Snug Places I Love

Sometimes all I can see when I look around me are the piles of books, broken coloring crayons, outgrown clothing, everything that needs to be put away. The story of our lives, the real story, the messy parts, weigh on me extra when I’m pregnant. I struggle so hard to get the energy to JUST PUT IT AWAY instead of bemoan the existence of the pile.

As I’m recovering from a nasty infection, I found if I didn’t look for the snug spots I love in our house, the ones that maybe aren’t dusted or super tidy, but are so joy filled, I would go insane. I’m finding that arranging little corners makes me happy. Shopping from my friend’s instagram vintage curated account makes me happy, too. Little things, people. Let’s start little.

And Mercy, the 20 year old Siamese mix, loves this chair. I stole it from my mom because it’s kinda a glider and will make for easy night rocking with our soon-to-be cosleeper. The ottoman was my grandfather’s and rolls (aka becomes a train for my hooligan children). The lamp was my deceased aunt’s whom I never met (she died when my mom was only 18). The books in the corner are almost ones by my friends! Laura, Ginny, Hallie, Kelly, Colleen, and a few others. It’s a special corner for lots of reasons.

I stalked our house to find the little nooks and crannies I love. In the spirit of being more positive and less negative, I thought I’d share them with you. And then you can tell me about your snug & cosy spots you love in your house!

I still need to hang a print behind the lil bar back there but have two I love and just don’t know which will live better there . . . so I’m waiting. And the chess pieces are away because someone unnamed, unknown, kept banging them against the wooden table. And my kids have really dirtied up these chairs with dank feet. The chair survived our childhood without mucky footprints but aren’t doing so hot for my kids’ . . . .

That lamp with no shade is on the ground, now, so that’s great it moved. I think the vase also needs a really tall dried flower in it to counter-balance the mirror and the pics but that’s what I got for now so . . . yup. Also those photos on the wall are about 6-8 years old. I’m working on a new gallery wall but it’s slow. This is right down the wall from my other favorite corner in our bedroom. If the rest of the house is a pit, at least I like our bedroom.

Oh, a dead fly, a random coloring utensil, and a lamp out of whack. Now it’s looking more real, but even so, this little radiator cover ledge in the Library is one of my favorites. We curl up on the couch in the cool mornings and read and drink tea or cocoa and I really love this little arrangement. For whatever reason, the CVS succulents and cacti make me happy. They also might need water.

The Breeze Way will be wrapped up for winter pretty soon. It’s a three-season porch that I fantasize we could turn into a year round room someday. The rattan is all in great shape thanks to lots of good care from my parents, and this table cloth is a handmade Hmong artisan’s work that I love.

See that wooden boat up there? It was on the bottom shelf until someone unnamed, unknown, took to beating his sister with it. When I was three years old, I was in the opera Madame Butterfly put on by the local semi-pro opera house. I was the little boy who watched his Japanese mother stab herself because her American lover/husband? left her (yes, I cried lots on stage and it was fairly convincing because I didn’t really understand a retractable knife) and played with this boat for rehearsals.

And this? This is what my kitchen “mudroom” area looks like. This is what I would consider pretty decently organized. ___how low can you go with your standards, Nell?____ Pretty low.

And I’ve restocked the Bandit Bibs on my etsy shop–pick four, fourth is free! {code “buyfour”} I brought back some old favorites and a few new fabrics, too!

Fav nooks and crannies in your house? What’s your secret for enjoying the beauty and looking past the mess so as to not go completely insane?