The past couple of weeks have been very busy, stressful, and overall exhausting. But thinking of spending my weekend here with my family immediately lowers my blood pressure. We moved into this house Spring 2001, married three years later, January 2009 marked the birth of Emerson and the completion of a major renovation confirming that this is not a starter house, this is our life home.
Last night Karl grilled steaks; I sat on a bench at the foot of the deck stairs outside those double doors and looked up into this living room all lit up and thought, THIS is my dream home. The old couches that sag and creak, the mismatched wood furniture decorated with nicks and some crayon lines, the bookcases jammed full with no rhyme, reason, or color coordination. Every square foot represents the three of us (actually four, can't forget our dog Cindy!), and every square foot represents love.
Saturday mornings, I wake up before everyone, go for a walk and then and enjoy a cup of coffee and a chapter of my latest book in that crazy chair I bought from the Annapolis Mall Structure when it was closing. The rest of the house wakes, Karl heads off to work and Emerson and I sit on the couch together and watch TV with our twin bowls of oatmeal, or lie in the hammock (that's what that rope is to the right, the other part of the hammock is hiding behind a curtain) and watch the woods, pointing out birds and squirrels. Later in the day day you can find us working on a craft at the coffee table or lying on the floor playing. In the evening after Emerson is in bed, Karl and I snuggle on the couch and watch an episode of Vikings or Once Upon a Time (we're catching up on Once, currently on Season 2 via Netflix so no spoilers please!). This room is called a Living Room for a reason.
I sometimes get caught up in the land of decor blogs and Pinterest, but a home is one of the most personal things in one's life. I like how it's becoming more and more odd and mismatched and worn in, how there's no real theme or concept except us. When I start feeling off, I look at our living room and get grounded. Home IS where the heart is!