Home Sweet Home

Making a house a home should be much like preparing and enjoying a wonderful slow-cooked meal.  Love goes in to preparing that meal for your loved ones, and so love should go in to preparing a home for them as well.  Season your home to reflect your unique tastes.  A home, and the ones in it, should develop over time; their flavors mingling to yield a rewarding combined result.  Remember it's going to be awhile until it's done, so be patient... and enjoy it while it's bubbling to perfection.  Just don't rush a good thing.

"Home, the spot of earth supremely blest,
A dearer, sweeter spot than all the rest."
~Robert Montgomery

  

So, how do we make our home a dearer, sweeter spot than all the rest?  By focusing on loving one another, and doing everything in love.  Nothing is insignificant.  Sometimes I've wondered, what difference did I make today?  I stayed home, took care of the kids, and got the usual housework done.  What was so great about that?  Well, I helped to make a house a home by singing and dancing in the kitchen with my kids, reading them a favorite book before nap time, getting the dishes done and putting supper on the table.  Love is shown in our daily interactions with one another.

Let all you do be done in love. -1 Corinthians 16:14

Let your home be a unique reflection of you and your family.  Don't worry what others might think.  It is your home, and if something strikes your fancy, go with it.  I often thumb through magazines for inspiration in decorating my home.  At some point I usually find myself thinking: what were they thinking?  The point is, who cares?  It's their home, and if we all were the same, imagine how mundane life would be.  So, just surround yourself with what makes you happy.  

"People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness.  Just because they're not on your road doesn't mean they've gotten lost."  ~H. Jackson Browne

Nurture your family relationships by spending time together.  When you spend time together, you grow together.  This can be as simple as taking a walk down the road and back, or sharing a cup of coffee with your spouse before work.  It doesn't take much, except action.  The result is a close-knit family, where everyone knows they are loved, no matter what.

"The smallest deed is better than the best of intentions." ~unknown

Patience... it all takes time.  It's fun to watch the kids when I'm baking cookies, and they're almost done.  The kids just can't wait for that first taste.  They have their noses to the glass, and when the buzzer sounds, they jump up with a, "They're done Mom!  Can we have one now?"  I respond with a "Not yet, you'll burn your mouth!"  Some things just take time.  Like a batch of cookies, or that delicious home-cooked meal bubbling in the oven...  Making a house a home takes time.  So take it slow... and don't rush your good thing.