Children and home decorating

The past few days I have been fighting off very selfish desires to send my family away so I can rearrange, redecorate, sort and clean out our house (its definitely not a nesting thing!). My head is full of inspiration, ideas and projects and I have to keep pushing them away because I have a young family of 4 to take care of and they need my attention!

People who visit our house often are never really surprised when they see furniture rearranged, pictures in different locations or new lampshades and cushion covers! Ever since I was young, I have loved to paint walls, and rearrange furniture, it is inherited from my wonderful mother! Now that I have a family, who's needs seem to be constantly changing, I feel like I am forever sorting out clothes, toys, and moving furniture around. Its a good thing that I love doing it, I just get frustrated when I am too busy to do it!

Before I had children I have always been inspired by my cousin, who has 3 children several years older than me. Whenever I walk into her house it is bright, welcoming, but classy and very child friendly. It is always evident that her children were a part of their home, not just from seeing toys lying around (they were usually always hidden behind the couch!) but because of their artwork and the bright colours scattered around the house. Her house is always a friendly,comfortable house, and her style influenced the way we designed our house when we built.

I was reading an article in the August Home Beautiful last week, and some of what it says, sums up how I feel about our house.

The key to harmonious living it to embrace pandemonium. Children invariably want to be where you are and to play, create and engage in a space you share. A living zone that's laid out with areas especially for little ones (along with spots just for you!) will create a sense of calm amid the chaos. All-purpose storage, where the action happens, is also a godsend. Yes, you'll need to soften the edges, but this presents a wonderful opportunity to indulge in the latest fabrics and rugs, which are also a great tool in delineating space.

As for decorating, display the things that matter and encourage your kids to do the same. By elevating their artwork and precious things to the same level, you'll both have pride in your place. As they grow, your children will treasure key pieces, such as a handmade quilt or an antique chair, which you can hand down to them, instilling a sense of tradition and value.

If you have young kids, I would encourage you to check out the article for yourself, there are lots of great ideas to help create a 'family friendly' home.

I am thankful to God that this week is busy, so I don't have extra time to get stuck into any rearranging and redecorating ideas, it will force me to take more time to think about what it is exactly that I want to change and why. And it forces me to trust God more, to know that He knows about all the 'creative' juices I have floating around in my head at the moment, and I need to trust in Him to provide the time, at the right time to let all those juices out!