House Woes

When you spend the majority of your time in and around your home you look at it a lot.  There are days that you see it, but don't really see it.  And then there are days that you really see it and, if you're anything like me, you find fault.

If only there weren't so many marks on the walls.  If only our couch didn't look so worn.  If only we had new caulking around the sink.  If only we could repaint, recarpet, redecorate, renovate, bump out this wall...the list goes on and on forever and ever and ever.

But do we really need to do these things?  No.  We do not.  And if we're honest and tough, we'll tell ourselves that, mean it and believe it.  Taking a look at the squalor that many people in our world live in should cure us mighty quick.  And, if it doesn't...well, then, we have some issues we need to work on.

All that said, there is something about change that we crave and I would like to suggest that we can have our change and eat it too (I have to talk about eating somewhere in this post).  Here are some suggestions for when you experience those house woes....

1) Get.  Rid.  Of.  Clutter.  Donate it, recycle it, store it (if you must).  Often, having less in a room gives it a whole new, fresh, bigger look.

2) Move the furniture (and pictures on the walls) around.  Old pieces look new in a new spot.  And, you may even burn a few calories while doing it.

3) Wash your windows.  This may seem a bit silly, but trust me.  Sparkling clean windows are beautiful and brighten up any room (that has windows, of course).  If you don't have one, spend a couple dollars and buy yourself a squeegee (cheap ones work great).  It makes washing windows a breeze.

4) Use baby wipes on your walls.  I think baby wipes are awesome for wiping up finger prints, pencil marks, you name it.  Just do a test spot in an inconspicuous place to make sure it doesn't clean your wall too well.

5) If you were smart, you saved leftover paint and can touch up areas the baby wipes can't clean.  I just got done repainting two doors and some trim in our mudroom, as well as touching up the wall paint.  It's a new room, I tell you, and it cost me nothing.

6) Set out a vase (or canning jar, if you're like me) of fresh flowers from outside.  It makes any room look better.

7) Rotate toys by packing some up and storing them.  There will be less clutter under your feet and, in a few weeks, you can switch out the toys and the kids will think they have something new.

8) Most importantly...stop looking at catalogs, magazines, blogs and those blasted redecorating shows that cause house envy.  I used Catalog Choice years ago and haven't missed Pottery Barn catalogs at all.  The world doesn't know what we need even though it pretends that it does.

Since we're in our homes so much, it's nice when we enjoy them.  But, hey.  We're big girls, aren't we?  Let's not be blown by the wind and succumb to shameless attempts to make us think we need stuff to make us happy.  We are smart, intelligent beings who can think critically about all this perfect-house-hype and consider using our money to help those in squalor instead.

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want." 

Psalm 23:1 (italics mine)