A Joyful Home.

Well, it’s spring break. You know what that means, time to do things that I never have time to do. Like writing blog posts. And reading non-nursing books. And showering…just kidding, I still haven’t showered. 

For some reason, I’ve always loved to decorate. When I was little, I would spend road trips drawing out rooms I someday wanted.  Unfortunately, the rubber ducky themed bathroom and the secret garden bedroom didn’t seem to go over well with Dawson.  When we got engaged in 2009, I literally spent more time looking for furniture and mentally decorating our little space than planning the wedding. End point, I love taking a place and making it feel comfortable and beautiful.

Also, I love holidays. Dawson always says that my favorite holiday is whichever one is next. And its true! I love ‘em! I love to celebrate and I love giving gifts. Okay, I love to get gifts too. So, almost every month, I combine my love for decorating with my love for holidays, and deck out the house. However, as I learned early on the first year of marriage, this can get pricey. So I wanted to talk a little about decorating for holidays on a budget!

1. Reuse old cards.

I love getting and giving cards. And if you’ve ever given me one, I probably still have it. Every once in a while I will sit down and read through stacks of them and it warms my heart. So, for holidays I like to bust out some old cards from the year before, read through them, and then display them. 

I got a great deal on this chicken wire frame, and I’m sure you can find a Pinterest tutorial on how to make one. I like to change it out for holidays and birthdays.

2. Focus on the fireplace.

If you don’t have a fireplace, use something else that is the focal point of your main living area and use that. When people are over, their eye will be drawn to the focal point and it will seem as if you’ve decorated your whole house.

3. Shop the deals after the holidays.

Like many of you, I can hardly resist the dollar section at target. I always come away with like 10 things I don’t need. The even better deal, however, is the days following a holiday. You can usually go to the holiday section of the store and find things from up to 70% off. This is where I snag all my stuff for the next year, put it in a bin, label it, and when I open it next year, it’s like a huge present to myself!

4. Use jars and vases and change the contents.

I used to have an aversion to fake flowers. I hated them. However, I found that a really simple vase with some fake flowers in it makes your home brighter and more welcoming.  Also, one thing I’ve learned from my mom when it comes to decorating and hospitality is that people love candy. She was always great about having a dish out filled with candy. This is another great way to decorate for holidays: conversation hearts for Valentine’s Day, jelly beans for Easter, ect.

I ate most of these jelly beans….

5. Most importantly, focus on your heart more than your home.

We can spend a lot of time and money on making our homes look exactly the way we want them. We can have people over to the perfect dinner party with the cleanest house ever, and miss completely out on the joy of community with others. Let's focus more on the hearts of people than our houses. I say this only for the fact that I live it, and through God's grace He has revealed this to me. Through the Holy Spirit, I must constantly battle the desire to pretend like I have it all together at the expense of true authenticity. 

Romans 12:12-14

¹² Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. ¹³ Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

Well, I guess I’ll go fold laundry.  I plan on writing another post soon about the book I’m currently reading on being a church planters wife. It is unbelievably good (the book, not the post).  Thanks for reading. Happy Palm Sunday, and Happy Spring Break for a lot of you!

Joy,