shop during Black Friday or during the holidays they always have great sales!

 

HEALTH

Humidifier

I run this in Locke’s room every night during the winter months. It’s also one of the first things we recommend to parents when they bring congested kids to the hospital.

Digital Flexible Thermometer

These are the most accurate for little babies – the forehead thermometers seem great, but they aren’t very accurate. As a pediatric nurse, I’ve seen so many parents bring their kids into the ER for a false high fever after using a temporal thermometer.

oogiebear Ear & Nose Cleaner

I call this the booger picker & it’s my favorite. It’s less traumatic than a bulb syringe.

NoseFrida Nasal Aspirator

Super gross. Super helpful. And I promise snot will not get in your mouth.

Saline Spray/Drops

This helps to loosen stuffy noses before you aspirate with a bulb syringe or nosefrida.

Mommy’s Bliss Gripe Water

When babies are born, their GI system aren’t completely developed so they tend to have tummy issues for a few weeks. These drops can really help.

Baby Nail Clippers

Those little suckers get so long and sharp. I use these all the time. These are mini, so they are easier to use than an adult size would be.

 

CLOTHING

I am SUPER minimal when it comes to the kids’ clothes. I barely registered for any clothes because they’re so seasonal that stores tend to stop selling them by the time your baby shower rolls around anyways. Plus, people will get you clothes no matter what because they’re super fun to shop for.

All of Locke’s clothes are pretty much from Primary.com, H&M, or Amazon. Most of Alivia’s clothes are from Primary, H&M, JamieKay, Zara, and Amazon.

I’ve started sharing the kid’s capsule wardrobes on the blog, and you can find them HERE and HERE.

My newborns pretty much live in long sleeve onesies. I get most of them from Primary.com (Use code PRIMARYJESSIEM16 for 25% off). I love Primary because I can wash and dry their clothes a million times and they hold up perfectly. All of our Primary clothes have lasted through both Locke and Liv and I’ve got them saved for the new baby as well!

I also really love the L’ovedbaby brand on Amazon. They hold up SO well (even putting them in the dryer) and they have really beautiful neutral colors that Primary doesn’t carry.

Booties

Socks don’t stay on, but I really love these for during the winter months.

 

LAUNDRY

Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds Biodegradable Cleaner

This is the laundry detergent I’ve settled on. I tried at least five different ones because of how sensitive Locke’s skin is, and this has been my favorite. It has all natural ingredients & it’s organic. It lasts for a long time & I just think it’s worth it to avoid the harsh chemicals. We use it for all of our laundry.

Mom Hack: I tried a few baby stain removers and none of them worked very well. Now I just use our dish soap. I put a little dish-soap on the stain right away & scrub it. I rinse it and throw it in the wash.

 

ADDITIONAL BABY GEAR

Blankets

I bought two of these to lay/play on. One for the living room, one for the nursery. I wash & dry them constantly and they have held up really well.

I’ve also invested in special quilts for each of the kids. Liv’s quilt is from Nested Quilt Co and Locke and the new baby have special quilts coming from Grain Handmade.

 

DIAPERING

Newborn Pampers Swaddlers

Pampers have little indicator lines that are really helpful during the first few weeks. If you shop at Costco, I’ve been really happy with their Kirkland brand diapers, too (they don’t carry a newborn size for some reason, so we use them for size 1 and up).

Mom Hack: when your baby starts sleeping through the night or going longer stretches, use night time diapers like these and size up one size. This prevents leaks and they absorb better, which means baby sleeps better and longer.

Wipes

We use water wipes from amazon. I like these because they’re non-toxic and 99.9% water. I made the switch after I used a popular brand of baby wipes on myself one day and it totally burned my skin. I felt so bad that I had been using them on my babies and immediately researched and switched to water wipes instead.

Diaper Genie

This is not necessarily a must-have item, but it’s been worth it to me because our dumpster is almost a mile away. You’ll also need the liners that go into the Diaper Genie.

Baby Changing Pad + Scale

We use the Hatch Grow and I love it. It has a built in scale so I can check and know that my babies are getting enough milk during nursing and gaining weight. You can use the scale to weigh your baby before your nurse, and then again after you nurse.  The app does all the math for you and tells you how many oz of milk your baby ate.

I throw a Gathre Micro+ mat on our scale and it’s really cute!

 

A FEW NEW THINGS I’M GOING TO TRY WITH OUR THIRD BABY

I ordered a Snuggle Me Organic on Black Friday and I’m really excited to have it for baby #3.

I’m going to purchase a Snuza for this baby. It detects the baby’s abdominal movements and will alert you if your baby were to stop breathing. I think this will give me more peace of mind at night. I’ve done some research and this is much cheaper and seems to have less false alarms than the Owlet monitor.

 

A FEW FUN EXTRAS FOR OLDER BABIES

Joovy Spoon Walker

We own this walker and love it for it’s minimal clean look and collapsible storage feature.

We also own this macrame hammock swing. I actually won it in a giveaway on Instagram, but I would buy it in a heartbeat. It’s beautiful and both kids have loved it!

 

FREE GUIDE TO MOM PHOTOGRAPHY

The last thing on this list is actually something I made with you in mind. If you’re anything like me, you won’t be able to stop snapping pictures once your sweet baby is born!

I run an online business like Allie where I help moms learn to take beautiful pictures of their families (even if they only have a smartphone). 

If you want to learn how to take the best pictures possible and document this incredible time, I created a free guide that teaches you how to take beautiful pictures of your new baby (even if you don’t have a fancy camera). You can grab it for free, HERE!


THAT’S IT GUYS. THAT’S ALL THE BABY GEAR WE OWN AND EVERYTHING THAT WAS ON MY BABY REGISTRY!

Filed Under: guest post, intentional living, minimalism, motherhood Tagged With: baby, baby registry, guests, infant, kids, minimal

An Open Letter to My Loved Ones About Gift Giving

December 20, 2019 by Allie Casazza

Every week, I work with women to simplify their homes and their lives. I love what I do and the freedom it brings to families! 

Over the years, I’ve seen a gap during the holidays. Women are afraid the influx of gifts will re-clutter their homes and they don’t want to lose their newfound spare time and joy, but they also don’t know exactly what to say to their well-meaning relatives about their over-giving. 

I don’t think Christmas, birthdays or other times of giving should be tightly monitored (talk about losing out on joy!), but I understand that some of you have people in your lives who just give way too much, and it’s really overwhelming. It can feel like an impediment on your boundaries, and it can actually be that too.

This blog post was written by me for you to use as your voice if you can’t find the words. Share it to your socials, post it to your Facebook wall, send it in an email… whatever you want. Borrow my words, friend. I got you.

I also included the option to get an editable, more personalized version of this letter you can fill in with your relative’s name and more details about what your kids might like as gifts. You can snag that at the bottom of this post at no cost to you 🙂

If you want me to help you simplify your life, I’m here and I’m ready to lighten your load!

xo Allie


DEAR LOVED ONE, 

I’m writing this to you with a mix of appreciation and apprehension.  Appreciation for you and how much you love my family, apprehension because I don’t want you to view me as ungrateful or unkind, and I have no desire to offend or upset you.

You have gone so above and beyond with my kids – I love that you love so big! It’s beautiful. I look at that and feel so honored that my kids get to have someone like you in their lives. What I want to say has nothing to do with your love… it’s about my own limits. 

Over the past few months, I’ve been on a really important journey that’s involved a lot of learning. It started with the Google search bar – I was looking for some help because I was feeling so overwhelmed at home and in life. 

It felt like all I did was maintain our physical space. I was constantly cleaning up and it was constantly being undone behind me; it was never-ending and sort of depressing! All I want is to run a home I enjoy being in and spend quality time with my family. It felt like I was always choosing between those two things rather than living them out in any sort of balance.

I found some interesting things in my research… did you know that a study done at Princeton found that you could cut down on housework by at least 40% if you just didn’t have clutter in your home? 40%! That’s so much weight removed from a busy mom’s week.

I also found a study done at UCLA, which found a distinct link in women between the amount of clutter in their homes and their cortisol levels. More stuff, higher levels of stress, automatically. 

This study also found that women relate how they feel when they walk into their home to how they feel about their family. That’s intense because of what clutter makes us feel (stress). So to willingly create an environment that makes me feel that way about my family? That didn’t sit well with me. 

I found multiple studies showing the effect of too many toys and options on children – it’s honestly alarming and sad! I want the kids to grow up knowing how to play… really play. I want them to use their imaginations, go outside, thrive! 

As I was reading this research and more like it, it all started to hit me. It made so much sense that I’d been feeling so heavy and burdened in day-to-day life… we had so much excess in our home. It was a lot to maintain – too much! I made a decision to clear physical clutter in hopes of lightening things up a bit.

What happened was so much more than that! It was like we literally created more time in our days, just by removing some excess. We got rid of some dishes, clothing, and toys that were simply not being used, plus the random “stuff” hiding in our closets and drawers, and that was all it took for things to get better. 

I found that I had more energy, more time, more space for things I actually like and use. I noticed an improvement in my marriage and the way I spoke to my family (must be the decrease in stress!). I also felt like I looked forward to my days a little more. This process was doing so much good for us!

Here we are now, at this time of giving gifts, and I know you want to give so big and love on the kids and I so much. Can I be honest and just say that I’m anxious about it? I’m hoping I can be transparent because I want that relationship with you. I have no desire to offend you or take any joy from you!

It’s just that, I feel so much lighter these days, and I’ve seen how “stuff” takes a toll on our home, our kids, on mental health and happiness. I know you love our family and your giving comes from a place of expressing that love, so I want to be honest about where I’m at and ask if we can find another way to do this moving forward. I would love for you to feel like you get to love the socks off all of us, and for me to not feel anxiety about this happy time of year. I’d love your help in raising the kids to know how to play, how to create, how to imagine and be present in the sweetness of childhood.

I’m really excited about the possibilities with this new way of giving and celebrating… I feel like experiences and really amazing gifts can come from this.

There are experiences the kids would love a membership to, there are a few toys they really want and would actually play with I can tell you about, there are interests and hobbies they’re interested in that you could buy supplies for… there are so many gifts that would be not only worth your financial while, but great for our family and aligned with my vision in raising the kids.

I love you, and I want us to both enjoy this time of year. I am happy to hear your thoughts as well, and to help you purchase things that will be good for the kids and actually get loved and played with. I want us to be on the same team! Thank you for hearing me out and for being the kind of person I’m glad to have in my family. 


If you want to customize this letter to fit your family, I’ll send you a more personalized, editable version so you can make it your own.

SEND IT TO ME!

Filed Under: intentional living, minimalism, motherhood Tagged With: birthday, boundaries, christmas, familiy, gifts, holidays, relatives

6 Steps to Overcome Your Paper Clutter

December 13, 2019 by Allie Casazza

I hear from a lot of women that their biggest clutter crutch is **drumroll** paper! Are you raising your hand saying, “Yep. That’s me. I’m one of those women” ? 

Trust me, girl. I get it. Decluttering paper can seem like such an unattainable goal because it’s not like normal clutter. 

With normal clutter you can just train yourself to not buy the useless crap. But paper is always coming in. And it feels like it multiplies by a billion when you have kids. 

The thing is that you’re always going to have more paper and get more paper. And that can feel suuuper discouraging when you’re doing all you can to work towards a minimalist lifestyle. 

There are so many “solutions” online and organizational systems that promise pain-free, eternal freedom from paper clutter. But they’re not real solutions. 

They’re band-aids. These tips and systems are not for real people dealing with real life. 

And that’s my whole mission—to make minimalism and simplified living something that real-life women can work toward and attain. I like to take whatever is not working for everybody and figure it out for all of us, and then share it. 

And that’s essentially what I’m doing today because I have figured out that paper clutter crutch for you, girlfriend! I have created a system—tried and tested by myself—that is going to get your never-ending-arrival of paper under control. 

Do I hear the Hallelujah chorus? I thought so! 

This system is for everything. It’s for mail, it’s for school flyers, it’s for announcements, to-do lists, random post-it notes, any kind of paper. 

It’s not a magic pill. It’s not pain free. You’re going to have to work at this and keep working at it or your paper is going to come back. 

But this system has eliminated my paper clutter and I know it can eliminate yours too. Follow these six steps to overcome your paper problem. 

Create an Inbox

Mine is a white, metal magazine holder from Target. Yours can look however you want. It doesn’t matter. 

It can be a basket or a box. Pretty or simple. 

It just needs to be able to hold a week’s worth of incoming paper. This inbox is going to be the “landing zone” for any paperwork that comes into your home. 

Whether it’s mail, bills, school flyers, wedding invitations, baby shower announcements or even the post-it note with that amazing idea you crammed into your purse when you were at Target. You’re going to put any paper into this inbox so that you can process it later. 

Buy a Folder

You can use a plain manila folder or buy a fun one. Whatever you want. You do you. Mine says, “Follow Up” on it because that’s exactly what it’s for. 

This folder is going to live inside your inbox. It’s going to be where you put any mail that you can’t take immediate action on. 

Sidenote: You could also go digital here if you’d prefer that. Just create a folder in your phone and take a photo of any mail or paper that you need to follow up on and put it in that folder.

The main thing is that you have one place where you can put anything that you need to come back to at a later date.

Pick a Day to Process Your Inbox

Don’t overthink this. Just pick a day. 

What day of the week is going to work best for you to sit down and spend time sorting your mail? That is going to be your paper processing day. 

This day is nonnegotiable. Of course, you can change the actual day if you find that it doesn’t work for your schedule like you thought it would. 

But you must always have a day for processing. Don’t skip a week. That’s how the paper piles up. 

Because if it’s negotiable then, when life happens (which it will), you’re not going to take action. You’re just going to have this pretty inbox sitting there but it’s going to be totally pointless. 

So, always have a processing day. Put it in your calendar. Set alerts to remind yourself if you need to. Do whatever you have to do to make this day happen. 

Make It Fun

Brew yourself a fresh cup of coffee or tea. Or pour yourself a glass of your favorite wine. 

Play some music or put a podcast on. Make this a treat. It shouldn’t be a burden. It shouldn’t be a big ordeal. 

It should be something you look forward to because you have a system. You have a plan.

You are being an action-taking, problem-solving woman. You’re the CEO of your home and this is the day where you organize, systemize, and handle the things that would stress you out otherwise. 

Process Piece by Piece

On processing day, sort through each piece of paper and ask yourself, “What is this? What’s the point of it? What do I need to know? What action needs to be taken, if any?”  

Sometimes the action is straightforward and you can do it right away, like adding an event to your calendar or paying a bill online. Other times it takes a little more time. 

Maybe it warrants a response from you and you need time to think about your decision or have a conversation with your husband. Maybe you need to call and talk to the company that sent you the piece of mail, but it’s Saturday and you can’t. 

That’s fine. That’s what you have your “Follow Up” folder for.  

Just stick that piece of paper in there so you can come back to it later when you can handle it. But add a task to your to-do list or set a reminder on your phone or calendar so you remember that it’s in the folder and you need to take care of it. 

Your goal is to put as little amount of papers in the “Follow Up” folder as possible. Any time you can take immediate action, do that.

If you need to pay a bill, pay it. If you need to RSVP to something, do it. Don’t wait if you don’t need to. 

Then throw the paper away. We want our processing days to mostly look like a checklist of:  “Process, finish, trash.” 

Quit the Excuses

You need to understand that you’re going to stay overwhelmed and overrun by paper if you don’t get a system in place. And that’s not what we want because it’s not necessary. 

I hear so many excuses: 

“Oh, there’s just no day of the week for me to do this.”
“Well, I’m not good at things like that.”
 “This won’t work for me because of [insert any reason].”

Listen to me, friend. Anything can work for you if you make it work. If you decide that you don’t want to be a mess, that you want to handle things, that you want to get your crap under control, it will work. 

Having a system like this takes the problem out of it. This is the answer. I’m literally giving you the answer. 

Now it’s up to you. It’s time to channel your inner Olivia Pope, and handle your business. 


Did you know my signature program, Your Uncluttered Home, has an entire section on paper clutter? Tens of thousands of women have completed the course and decluttered their entire homes.

Ditch the clutter, decrease stress, and spend your time on what matters most to you.

LEARN MORE

Filed Under: Decluttering, minimalism Tagged With: clutter, declutter, mail, paper

5 Types of Hard-To-Kick Clutter & How To Handle Them

May 31, 2019 by Allie Casazza Leave a Comment

Decluttering is my main jam. I love helping women do this in their homes because it matters so much more than people even realize.

For women, specifically, there are a lot of negative effects of having clutter. One study even linked having a cluttered home to feeling unhappy in your family in general.

That’s powerful. That tells me that all of our stuff is bothering us and it’s affecting us in a big way.

That’s why I’m so passionate about helping women go through their homes and remove the excess. I want you left with only the things that are serving you and your families and contributing to a joyful and full life.

Having said that, I know that there are things that are hard to declutter. I get it. I’ve been there and I want to help you make good decisions so that you can keep making progress.

So, let’s look at five areas that can really trip you up when it comes to decluttering and how to push through them.

#1 Sentimental items

Typically, when people realize the role that clutter plays in their lives, they’re ready to make a change. So they get going and they’re doing great but then they find the bin of sentimental keepsakes and they just feel stumped.

How can you let go of the sweet, little dress that your daughter wore when she was dedicated at church? Or the photo of the positive pregnancy test from the baby that you miscarried? How do you get rid of the things that really tug on your heartstrings

What classifies as clutter versus something that is sentimental and truly a keepsake? How do you make the decision?

If you’ve been around here for more than ten minutes you know that I’m not about rules. I’m definitely not going to give you anything like that because this is different for every person.

If you get stuck on something sentimental, I encourage you to skip that area and move on. Go work on your bathroom or a bookshelf in the living room.

Declutter something else for now. Come back when you’ve been at this for a bit longer and you’ve seen the positive effects of letting go of clutter.

What happens is, as you evolve in this area in your life with getting rid of things, you grow. You evolve. You change.

You see that this really makes a difference. Keeping only what is serving you well makes you happy. That makes letting go of things less and less difficult as you go.

And once you declutter one or two sentimental things, it will get even easier because you have seen that you’ve let go of something that was special to you and nothing bad happened.

Please remember that letting go of physical possessions doesn’t mean that you are letting go of memories. On the other hand, it is OK to keep some things too. I think the line is when you have a bunch of bins full of “memories” that you are storing away because you are avoiding making decisions.

I CREATED A FREE WORKSHEET FOR YOU ON MINIMALISM AND SENTIMENTAL ITEMS THAT WILL GIVE YOU MORE IN-DEPTH TIPS FOR LETTING GO OF KEEPSAKES.

Send me the guide

#2 Your kids toys

First of all, don’t declutter your kids’ toys without them unless they are super young, like under age 3. If they are older than that, have them join you, even if it makes it more difficult and the process a lot slower.

Kids can really feel violated and mistrust you if you throw away their stuff without them knowing. That’s not what we want.

Start by having your kids pick out ten things they don’t play with anymore. Explain that there are so many children that don’t have toys and they would love it if they shared with them. Then, bag up the donations together and go to the donation center with your kids.

Make it a really happy, exciting thing so they don’t feel like they’re getting punished. This can teach them empathy and give them solid reasoning behind letting go of their stuff.

If your kids are having a hard time letting go of things, give them time. Go through the rest of your house and show them by example what letting go and minimalism looks like and let them follow in their own time.

#3 Your wardrobe

Letting go of your clothes is really hard when you’re a mom. You have bought clothes throughout different seasons of motherhood and body shapes. You can really easily – and understandably – not want to get rid of something that you might end up needing later.

But don’t get stuck in that fear. Go into your closet and look and get honest with yourself. What looks fantastic on you right now? Keep it. Everything else should probably go in the donation pile.

Having a bunch of stuff that doesn’t fit, used to fit, or that you want to fit you someday is not serving you at all. It is actually, subconsciously, making you really unhappy every time you get dressed.

Only keep in your closet what looks fantastic and what makes you feel great right now. Because that’s what you deserve.

A quick note on maternity clothes. If you are planning to get pregnant again, hold onto them. We are not looking to throw things out and waste money deliberately if you know you will use it again.

#4 Your husband’s stuff

Probably the top question I get is “how do I get my husband on board with this?” My answer is this: you don’t. He is his own separate person. Leave him alone.

If you start purging his stuff while he is at work he is going to resent you for it and hate minimalism forever. Leave his stuff alone if he hasn’t given you permission to declutter for him.

Find that sweet spot for yourself and let your husband be. In the end, he may come around like mine did.

The same rule applies with your in-laws, your parents, your friends and the people who come to your kids’ birthday parties.

#5 Paperwork

Go through your house with an empty box and collect all the stray paperwork that you can find. Then set aside some time to go through it.

You can pour yourself a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, turn on Netflix, whatever. But sit and sort through it all.

Make decisions about every piece of paper you pick up. Don’t allow yourself to start a “not sure” pile or an “I’ll deal with this later” pile.

If it’s something that your husband needs to look at and he’s not there, you can put it aside for him. But I would encourage you to set aside time to sort through paperwork when he is with you so you don’t find a reason or an excuse to put it aside for later.

It’s OK to make piles but don’t make a bunch of random piles that could have been eliminated if you had just made decisions.

I know these areas can be hard to tackle. I know it can feel overwhelming but I hope I have helped to simplify the overwhelm.

The truth is that if you don’t take power over your stuff, you are giving your stuff power over you.

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Filed Under: intentional living, minimalism Tagged With: clutter, declutter, minimalism

4 Reasons Why – No Matter What’s Going On – You Need to Declutter Your Home Now

April 19, 2019 by Allie Casazza 1 Comment

When it comes to decluttering, so many people get stuck on the hurdles that come up in the process that they procrastinate and never actually take action to kick the clutter.

These hurdles can be tiny or big – it doesn’t matter – the point is, they let a problem get in their way and either stop them in the middle of their progress or keep them from ever diving in and starting.

And I get it. When I tackled all the clutter in my house years ago, it was the worst time for me.

I had three kids under age three. I was seriously struggling with depression and all I wanted to do was go to bed and turn on Netflix.

I had no money, an overwhelming house, my marriage was a mess and Brian was not on board with minimalism.

I had every reason not to do this. I had every single excuse and everything stacked against me. And yet, I did it.

I don’t talk about this stuff for nothing. This isn’t just something that I randomly do or that I just like talking about or that I’m just good at. This stuff really matters.

When I realized that my stuff didn’t have to own me. That I could put it in its place and simplify. That I could focus on what actually matters and live my life instead of cleaning up after it all the time, everything changed for me.

And it breaks my heart when I see people not understanding that. I get that life is really busy, really full and there’s a lot of different things pulling at your focus and attention.

But the reward is so great! And I want that for you. I want your freedom for you.

And so I decided to write your ‘why’ for you. I’m literally writing 4 reasons why – no matter what’s going on – you need to declutter your home NOW!

1.Materialism is directly related to depression.

In an article published by Leaf Van Boven at the University of Colorado, it’s stated that investing financial resources in experiences makes people happier than investing in material possessions. Van Boven basically came to find that materialism is directly linked to narcissism and depression. That’s pretty heavy.


Ready to ditch survival mode?

  • Narrow in on your why behind decluttering

  • Throw away twenty things right now

  • Discover how to simplify the two biggest time-suckers: dishes and laundry.

Download my fan-favorite Clear the Clutter Starter Kit for free!

I need this!


2. Your home is meant to be a haven (and it can be)

There was another study done by Darby Saxby and Rena Rapetti published by Sage Publications called “No Place Like Home.”

Here’s a quote I pulled from it: “The home can be a place to unwind from the work day, but when housework and home repairs compete for the attention of time-strapped, working parents, home can become more of a source of demands than a haven from the outside world.”

Who’s feeling like they want to raise their hands?  Who feels like your home is a giant chore list instead of a shelter from the outside world?

What can we do to make our homes more of a haven for ourselves, our husbands and our children?

The answer: Create less work. That’s why I’m so hard hitting about minimalism. Because how you feel about your home is how you feel about your life in general.

3. Less housework (can I get an amen)?

A study done at Harvard University stated that “eliminating clutter would cut housework by 40%.”

How would your life even look if you had 40% less housework every day? That’s a whole lot less of a burden on you.

Just let that sink in.

4. You’ll be happier

Another study that I talk about all the time was done at UCLA and it found that the more stuff that’s in a woman’s house the higher her level of the stress hormone cortisol. The study found that women subconsciously relate how happy they are with their home life and family to how they feel about their house.

So the more clutter and chaos in the home, the less happy the woman was with her family and her life.



IT’S TIME TO CHANGE YOUR #MOMLIFE

You’re the hero in your story, sweets. You’ve just been bogged down by STUFF + STRESS.

I’m ready to put you on a better path – the path to PEACE! Let’s do this.

Your Uncluttered Home is an online course to help you clear the clutter, reduce your stress, and create more space for what matters.

Learn more

Wow.

There’s your ‘why.’ There’s four reasons you need to get serious about the stuff that’s taking up space in your home.

If you’re coming up with excuses, I want to give you a pep talk and just tell you to stop overcomplicating this. You know exactly what the problem is and you know exactly what the solution is.

Stop overcomplicating it and just do it.

If you’re having trouble finding the time, decide this is a priority. Treat this like it matters.

Even if it’s just 30 minutes a week. It’s something and something is better than nothing.

10 minutes is better than no minutes.

Start somewhere that’s sucking up a lot of your time and energy. Maybe that’s your kitchen. Start with the dishes.

Simplify. All you need is a dish per person. Let the rest go.

Or start somewhere really easy like the bathroom.  Let that be an easy ‘yes’ and ‘no’ area and build the momentum you need to keep going.

Eventually you will get to the other side where you can say,”Wow, things are lighter.” And you’re going to be in maintenance mode and it’s going to be awesome.

Please let this serve as your big ‘why’ and let it push you forward and just start.

Life is short. And it can be so good and so purposeful. But you’ve gotta decide that it’s worth it.

Clean out the clutter and start living your life. Because you’re happiness is worth the work.

Filed Under: intentional living, minimalism Tagged With: clutter, declutter, minimalism, minimalist

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