Falling In Love With Your Home
Isn't it funny how we remember certain things from our childhood? Just recently I was barking something at my oldest child (he's eighteen and I swear I think he's turning six at times) and I caught myself. I actually caught myself laughing. You see, what I was barking at him was something my mom would 'bark' at me when I was his age. It was such a simple bark: "How many times have I told you to pick up your clothes off your floor? I will not live in a pig-stye...." and truthfully, I think I may have said a bit more. As I went downstairs I heard him talking to himself (something I used to - and still do). Here's where I caught myself. I believe I said something like,
"Who are you talking to up there? Do you have a friend up there?"
As I was laughing out loud, and my son came down to see what was going on. He looked at me like I was loosing it. I told him how grandma used to say the same thing to me when I was his age and I thought it was really funny. Needless to say, I got 'the look'.
When it comes to remembering my childhood, I also remember growing up and coming home from a holiday or from a visit with family up in Edmonton, my dad would walk into our home and say,
"I love my house."
It didn't matter if we were away for a week, two weeks, or just the weekend. Every time we spent time away from our home, when we got back, he would share his thoughts with all of us.Recently I went to visit a couple of showhomes as I get ready for a renovation in our house. I wanted to see if I could get some different inspiration. While some were nice, others were just 'meh'. What I found myself saying when I got home was,
"I love my house."
While we have a big reno coming up with some big changes (I'm bursting with excitement every time I redesign a space), I still love my home. When I thought about what I love about my home I came up with the following.
Why I Love My Home (in no particular order)
- I love our location. While we are located in the deep south of Calgary, we have everything we could possibly need very close to us.
- I love our cul-de-sac. We have such friendly neighbours and we all know each other. We look out for each others' kids, we look out for our homes when we're away, and we truly like each other and have a lot of fun.
- Our house isn't too big or too small. It's just right. While my husband has no intention on ever developing the basement (I'll let you know if I win that battle), we have more than enough room. We don't try to 'keep up the the Jones's or overextend ourselves. We live a comfortable life and are happy with what we have.
- I love each and every one who lives in our home (and yes - that includes my eighteen year old son who sometimes acts like he's six).
How Do I Keep Loving My Home?
Purging is part of our life
When something new comes in, the 'old' doesn't get tossed down in our unfinished basement. It gets donated, recycled, given away, or tossed.
Cleaning is a weekly chore
While I don't have a housekeeper (again - I'll let you know when I win that battle) it is a chore that is just something that has to get done (in my opinion). As a homeowner, I want to ensure our investment in our home does not get wasted on filth and grime. When I stage a home I tell the homeowners that their home needs to be immaculate. No one goes to the store to buy dirty clothes - what makes you think someone would come and buy a dirty house? And while I am not selling our home, I want to ensure that we show pride of ownership in our home.
Living in our home
While some of you may have this vision that my house is overly clean, it sometimes isn't. That's because I have two teens living in our home and a husband who - hmmmm...how do I say this - isn't always neat. I want my kids to know they can LIVE in our home. Have fun, make a mess...they just know that the mess needs to be cleaned up when they're done.So as you you look at your situation, what makes you love your home?
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