I've never been a great housekeeper. I say housekeeper and not homemaker because I truly do have the heart of a homemaker. I long for my home to be a cozy place of rest and comfort and love for my family and anyone who visits. I love decorating and cooking and being present with my boys and creating routines and planning... oh how I love planning! But the housekeeping thing- the never ending dishes, laundry, dirty toilets, diapers, meals that have to be cooked, and all this on a regular basis... sometimes it's just all too much. I'd rather be making memories with my children and doing fun things with them, not keeping them cooped up inside while I clean. Right?
One of my favorite quotes of all time that I absolutely believe with all my heart is by Marie Forleo, and she says, "Everything is figureoutable.". I love that. I live that. In any given situation where I seem stuck, I know if I think on it enough in the right way a solution will come eventually. I've been this way since I was little... determined. There has to be a way... or a better way. Recently I came to this point with my housekeeping- I felt stuck, trapped, lonely, and overwhelmed, and I knew there was a better way- I just had to figure it out.
I had to figure out how to keep up with the basics without feeling overwhelmed and overburdened. I had to figure out how I could take my kids on a playdate, or to the library, or outside to play, or even just play inside- and be truly present with them- without feeling the looming mountain of domestic responsibility waiting for me. I had to figure out a way to wake up to a clean kitchen and start my day off right. Because waking up to a messy kitchen? Instant grouch. Horrible way to start the day. I knew if I thought about it long enough, and tried different things, I'd eventually be able to figure this thing out. And I think I'm at that point.
Maybe I'll go a little more in detail on how exactly I'm doing it in another post, but in this post I'll mainly focus on the big wins- the simple moments I've built into our lives (by having the time and head space to make it happen), the simple moments I'm now able to enjoy guilt free because of my ability to keep on top of the house chores. My goal for our home life has always been to feel joy in the ordinary, and in this particular season I feel exactly that.
These are some of the things I'm currently enjoying- purposefully and guilt free.
Blueberry picking. Zach made a blueberry yogurt cake, I made a blueberry crisp, we've all had bowls of berries galore and we still have lots leftover!
This is my favorite right now. Gabe's little "ism" in this season is scrunching up his lips and running his fingers across them. How precious is that? I call it his "pucker for mama" and can't resist giving him the biggest smooch when he does it!
Zach and Julian have quiet time every day in their room while Gabe naps so I can get some rest. I rent them books from the library, make homemade playdough and supply them with all the paper and crayons they could ever want and I don't hear a peep for two hours. I am a firm and unabashed believer in refilling my own tank and do not feel guilty doing so. This is the most peaceful time of day for me where I can read, do my devotions or even take a nap myself.
We were about to start planting lavender seeds when I looked up and saw Gabe staring thoughtfully out the window. Thankfully I grabbed my camera just in time! I love his sweet little face.
We were watching a movie and the two younger boys climbed on my lap to cuddle. Made my heart just melt!
This is Gabe's "metal face". Hahahaha I seriously cannot handle it. Whenever I play any music that has the slightest rock sound to it he does this. He is definitely my child!
Caught a moment between these two. They have such a precious and close bond, I love watching it unfold in our home.
This is a printout I made of my chores, so to speak. I saw something similar on pinterest and adapted it to suit me. I love the non-scheduled and simplistic feel of it. I put it on our fridge as a reminder of my focus for the day, but made it pretty so it's nice and artistic to look at.
We recently discovered a free petting zoo near our home and Gabe just loved the goats. Almost as much as Julian loved the chickens.
As you can see here. <3
So this. We have two bathrooms in our house that we just moved into earlier this year. The upstairs bathroom has a beautiful steam shower, pictured, and the main level bathroom has a massive whirlpool tub with jets. I was finding it very difficult to give the boys baths in it, partly because Gabe was stressed out every time and refused to sit down, and mostly because of the awkward knee-and-back-destroying position I had to be in in order to wash them. So, as everything is figureoutable, I put my brain to work and decided to buy a small kiddie pool for the upstairs shower and this is now how we do baths. Loads easier and the boys love it. Hallelujah!
Dave's mom and stepdad live on Gun Lake, and we love taking the boys out there. I just love this picture of Dave with Gabe on the jet-ski. He looks so tiny next to his daddy! Precious.
Bone broth is my new thing. Okay not new, as I've been making it for a couple years now, but making it the right way is my new thing. Ha. I had a bad cold at the end of spring and my good friend Mina brought me some bone broth from one of her pastured chickens. She made it special for me by adding garlic, cayenne and oregano to help hit the cold where it hurt. It was so amazing and healing and I felt so loved.
So now I buy my chickens from her when I can, because her chickens are simply the best and the bone broth actually gels, unlike the chickens from the store- even the organic ones. Just can't beat local pasture-raised! I actually shook the pan before I took this picture hoping the capture the gelatin moving about. :D
....and I even got brave and cooked up and tried the liver. I have only two words to describe it: Cat Food. But my dad liked it so it didn't go to waste. Win!
....yep, totally ending this post with a picture of chicken liver... because, why not? :D
