Embracing home.

More than in any other season of life, I am grateful for home. The sticky faces that inhabit it. The constant mess. The pajama cuddles. The piles of children's books in every room. The weather that allows us to spend hours outside every day. The kids that like to play in the dirt and then the water and then usually the mud created by the dirt and water. The art projects that turn into painted body tattoos. The garden that could always use a bit more attention, but that Everett is so proud to show off to any passerby. The science experiments that stay around too long, because a certain three year old can't bear to part with them.

As soon as I clean a child or a room, it becomes messy seemingly immediately once again, so mostly we just embrace the chaos.

I am a stay at home mom to a one year old and a three year old, and our house never stays clean, no matter how hard I try.

But, the beautiful thing is that life happens in our home. With that, comes messes. There are signs all around on any given day that we live with a paleontologist, architect, firefighter, butterfly, dinosaur, dragon, engineer, artist, entomologist, or scientist.

When we arrived home from our latest trip, as we unlocked our front door after a week of being gone, Everett ran straight to his bed, buried his face in it, and exclaimed, “I love you, bed. I love you, my bed. I love you!”

I think we have all gained a deeper appreciation for our home and San Diego in our current season of life. More than ever, I am feeling grateful for home these days in every sense of the word. I am more appreciative of our city that we live in, the messy nest we are creating, and the connection that takes place in our space. 

We love family adventures, but the simple joys of being home with our family are pretty special, too.