I missed so many of the parties but it had a silver lining. It gave me time to visit so many of you that I know and to meet some new folks and see their creations.. I even learned a few things along the way.. Tips for projects- rooms I'd love to copy certain elements of, and most importantly the fact that it doesnt have to be perfect in every single inch of the home. I stress too much, seriously I do. That needs to stop and I am inspired by others in blogland to STOP it. I want to thank those of ya'll who did the " keeping it real" posts and for showing me your areas that dont always bring you absolute joy every single minute.
Often we come to our blogs and check out others posts and well, I admit it, makes me feel like I am not quite up to par on certain things. I need to remember I am looking at a photo they choose to post and just a few feet away , right out of the lense, is something that isnt picture perfect ..
In case you cant see it- I smudged my Merry Christmas stamp AND in an attempt to get the deer to stand up on its own like its supposed to and by golly outta considering what I paid for this junk that arrived, I broke its leg... now I have Hunk of junk with gorilla glue on it.. oh yeaaaaaaaa NOT lol..
and just in case ya missed it I have 1 headless reindeer on that stamp too.. I know folks are into antlers- but headless reindeer- I dont think sooooooooooo..
I think thats the gift I'll give myself this Christmas.. I dont have to be PERFECT, its ok and I dont need to Stress about it anymore.
I think I'll start not stressing- Today, just gonna call it an early gift to myself:)
I stenciled a couple of pillows and sat them on the family room love seats for the paint to dry. Then my neighbor called and asked if I could help her hang a picture and I went over there for about 15 mins.
When I got back, I saw that Buffy Marie had decided the new pillows were for her- well , at least one of them was.... What did say Silent Night, now says Slgityysh Nolgjhdg or thats what it looks anyway..
She has no idea why I might be taking a picture of her oh so innocent face... deep breathing relieves anger, did I remember to mention that? DEEP BREATH
While I had the camera out I thought I'd go on and show you a few imperfect areas..
In this photo , if you gaze left, you'll see how the pillow was supposed to look- I still have to embellish it but you better believe I moved it before she could put her fat fanny on it and smear those words too..
Right at the edge of the loveseat foot you'll see a sqished up blanket over sorta in a hole- thats hers and thats where she should be sitting. it stays there all the time unless I am vacumming, I just keep it out of the lense:)
This is the view if you had just stepped in my front door. Lone deer on mantle- havent finished decorating that AND table to your left no decor either... I gotta get busy folks ..
I did get a few things on the living room sofa table but didnt get the candles lit or the bow made yet for the picture frame-- again, imperfection at its finest lol.. oh yea and the 2 bare spaces there on the sofa thats where the Sighdyst Norldjhgs Pillows were going ~ so much for that I reckon.
***************
I came back to my desk to load the pictures for this post and looked up and saw all the way to the front door.. I really like that I can do that and I liked what I saw, so I took a picture for ya'll..
All that glassware I washed and dried is sitting on the end of the bar waiting patiently for me to decide what holiday love they are all gonna get OR if they are gonna get any.. I dunno yet. But they are clean and sorta sparkle in the light and maybe thats enough.. Those little trees at the family room entrance DO light up IF someone remembers to plug them it... Candles would have been nice in that lantern hanging there too, dontcha think? Wouldnt those dining chairs new cushions have looked lovely if I'd gotten the stripes stenciled on them sometime in the last 5 weeks? I bet they would have :)
So there you have it folks.. Dont you feel lots better now.. None of us is living in a constantly, perfectly decorated home and I hope you give yourself the gift of less stress- accepting that it doesnt always have be perfect, YOU and Your Home are OK just the way you are right this minute. Besides if ya'll wait till I get everything exactly right in here, you'll never be able to visit me and that would hurt me badly...
Holiday Hugs to ALL and God Bless Us, Every One~!
Sonny
Merry and Bright in the Christmas Dining Room
16 hours ago
You've heard of the saying "Picture Perfect"? Sometimes that is what we strive for in our homes, and for others, it's just for the pictures {that would be me}. I can never keep my house perfect with 4 kids in and out, 2 dogs and a messy parrot. I would love to someday just take pictures of what I want to show without cleaning up around it! What a shock that would be! There are some people that won't even take a picture if there is an electrical outlet or plug in view! The picture of my Christmas tree did not show that the angel on top is sliding off or that the lights on the bottom have come off the branches! lol! It's imperfect, but it's real!
ReplyDeleteI had to laugh about Buffy Marie sitting on the pillow at the wrong time...sorry. She is just so darn cute! Whether or not your house is perfectly kept up or messy, it really is pretty, Sonny. I love coming to have peeks!
Happy Holidays!
XO,
Jane
Sonny- Your house looks pretty perfect to me. What I see is a HAPPY HOME and a happy person behind that camera...and that is the best "perfect" of all. I think you do a beautiful job with your decorations and your decorating...smudges and all!
ReplyDeleteYou should see the smudges here with all the grands in and out! xo Diana
Hi Sonny! Well thank you! I glad to see I am not the only imperfect one...
ReplyDeleteYour sweet doggie looks so innocent! I love the deer and the greens on your sofa table. Your home is lovely....
Hugs,
Penny
Hi Sonny,
ReplyDeleteA very cute post, and well intentioned too, I might add. So true, nothing, nothing, nothing is
perfect, cause there is nothing perfect in this world.................but we do keep trying to make our own lil perfect worlds don't we??? lol
Hey, nothing wrong with creating beauty, but like you say so what if everything is not perfect, will our noses fall off? or will someone die??........don't think so. Decorating for Christmas especially, is a process that goes by so quickly I could never finish if I insisted on perfection. At some point, I have to go that's it, I am done, like it or not, time to move on to other things that have to get done. lol Like wrapping and Christmas dinner.
Life is a constant series of opportunities to stress ourselves out, compare ourselves to others, and to try to do it all perfectly, and
we add all that pressure to ourselves and what a great gift to give ourselves and others I might add, to realize we really don't have to be perfect, cause God knows we aren't perfect,..... and He loves us any way!! Now does he want us to stay how we are....absolutely not, and He works on us inwardly to bring about the needed changes in His time, our job in to cooperate with Him.
I think with age comes wisdom and that is one of the prizes of getting older, when we come to know wise truths.
So good for you and any of us, that finally arrive at that wonderfully delightful destination. Sure takes the pressure off doesn't it!
Have to say I enjoyed your not so perfect pics,
they were great!
and beautiful, and so are you hon, for sharing this post.........and I think we all feel just a lil bit better now..........lol
Merry Christmas hon,
Blessings abundant,
Nellie
It looks beautiful to me, Sonny! Sometimes life gets in the way and things don't always turn out as planned. I stopped fussing with my decor over a week ago ~ I want to be able to enjoy what I've done and not be decorating up til the day!
ReplyDeleteSonny, thanks for visiting and posting on my blog! I love all your decor and that you do most of it yourself. I'm thinking burlap for the first time in decades. Your pillows are beautiful!
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas! Helen
Sonny your house always looks beautiful and what a little cutie your Buffy Marie is. She looks just like our Toby! Enjoy your weekend, Martina
ReplyDeleteGreat post..Nice to see your decorations coming along..perfection is over rated don't you think? I'd rather have cozy lived in comfort any day...your home is lovely, warm and inviting...that is perfection to me! Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteMiss Bloomers
Great trust post Sonny..Girl I can not tell you how many times I have taken a photo thinks it looks great and the toss pillows a mess or Len's big old dirty tennis shoe just sitting there so picture perfect ha ha!! and don't even get me started on cob webs you can't see until after you take the picture lol!!
ReplyDeleteGirl friend your home is beautiful and stress is something I have learned to let go of..My mama use to say " our home was clean enough to be healthy and messy enough to be comfortable"
I hope you have a really GREAT weekend my dear friend..Hugs and love Gloria
still looking beautiful to me Sonny. Notice I have not posted my house in a few days, LOL..that is because it is a mess right now and it will be staying like this for a few days yet. Oh well...I am not perfect and either is my house. Love your pillow btw.
ReplyDeleteI hear ya! I was going to post for the copycat challenge for the 1st time in 2 yrs and my scanner broke, so I never did. I've still got Santa plates to put on top of my kitchen cabinets and pinecones to put on my mantel garland, presents to wrap, cleaning and baking to do, etc. But, it will get done, and that will be my Christmas miracle. At least you got the nice cranberries (?) in the candle! Maybe that is how you say 'Silent Night' in dog speak! It is hard to remember people don't live that perfect life in 'blogland' because that is all you see in the pix. I use to have to move things to take photos! I'm sure I'm not the only one that ever did that! ;o) Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great keeping it real post. Until today my family room has been cluttered up with a furniture project that I am working on and my patio was a disorganized mess. My lawn has brown spots next to lighted deer since all three dogs have decided that the deer are just giant dogs and now they have to mark their territory. My soon to be replaced front door has chipping paint and the baseboards in the hall are not finished. A few years ago these would have driven me crazy but now that are just great projects awaiting my creative attentions. My friends don't seem to notice the unfinished they are too busy mareling over what I have completed.
ReplyDeleteYour home looks fabulous and special even with the smudged pillows, I have been wanting to try out stenciling on pillows and now thanks to you and Buffy I know where not to dry them.
Happy Holidays
Traci
Sonny I love this post! I could do a post everyday but because I feel my pics/home is not perfect, I don't. I stress way too much over this blog of mine and maybe I need to rethink my blogging for the new year.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your weekend my friend,
Gail
P.S. Your home is beautiful and your little Buffy Marie is adorable!
These are the pictures I've been wanting to see. Lord have mercy what a gorgeous home!! But I have to ask where is the hay and feathers tracked in on your boots and the inch of dust that blew in during the last wind storm? And where are the wall smudges from the greasy tractor worker's hands? I'm afraid you would have a panic attack if you walked inside my home.
ReplyDeleteI hear you and applaud you for recognizing that we are imperfect people living in an imperfect world, our homes:) Seems like I get one thing almost "right" but move on to the next thing before completing the first thing so I'm always in a state of need or want - but thankful for everything and everybody - including misbehaving dogs.
ReplyDeleteLove your sweet dog and who could put blame on that sweet little girl. She just wanted comfort from something that had her Mama's scent on it. Her face totally says "busted" in the photo - so cute. Our girl is Neesha Marie so our dogs have something in common. When our girl gets double named she knows she's in trouble. I bet there was a lot of double naming going on at your house that day. :)
Your home is just beautiful.
ReplyDeleteCute little doggie, too. :))
Yes, of course everyone just shows what they want shown....so do I. :) Not all live in perfect order..believe me, we sure don't. It is fairly easy to keep thing neat since just the two of us live here but even at that, things CAN and DO get out of hand sometimes. But...like you say...it's ok. It doesn't have to be near-perfect all the time.
Hi Sonny, I just gave you shout-out!
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful weekend my friend,
Gail
Oh Sonny, this is such a perfect post and you are so cute. I show you guys my icky undone, really bad stuff all the time. I gave up years ago trying to be perfect. I just now promise that I will be 10% adorable. That I can handle. Hugs, Marty
ReplyDeleteI love this post, Sonny! And your home is beautiful!!
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas!
You are so right...our homes don't have to be perfect..that is what makes them a home. Love your beautiful home and how you have arranged everything. Merry Christmas! ;D
ReplyDeleteOH...I laughed so hard I almost woke the house up!
ReplyDeletePersonally I would use the pillows, what a great conversation piece they would be!! You could tell people that is Buffy Marie's way of saying "Silent Night"!
Have a Merry Christmas.
You are still waayyy ahead of me Sonny. You have clean glassware for crying out loud, that is a major accomplishment in my book. LOL! I am stressing because I have two sets of family coming over Saturday and Sunday and so little done yet. Thank you for your comments and for letting me know about your post and that others are also experiencing a little hecticness too. Since I don't have much time to blog now days I often feel like I'm not up to par when I see such beautiful pictures from others out there. It's not so much about feeling jealous as it is about feeling just plain inadequate lately. Thanks so much for all the encouragement to "not stress" over it so much. I really needed that!
ReplyDelete