Murphy's Law

When I was a little girl, my mother had a poster hanging in our downstairs bathroom.  It was a Murphy's Law poster.
Mom joked that guests would spend extra time in that bathroom, reading it.

I remember being in awe of the wisdom it contained.  For example:
"You always find something in the last place you look"


Others I enjoyed were:

"Beauty is only skin deep.  Ugly goes to the bone"

"Never play leapfrog with a unicorn."

"A bird in hand is safer than one overhead."

"A shortcut is the longest distance between two points."

"The chance of a piece of bread falling with the buttered side down is directly proportional to the cost of the carpet."

I've since realized, of course, that there are many more such laws.
I experienced one of them- probably my least favorite- yesterday.
It goes like this:

"Unexpected company will only arrive when your house is a mess."

I've found this to be all too true.

When my home is sparkling and humming with the joyful noises of dishwasher and dryer (I find them joyful, anyway), no one 'stops by.' 
When our day is lagging  or we've endured a week of snow and children are running around with uncombed hair, pajamas till noon and my kitchen smells like the refrigerator needs cleaned out...the doorbell rings.

Has anyone else had this happen?

Luckily, I'm learning to go with the flow and have realized that other women have days like this too.  

Years ago, as a young mother, I was visiting a new friend.  I was impressed by the fact that her couch was covered in clean laundry- waiting to be folded, dishes in the sink and kids' toys everywhere.  Things I took great pains to clean or hide if company arrived.  ( I was even instructed by another friend to hide my dirty dishes in the oven.  Something I tried once or twice, but forgot them until later when I preheated the oven for dinner!) 
This friend's home made me feel relaxed.  
A few hours later, her husband arrived home from work.  As he walked in, I saw him looking around at the mess.  Without missing a beat and in all seriousness, my friend said, "Honey!  Did you hear about the tornado on the news?!"  He looked confused (we lived in Oregon) and replied that he hadn't.  She said, "You didn't hear about it?!  Why, it swept right through our home!"   We all laughed and I realized that her relaxed humor was something I desperately needed to incorporate in my life.  

I can't say that I've always taken that lesson to heart.  My husband and I both struggle to not be Type A personalities.   We just care TOO much.  I aspire to be the type of mom whose home is teeming with science projects, children's critters and artwork .  We do tend to have books on most flat surfaces as well as children's objects.  But, because we've had our house (s) on the market 21 months out of the past 4 years, I tend to slip back into the stressful habit of perfectionism. 
Not good....nor is it fun. 

But, I know that when our home sells and we are truly settled once more, I will embrace wholeheartedly the relaxed atmosphere that I crave. 
As a teen I once declared that when I was a mother, my kitchen floor would never crunch.  So stated by the oldest daughter of six children; with younger siblings who were careless with cereal on school mornings!
When settled again, I may just pour an entire box on the floor and, following the example of Sarah Wheaton in 'Skylark', write my name in it.

I'm sure there would be grins on the faces of my children, not to mention myself.  It's something I look forward to with relish.

Downsizing

I'm thinkin' the above saying might be true...

I've seen it often on cute signs and wished I had one back in the day when our own small house was bulging at the seams with active children and not enough closet space!

Today, however, was spent reorganizing and deep cleaning a house that is quickly becoming much too large.  

 We still have four active children at home

and our oldest daughter stayed with us for the past month with her husband and newborn daughter. 

Which we enjoyed immensely!

But the truth of it is; our family is downsizing.  It may take a few more years but at some point, it's just gonna be me and the Man of the House.

All those years yearning for a spacious family home...and now that we've got it, we constantly hear the children reminiscing about the years spent in our smaller, cozy dwelling.

For me, cleaning this large house from top to bottom has sold me on the idea of a more modest abode.

Something large enough for big family gatherings, room for hobbies and sturdy enough to grow old in.

Something in which to create family memories...and stay there so long they have time to really sink in.

'Cause there's nothing I dislike more than uprooting and leaving behind memories of my family: painting over their marked heights on the wall, leaving the spot where they took their first steps or even a much-loved pet buried on the property.

I used to dream of having two living rooms- one for the family and one for guests.  So my children, who back then were constantly bringing their clothing in to dress and stringing their toys and projects out, would be confined to the messy room. 

I would have a lovely sitting room for visiting and quiet reading, reflecting on life and enjoying a crackling fire.

Now I realize sitting rooms are pretty much for...sitting. 

And gathering dust.

Everyone still enjoys the energy of the real gathering room.  Messy or not.

It also helps that my children are no longer streaking around the house in their skivvies on any given morning.

It's funny, isn't it, how your perspective changes?

I'm thankful for this experience.  Without it, I may have continued to pine away for a large home.  I may have battled a bit of envy every time I drove by spacious family domiciles.

Lesson learned.

I'm a fairly quick learner.

 

Now to get this house sold.

Next lesson for me to learn: PATIENCE.

(Please let this lesson be quick!)