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If you know me personally or have been a reader here for a while you've heard my catch phrase "It's good to have a goal!". Well it is! Zig Zigler says "If you aim at nothing you'll hit it every time." I have a few goals for this spring. One of them is to simplify my home. I mean every part of it; menus, recipes, schedules, closets, cupboards, etc. If you're looking to simplify a little bit of your life or achieve a major overhaul then join me for our ten part series as we work along side.
The Home That Welcomes
What Makes a Welcoming Home?
It's
the place we all want to come home to. There's no place like it
according to Dorothy. There are many elements that make a home.
Cleanliness, efficiency, self-reliance, and joy are just a few elements
that are discussed in the book.
Your home need not be spotless and stark, but it should be a refuge from the busy world we live in. It should be clean and uncluttered.
Do you have mail that's waiting to be sorted through? Laundry that you
meant to put away three days ago? Is there a gooey, sticky mess
waiting for you in the microwave? "Learning how to keep a house clean
and uncluttered is the groundwork for many loftier achievements --
happiness, thriving family relationships, intellectual pursuits, hobbies
that nurture creativity, and renewed energy and enthusiasm for the life
we live outside the home." Again we don't want the stark and sterile
look. Think fluffed pillows, candles burning, some soft music playing.
Try one of those this week!
Our homes should be efficient.
The rooms should accommodate the needs and activities of the people who
live in them. Efficiency means not being wasteful. The furniture and
possessions in our homes need to be well cared for and made to last.
Water and lights are turned off when not in use and left overs thrown
away are a rarity. Try leaving post-it notes around your home as a
reminder!
No one is truly self-reliant anymore,
but it's good to try. (Good to have a goal, right?! *wink*) My husband
is the very model of self-reliance. No matter what repair in our home
needs to be accomplished he tackles it head on. Plumbing, carpentry,
yard work, planting, and animal care (we have goats and chickens that
need special attention at times) just to name a few. If he's not sure
what he's doing he'll ask someone or read about it. Try to fix
something yourself instead of hire someone. That's a great goal to have
this year! I'm going to try to make more bread from scratch! A simple
step in self-reliance is to try making your own fun! Instead of DVD's,
computers, iPods, etc. cuddle up with a good book or read aloud as a
family! Try reading the Bible in a year together or at least the New
Testament! Work a puzzle together. Even little ones can find the
straight edges of the borders! Find one way this week you can do
something that's simple and fun!
Our homes experience the joys
of the seasons right along with us. They get decorated and spruced up,
too! Our homes help us develop traditions; turning on a lamp for a
loved one on their way home, a summer garage sale, pancakes on a
Saturday morning, etc. The simple act of traditions, no matter how
simple, give us joy. Find a new tradition to try this week!
"They say that people fall in love with houses, but houses never love you back, and I suppose that's true. But if you take time to manage your little part of the world, if you put energy and thought into the way things are done, you'll receive some things that are pretty valuable in return -- comfort and joy, time to relax and appreciate your life and the people in it, and rooms that welcome you each time you return. All in all, pretty well worth the effort." -- Susan Waggoner
Join me in the coming weeks as we unwrap the present that is our lives. The next step in our series is taming the clutter. Please share this series by placing the button in the side bar of your blog or share on Facebook by clicking the "Like" button under this post.
* photos courtesy of Country Living
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