I always want our home to feel welcoming and inviting. I also want it to feel like us... but also decorated. Apparently I’m succeeding on some level because people do compliment me on our home and how it’s decorated. I think it really comes down the feeling it conveys though, because it’s not all that decorated, though plenty of our stuff is everywhere, the walls are still almost all the same color and sometimes it’s not very clean. But I think the things that make it succeed is when it is tidy, and it feels like you can just plop down anywhere in a comfy seat. I hope you feel at home. Even if the kitchen isn’t spotless (it so rarely is) you can go and get some water from the fridge. You can peruse the bookshelf and find something interesting. You can even take a nap in the giant chair.
I’m so thankful for our home. It really is ours. Our stacks of books crammed into bookcases, our dings in the walls from rearranging, our ridiculously large chair-and-a-half. When we’re away we look forward to coming back, and not just to our comfy bed, but the whole place.
Sometimes I need to remind myself of these things. That we have made this house our home, and that people enjoy coming and hanging out here (or so I’ve been told). I need reminded when I feel antsy to paint a room, or all the kitchen cupboards, or the insides of closets, or any other project lurking in my brain. That’s the problem right now, I’m feeling antsy. Paint is not overly expensive, but time must be considered too. And I may be feeling overly ambitious but I need to focus on the present, the things that need baked for Thanksgiving, the lovely ideas for Christmas presents that need to be attempted (so there’s time to try or get something else), projects already in motion, the things that need a simple cleaning, the daily meals that are so necessary. I’m so good at coming up with ambitious ideas, but there are other important things that need my time right now.
So, the house will wait for its little upgrades. It is doing what it needs to do. Welcoming us and our loved ones in, providing warmth and peace. Thanks, house. Someday maybe we’ll give you a name along with some new colors.
