A House Doesn't Make the Home

We have officially lived in our new place for a year now, crazy how quickly time flies! As a good friend recently told me- the days are long, but the years are short...

I'll be the first to admit it; I did not want to move (read more about that here). I loved the house we were in. At some point I wanted more space for our expanding family. But I hate moving. And painting. Don't even get me started on remodeling. Basically many things that involve a new home. I have a really hard time with the end vision for a project. While building may seem enticing, I can't imagine having to pick out every.little.detail.

So there we were a mere 365 days ago, up in arms over the big move only a few miles away. I felt forced into it which did not give me warm and fuzzies about the new house either.

All I could see was the endless wallpaper that had to be stripped, trim that needed to be painted, walls that needed repair, carpet to tear up. Meanwhile I had a busy 9 month old and 4 year old to entertain and keep out of trouble. Honestly, without the help of family our house would still be in a state of chaos and half finished projects. Who am I kidding- we still have plenty of both those things, but that has more to do with the family that now lives here.

This whole experience has helped me to focus more on the people that live within our house. They are what makes these four walls a home. There will always be things that I would like to change. Some of them are feasible, like a kitchen remodel. That's part of the 5-10 year plan. Others are not, like the way our garage is behind the house and you enter in through the basement. Altering this would be a huge undertaking and require more than some paint and new flooring.

Improvements or not, my husband and children are more important than the place where we lay our heads at night. As long as we are all under one roof that is all that matters. We are what makes this house our home.