Wednesday, July 02, 2008

Painting, panelling, and patience

Before we moved into our house, I thought I would redo and repaint the main living areas, the kitchen, mud/laundry room, and girl's room.  I thought I would buy new curtains for our bedroom, the boy's room, the kitchen, mud/laundry room, play room, and extra bathroom.  Big plans for new comforters, area rugs and wall decor filled my mind.

As of right now, the living room and girl's room have new curtains.  That's about it.  I still desire all the rest, but am learning to make do with the way things are.  This is a big departure for me.  We have moved a lot and this is the first time we have not gone full force into our (very scaled back) version of Extreme Home Makeover (with the exception of our farmhouse, which was redone right before we moved in).

There are a couple of reasons we have delayed our sprucing.  We are tired!  Scott started preaching at our church before we had moved, so the transition did not include settling in time.  We went full force into ministry.  We don't regret that at all, but our busyness has definitely caused us to slow down a bit.

Also, we homeschool and moved in the middle of the school year.  So school trumped decorating and painting. 

Our house has panelling in the main living area, dining area, and hallway.  Painting the panelling has been on the top of our list of what we would like to work on.  In fact, I didn't think I would even want to move in until we had painted it.  But when we had unpacked our stuff, the panelling became strangely pleasant.  I still think we will paint it the moment we have the time and energy, but for now it keeps growing on me.  Good thing, because extra time and energy are pretty elusive.

I firmly believe in making your house a home, and in making it a beautiful place to be.  I think we reflect the glory and character of God when we use our creativity and energy to make our surroundings beautiful and functional.  But I also believe that the Lord wants us to be content with and thankful for what He has given us if we are hindered from making changes.  This is the attitude I am praying He will graciously cultivate in my heart as I wait for the right circumstances to make the changes I would like.  Because a home is more than new comforters and the right paint color.   

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Amen, on that one. I find it used to be hard for me to accept a not decorated living room, etc. But, I come to understand that that doesn't make a home. There's a proverb that I love that reminds me about the house being filled with love is what matters. That helps me to keep my focus from time.

Zinnada<><

Jana said...

Beautiful and inspiring post!

Tami@ourhouse said...

I love the proverbs that says something like, "better is a meal of vegetables with love than a feast among strife". (Or something like that!)

Becky Avella said...

I really enjoyed this post. I have had so many plans for decorating our new home that has been new for almost four years now. : ) Thank you for the reminder of what really makes a home.