The say your home is your castle, but what does that mean? Most days I don't feel like the place I call home is any sort of castle, but it does feel like home. I'm comfortable there and not just because my stuff is there, but because the place reflects my husband and me.
We've been here for nearly two years and have made a lot of updates to this 91 year old three bedroom house on a busy street. Making changes takes a lot of work and projects don't always go as quickly as planned.
Recently, I started choosing not to stress over decorating every single room. I felt defeated when I'd walk into part of the house that was not "pretty," meaning it didn't have anything hung on the walls or floorboards and trim were missing.
It was draining my energy. Seeing unfinished corners made me feel like a failure. I'd think my home didn't "measure up." But what was I measuring it against? Pinterest photos or homes I'd actually been to?
One of my favorite parts of our home is the mantle. I'm thankful to have a place I can decorate for the seasons or holidays when I feel like it.
In two years, we've made a lot of progress and that's what I have to remind myself about. We installed new windows in the kitchen, along with cabinets and a counter top. Last year, we gave the bathroom a makeover. We replaced the ceiling and painted the living room. And just a month ago, got the guest room in order.
Have you ever had to give yourself grace when it comes to your home?
P.S. Don't forget! Tomorrow Erika & I are hosting "The List", where you can link up your list style post.
The linkup happens the first Friday of each month. Share your favorite things from the past month and what you're looking forward to in the new month. It doesn't have to be fancy, it doesn't have to be long, it can just be what the link-up is: a list.
I understand. I have a Pinterest board for my "dream" house-that may or may not happen someday. But I also keep an eye out for ideas for my "now" house. And, don't get me wrong-I love my now house. Currently I am contemplating painting the living room, and rearranging the boys' bedroom to fit their needs. We moved here over 7 years ago, so their needs as toddlers are quite different from what their needs are as pre-teens. While we were in Asia, a good friend of mine refinished my dining room floors. It has needed done since we moved in, but there never was a right time. All this to say, I've learned to love my house, be content, and work on projects as I have the time and resources. It is not a show home, but I love it.
ReplyDeleteThere is such a fine line with things like Pinterest, between being inspired and entering the sticky world of comparison. For sure. I'm a new reader- I appreciate the honesty here. {and your home? is lovely}
ReplyDeleteI have to!!! I am doing one room at a time piece by piece. i want to be wise with the money i do have and take time to do things well. if i am thinking about every room i get crazy overwhelmed. and i keep reminding myself to enjoy the process :)
ReplyDeletei love that both of us wrote about our struggles with ours homes today.
ReplyDeletesince pinterest, i have put this crazy kind of pressure for my house to live up to...but since moving into a major fixer upper...we just don't have the funds to prettify it all at once!
ReplyDeletei think that it a good lesson. pinterest, blogs and all that makes you feel like your house isn't good enough or decorated nicely - i can relate to that! but you do have to just let some of it go!
ReplyDeleteglad you're letting go. I already know this is something I'll struggle with in our next place. we're probably going to sell a lot of our stuff before we move and will be starting fresh in a lot of ways and I'm going to have patience gettin t just the way I want it. those lovely Pinterest/blog homes can really get into your head, and you're right, they're really not the norm.. I've never been to a house that looks like them.
ReplyDeletehave a lovely weekend Beth!
I'm so with you on this. I feel like the things I want to change about our home almost keep me up at night. I need to remember how lucky we are to have the house that we do and that all of it isn't going to look exactly how I want it to -- and that's okay!
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