A Dose of Reality

Let me tell you something, in case you didn’t already know.

I am normal–if there is such a thing.

I struggle with cleaning house, weeding my flower beds, keeping to a schedule, etc.

And to prove it, I walked around my house this morning and took a few pics.

This is my formal dining room.

In days gone by, we used it every night for dinner. As the children have grown and moved out, we now sit at the table in the kitchen. So this room has become my puzzle room/studio. All the mess on the right is paint. The table on the left holds my puzzle. It’s all movable, but I don’t. Hopefully, the puzzle will be finished by the holidays. It’s a hard one, which is what I love, but it takes time to do.

This is my pantry.

It is somewhat organized. Let’s call it organized chaos. I know where everything is, but it’s a mess, and you can hardly walk in there for stuff on the floor. It’s big enough for everything, just not as organized as I’d like it to be. (Sorry for the low picture quality. I didn’t want to give away ALL my secrets, so I didn’t turn on the light. haha)

 

Next on the messy list is the mudroom.

Though you can’t see the two huge dog kennels beside where I’m standing, they’re there. This is the catchall room. What you can see are the pinball table my husband and son built (LOVE IT), a couch we are trying to sell, my husband’s growing table–where he starts seedlings for our garden–and piles of flooring for our room over the garage (known as the rec room). The door on the left is the one almost everyone uses to enter the house–leads to the driveway, and the curtained bright spot on the right leads to the backyard, also what everyone uses most often to go that way. The room is a mess, and it needs a good sweeping. I have an auto-vacuum in there, but the flooring boxes are blocking it. 🙁 It’d probably get stuck in the mess anyway.

Imagine with me. A flower bed, perfectly mulched and weed free. Nope, not reality.

Meet my flowerbed.

The only thing supposed to be there is the lilac bush–the tall, spindly thing in the middle. The rest is grass/weeds. TALL grass/weeds. I need to take care of those and get some mulch. Eighteen months ago, this spot was grass and got mowed. Killing the unwanted growing things will take time and A LOT of effort. But I have to be careful, because I do have other growing things in there–daffodils and daylilies.

You may wonder why I’m showing you my mess.

I want you to realize, to understand, that a majority of people do not live in spotless houses, have manicured yards, or fix a perfect meal every night–I have some doozies of stories about failed meals. If you want to hear a few, let me know in the comments below and I’ll share.

We don’t have perfect kids either. I could tell you a few stories–names omitted to protect the guilty. haha  Again, let me know if you want to hear about those.

I’m human. GASP!!!

I make mistakes.

I get lazy.

I throw up my hands and walk away, or worse, yell. DOUBLE GASP!!!

I spend too much time on social media or watching YouTube videos. I read too much – I didn’t just say that. I play too many video games (I LOVE video games).

I make excuses.

  • It’s too hot
  • It’s too cold
  • It’s too wet
  • I have a headache
  • I’m tired
  • and the list goes on.

I’m not perfect. My house is not perfect. My family is not perfect.

No one is perfect–except one. And He doesn’t live here anymore, except in our hearts.

Stop expecting to get it all right.

Be real. Set realistic expectations. Join me as I lay aside my excuses–mostly–and get it done. One day at a time. One project at a time. One dust bunny at a time.

Love you all, and as I end this, I’m praying for you.

Blessings,

 

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6 thoughts on “A Dose of Reality

  1. Love this post! Immaculate pictures in Better Homes & Gardens and on Pinterest are lovely and all, but they’re not reality. Once the cameras are put away and the human bodies return, things get untidy and crumpled and lived-in. Part of me yearns for a Pinterest-worthy living room, but I’d have to sacrifice writing or knitting time to accomplish that, and when the rubber hits the road, I’m not willing to make that sacrifice. Not when I’d have to sacrifice again the next day. And the next. And the . . . 😉

  2. So so so so true! I shout a resounding AMEN to that. Here’s what I tell people….I have 4 kids that I homeschool, and 5 dogs, plus a rather messy husband, so if you want perfect visit my mother in law. I can’t and won’t be ever to ever give you perfect. I had my kitchen photographed once for a magazine (recipe….long story), and it looked great….only because everything “not perfect” got piled in the garage 😂

    1. “Everything ‘not perfect’ got piled in the garage.” That’s funny, Kendra.

      Isn’t that what we do with ourselves as well? We hide the ‘not perfect’ behind masks of seeming perfection.

      I want to rip the masks off and allow the real to shine through.

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