Magazine Home Meets Reality

We are – wait for it… First Time Home Owners!  My husband and I have spent the last 5 ½ years of our marriage in a “cozy” apartment. So, to finally have a home to call our own is a welcomed relief for many reasons. One of those is our very energetic, precocious toddler!

 

Now, as a woman I often envision how I hope to make our home look. In my mind we will hire Joanna Gaines from the HGTV show “Fixer Upper.” In reality, well let’s just say it won’t be quite that easy.  I have so many ideas it’s overwhelming and have no clue where to begin. Lately I find myself wide-awake hours after going to bed, only to be thinking of all the amazing possibilities.

 

Then, of course, I remember two things – we are not handy people, and we are on a tight budget. My husband and I have never even held a paintbrush. Well, unless you count art class in the fifth grade.  So, how will I ever be able to make this home our kind of beautiful?  That seems to be the question that has consumed my every thought… I mean, who doesn’t want that magazine cover home?

 

As a child, I remember my parents tackling one small project a year in our home.  They are very much the “do it yourself” couple.  My parents always made it look so effortless. Of course they have had years of experiences – from knocking out walls to putting in countertops and painting.  Not to say their projects have always come out perfect the first time.  In fact, they have had several projects turn out less than desirable.  Like the yearn color, which currently dons their bedroom walls. But they continue to forge ahead in search of their own magazine cover home.  Learning and growing from each other through each new project they complete.  My parents beam with a sense accomplishment from creating a home that reflects their personality and lives together.  This is an attribute I hope my husband and I will gain through our first home owning experience.

 

Becoming a new homeowner myself, I find it difficult to settle on which project comes first and how best to achieve it.  I really want that vintage appeal by doing some DIY projects. Again, “never held a brush” here – wanting to paint everything white and distress it.  I mean, how hard can it be, right?

 

Now let’s talk Pinterest!  Honestly, I used to be the occasional pinner.  Only getting on to pin things for upcoming events that were months apart. Now, here I am, a daily PINNER!  Typing in keywords to the search bar like Storage. Playroom. Budget.  I love finding all these amazing creations people have brought to life, making everything look perfect! I find myself saying, “I could buy those spice racks (book shelves) for $3.99 and paint them” or “I bet my husband could make those built in shelves.”  Pinterest truly is an obsession and like most people, only a few of those thousand pins ever make it to life.  Wouldn’t it be great to host a Pinterest party so a group of moms could help me achieve all my DIY home projects!?!?

nikki1Finally, I realized something very important – we have a HOME!  This is what my husband and I have been working towards since we got married and now it is finally becoming a reality.  As much as I want my home to look beautiful – I realized it already is.  It is the place where our daughter will flourish, and our family will continue to grow.  Our home will be our sanctuary from the noise of the outside world. This is the place we will gather for family dinners and bedtime stories.  Everything becomes secondary, background noise.  I don’t need to spend hours thinking of all the possible projects to do. I simply need to live each day in our home listening to my daughters giggle or the tapping of her little feet as she takes yet another lap around the kitchen. These moments make our home the most beautiful place on earth.

 

(Special thanks to Nikki Wildemuth for this beautiful guest post today!)

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