When I was pregnant with my first son my house was spotless. There wasn't any clutter, the floors were always clean and the house could've been shown at an open house almost any time. My nesting instinct kicked in around 36 weeks and the result was a very organized nursery and a few unnecessary purchases at Babies R Us.
I continued working full time, so by the time I started nesting with my second son I had already given up on certain things. There were toys living in my family room full time, but they all had a place and looked organized. The floors got cleaned once every week but in the meantime any crumbs that the dogs didn't want just sat under the table. The worst part was the clutter. Two piles of papers that came home from school and coupons for diapers and who knows what else took up permanent residence in front of the coffee maker and on the bar. The nesting instinct compelled me to disinfect the nursery and bathrooms and to try to get rid of the clutter. Figuring out how to fit the bottles and bibs among the sippy cups and kiddie silverware was a challenge but we figured it out.
We learned earlier this year that we were pregnant again, and I have to admit that I felt as much panic as joy in the beginning. I was still working full time, and totally in love with my job (seriously, who gets to say that!?), but barely achieving the elusive work-life balance. And the house? Well, I wouldn't say it had completely gone to pot, but it is a far cry from what my husband and I were comfortable with pre-kids. The toys in the family room always seem to creep past their allotted space, the floors might get really clean every other week, and there are more than two piles of clutter that grow faster than I can get to them. I have two young sons, so I quick-clean the bathrooms they use every week because the aim is not great, but it never feels clean no matter what. Add to that the dishes piling up faster than we can run the dishwasher and somehow needing to do 5 loads of laundry for a family of four every week. I haven't given up...but I'm pretty darn close.
Well, I'm 36 weeks pregnant and starting "nesting" a few weeks ago. Strangely, it doesn't have anything to do with cleaning this time. It's more about being creative, making something out of nothing, and spending as much time with my two boys before their baby brother arrives. This is somewhat unfortunate because the nursery still needs to be cleaned and we still need to find space for bottles and bibs (still haven't figured that one out), but I think this time my idealism has faded enough into realism that I know things will only stay clean for a day, or a week, and why waste valuable time with my boys doing more than is absolutely necessary?
Seasonal Decoration Frame
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| Halloween framed art for under $20 |
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I've always loved the idea of changing home décor based on the season and holiday but I assumed the time and expense would be too much. Sure, I have little pumpkins and ghosts for Halloween and plenty of candles and Jim Shore decorations for Christmas but I'm talking deeper layers like you see in catalogs. Pottery Barn aficionados change out their throw pillows, blankets, bedding sets and even pictures hanging on the walls, right? I got rid of throw pillows years ago because they are not appreciated by young boys and I live in Florida so blankets are basically useless 360 days per year. I decided to give pictures a try.
Quick side note: I'm a little bit addicted to Target. They aren't paying me and I don't have any ads on this blog as of the time of the writing, I just think they do a great job of having what I need, all in one place. I use the Cartwheel app, which gives discounts on all kinds of things. I also have a debit Red Card, so I get 5% off every purchase and my son's elementary school gets money for every purchase. I can buy my son's special diapers, maternity clothes, Halloween decorations, craft supplies and groceries all in one trip. Oh, and there's a Starbucks in the store, which is just a really happy perk.
Anyway, I went to Target and bought a 12x12 frame for $10 and some Halloween themed patterned paper meant to mat pictures in scrapbooks. They have all kinds of stickers and other decorative items as well. I already had some 12x12 scrapbooking paper in black (also from Target). I printed some pictures from my phone of past Halloween's with the kids. Here are all the materials:
I need to stress that I am slightly creative but not at all artistic. Sadly, I discovered that in my first semester of college as an architecture major, where my talents as a BS artist are what earned me a B. It took me a while to figure out the layout I wanted but eventually I realized I would have to cut the pictures way down to fit them all. By gluing everything to the piece of scrapbooking paper I can easily change it out for any other holiday I choose to highlight. Next up: Christmas!
The finished product is hanging in my family room where a generic picture previously hung. Everyone who sees it, loves it, and it compliments the other little pumpkin and ghost decorations I have throughout the house.
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