Vinyl Table Cloth

So, I’m a decorator. I have a degree in interior design from a correspondence school out of New York. My house is fully decorated, which is a bummer, so I like to help other women with their houses. I love how my house looks…when it’s clean. In the past my goal was to have my downstairs look as though I didn’t have kids. That meant no toys, brightly colored plastic things, or craft supplies in my living room/kitchen combo. Well, guess what? I grew up…I also had two more kids. It’s a lot harder to keep the evidence of life out of your downstairs when there’s three little ones lurking about. Now my beautiful living room/kitchen combo has toys, crafts and backpacks thrown here and there. It’s evidence of God’s blessings.

Now that I have accepted the inevitable, I’m ready for what comes next…a vinyl tablecloth. Yep, I said it. The problem is that it is almost impossible to find a vinyl tablecloth worthy of my beautiful kitchen table! Why do they all look like a big, fake doily or covered in snowmen? I want one that lies flat and is in a great color or has a great graphic design. You see, my table is a beautiful walnut finish on top with black legs, but the problem lies in the GROOVES on the top. Really, Heidi, grooves? If I had a great looking vinyl tablecloth it would protect the table (which already has fork marks in it from daughter #2 and permanent marker stains from d#1) and also be easy to wipe clean after meals or a play dough event. Don’t the makers of vinyl tablecloths know that young, stylish mothers want to buy their product too? Come on, Bed Bath and Beyond, stock some cool vinyl!

The other day I walked into my downstairs guest bathroom and found an alarming sight! ALL of the girl’s stuffed animals had congregated in our little, tiny bathroom. I think they were having a secret meeting on how to take over the whole house and not just the playroom. It’s working.

Till next time...

A Little About My Life

My house is messy. It’s clean, but messy. There seems to always be stuff all around me. I can straighten everything to where it looks nice, then turn around and it’s back…all of it…it’s all back in it’s place. But you know what? I can live with it. It shows that there is life in this house. There are actually five lives in this house. Two adults (well, sometimes I can qualify as an adult, but only when I’m on my best behavior) and three girls. Never a dull moment in this lively house! I’m okay with a mess. I am not and have never been a perfectionist. I am, however, a procrastinator. Both words start with a “p”, so they can’t be that different…right? That’s why I’m writing this right now…I’m putting off straightening my messy house. I can always find something that needs to be done other than cleaning! And what better to procrastinate with than starting this blog.

I took this picture the other day to capture a moment in time. It's my coffee table covered with life.

As you can see, my life consists of violin lessons, homework, and dirty diapers. And in the midst of the mess there is a lovely orchid blooming in its pot. It’s fake. I mean, come on, a real orchid? I’d kill it before it had a chance to bloom! I don’t have a green thumb, I have the black thumb of death.

This is my kitchen table. Isn’t it beautiful? I wish it would stay like this forever, but it won’t. There will come a day when my kitchen table will have a beautiful centerpiece. A centerpiece that will never need to be moved to make room for homework, boxes of crayons or baby food in ugly plastic bowls. What a sad day that will be. I will enjoy these crazy days. I will cherish the chaos. At this moment my kitchen table is covered in play dough. Daughter #2 is making me ice cream creations with her ice cream maker. I’m pretending to eat it. Now, I have to admit, this is a rare treat for her to get to play with play dough. It’s a lot of work to get it out, and clean it up. It always seems like there is less play dough to put back in the cans than there was when she started playing with it. Where does it all go? Oh yea, on the floor.

I’m starting this blog to share my thoughts on life, motherhood, marriage, and my walk with the almighty God. The One who makes everything possible in my life. The One who changed my heart two years ago from a selfish, vain girl to a girl who is happy to be a normal, everyday stay at home mom. More on that transformation later. This blog will not be about all the beautiful crafts I’ve done lately, because I don’t, or the lavish birthday parties I’ve thrown for my kids (I hate children’s birthday parties) or the “outfit of the day”. There are just too many images out there that look perfect, but are not (I’m talking to you, Facebook!). Believe me, you won’t come away from this blog feeling bad about yourself, like your not living up to an ideal. I am for being “REAL”. I am for authenticity. I am for “normal”. Let’s not get caught up in what looks good, but what IS good. That’s what this blog will be about, God’s goodness, His mercy, His love, His forgiveness and my imperfections that have been made perfect through Christ.

Till next time…

Heidi