Monday, May 18, 2009

Home

Home is place to which you can invite your friends: the more the merrier! Last night we made homemade ice cream (with my new Kitchenaid ice cream maker!) Our next door neighbor's husband is out of town, so she's a single mom for the week--of two very high energy young boys--and I thought she could use the break. So we brought out fresh ice cream and toppings, and sat around and talked for a bit while the boys--Eamon included--practiced their karate moves.

Home is a place where the members of my little family can be ourselves. Currently, Eamon is sitting next to me, naked but for a diaper, and watching Curious George. We were outside for awhile, but the dog was too hot so we came back in.

Home is a place in which I hope to cultivate many happy memories, both for myself and my husband, but especially for Eamon. Ice cream for dinner on special summer nights, mama-made quilts and clothes, planting our own garden and harvesting fresh fruits and vegetables, and always drawing, painting, and creating.

I recently realized that Jes and I have set up home eight times since leaving our childhood homes. Each time, I've packed boxes, scrubbed the old place down, scrubbed the new place down, unpacked boxes, saved some special pieces of family members, sewn or bought new curtains, and had to find new ways to make our house feel like home. Sometimes it's as simple as fresh flowers, other times it's new art for the walls.

We're currently renting, but we have a bid in to buy a house. Unfortunately, it's a short sale, so we have to wait, wait, and wait some more for the bank to either approve or decline our offer. And while it's fun to start thinking of how I can make our next house--which we hope to be in for a long time--feel like home, I still have to keep up our current house. So, while I wait, and dream, and plan, I'll still be cleaning, gardening, and making in this home, for however long that might be.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

I've found that while I tend to call wherever I'm sleeping on any particular night "home" that the place where my cherished people and belongings reside is my real home. Sometimes I'm attached to the place that houses them and sometimes not, but it is still home so long as the people and things I love are there.

Jessie Keating said...

I had a hard time leaving our place in Boston, because that's where we brought Eamon home too. But I've also left places and thought, "good riddance" (like the house on Magnolia!) :O)