Sewing for Cherubs

Spring

A bucket of soapy water to clean off a long-unused table...

 

A trek into the woods...

 

A few wildflowers gathered...

 

And suddenly, it's springtime once again.

 

Time for lots of dinners on the deck!

In My Chair

This week, I have been spending an inordinate (and perhaps inappropriate) amount of time doing ... Nothing.

 

Now that it is after Christmas but before the resumption of school and all the activities, the rhythm of my days has had a nice simplicity to it. I get up, make breakfast, get the kids started on something fun, and settle into my favorite chair by the fire.

 

Oh yes, the chair. It's not much to look at. In fact, I am fairly certain some of my friends consider it an eyesore. It is a circa 1998 genuine swiveling, rocking La-Z-Boy recliner. It has no style whatsoever and it is worn and stained. But you know what? This chair has memories. I spent many a late night in this chair nursing my babies back to sleep, and I still spend many an afternoon snuggled in it with a child or two or three, reading stories.

 

So... Here I sit. I know reality will very soon interfere with all this nothingness, but I'm just going to enjoy it while it lasts.

 

'Tis the Season

The holiday season is upon us, and at the Sewing for Cherubs household, preparations are in full swing. I have such a love/hate relationship with this time of year. On the one hand, there always is way more to do than I can possibly accomplish, and I never finish everything I plan. On the other hand though, there are all those wonderful moments that only happen at this time of year. So far this December, we have...

Trimmed the tree:

 

Started the baking:

 

Prepared for and enjoyed three violin concerts (whew):

 

And I've even carved out some time to just sit in my favorite chair with a furry friend:

 

Whatever you've been up to this December, I hope it has been a cozy time with friends and family!

Laundry by the Numbers

I have...

6 laundry baskets;

5 people in my house who make dirty laundry;

4 different kinds of laundry products to make everything nice and clean;

3 children, did I mention they make dirty laundry?

2 hours to spend washing clothes this afternoon, and

1 husband who will be very happy about that, because he has:

0 clean work shirts left.

Public Service Announcement

This is your home decor.

This is your home decor with kids.

Any questions?

The Nicest Spirit

A lovely person who was in my home today told me something that made me smile for the rest of the day. She said, "Your house has the nicest spirit."

It was such a pleasant and unusal sort of compliment that I had to suppress the urge to ask her to elaborate. Instead, I smiled and thanked her, and then proceeded to spend the day pondering what it might mean.

You see, this ... nice spirit ... is exactly what I strive to create in my home. I want my home to be a place that nurtures my family and allows us to build connections. It should be:

• Comfortable, peaceful, and cozy

• Relatively clean and uncluttered (well, as much as it can be with small children around!)

• A place where family traditions are created and celebrated

• A place where everyone in my family feels safe and valued

• A place where friends feel welcome

That is how I would define the "nicest spirit" for a home. Of course, as an imperfect homemaker, I often am plagued with doubt about whether I can live up to these expectations.

But today, just for a moment, I allowed myself to think... maybe I am doing something right.

How To Organize a Kitchen Cabinet

1. Take one large cabinet in your kitchen.

2. Over the span of several years, allow stuff to accumulate in this cabinet until it's so junked up that you can't find the flour amidst things like rarely used appliances, and Valentine candy which is older than your youngest child. You will know this step is adequately complete when your spouse begins to politely suggest that it might be a good idea to organize the cabinet.

4.  Allow said cabinet to remain in its chaotic state until your spouse seems to be on the verge of dropping the politeness.

5. Arrange for inclement weather which closes schools and traps you in the house for a day. Give the children video games to play.

6. Remove all items from the cabinet. Wipe down the shelves. Discard all items which are no longer useful, such as Valentine candy which is older than your youngest child. Relocate all items which are rarely used to a different part of the kitchen.

7. Put everything else back in the cabinet. Place frequently used items in the bottom shelves, and less frequently used items higher up or in the back. Arrange all items so that they can be removed and replaced without moving other items. You now have a functional, useful kitchen cabinet.

(Well, that's how I do it, anyway.)

Welcome Home

 

Welcome... Such a simple sentiment but so meaningful. In my opinion, one of the main objectives of caring for your home is to make it a place where people feel welcome. And the welcome shouldn't just extend to outside visitors (special as they are). I think the most important thing is to make your own family feel welcome in their home.

My house will probably never be on the cover of a magazine. We are just now (after 13 years of marriage) starting to replace some of the old falling-apart college hand-me-down furniture, and to be honest, decorating is just NOT something I am good at. I am always so impressed by the lovely homes of my friends who have that knack. Then I come home, look around, and have to tell myself that it's okay, my talents just lie elsewhere.

But my house does have a particular quality of which I am proud. It is a place where my family truly feels at home. And this is a quality which can be cultivated anywhere, from the smallest apartment to the grandest mansion. My house may be a little cluttered and chaotic, and I might not have the right matching knick-knacks in the right places, but at the end of the day, it is a place where each member of my family is free to be their own unique self. No one is afraid to put their feet on the furniture, everyone has a comfortable place to sit, and construction paper party hats and food-coloring-water plant experiments are not only expected, but celebrated. And that's what feels like home to me!

P.S. The first Monday of 2009 seems like an appropriate time to welcome you to my little blog, whether you're just stopping by for the first time or you have been along for the ride for a year or even right from the beginning. Thank you for reading!

Watching Paint Dry

It's amazing how adding a little color to your world can brighten your perspective. Wishing you a colorful week!

 

 

Pride Goeth Before A Fall

There is nothing quite like the feeling of breezing through Kroger with your very organized shopping list and filling up your cart with your (very large) load of groceries in record time because you are oh SO organized...

And THEN realizing that you forgot to drop off the (very large) load of recycling before going shopping, and now there is nowhere in your car to put the aforementioned (very large) load of groceries.