Yesterday, I posted some photos of my house. The clean and nice-looking parts of my house. And then I had a bunch of people email and comment saying 'Oh! Your house is so clean! But, you have little kids!' And then I realized I was sort of being one of those bloggers that you see on Pinterest or wherever who posts photos that are not very realistic. Right? And while I do usually try to keep most of my house picked-up, I am by no means a great housekeeper. Bo is super good at keeping our lives uncluttered. I will admit that I have become a little bit better with not letting things get out of hand in recent years, only because it makes me feel really overwhelmed when my surroundings are crazy and messy. I hate that feeling ... but it happens. Right now, I have a pile of laundry that has been waiting to be folded for at least three days. So, for everyone who asked for it, here are some photos of ... THE MESSES.
This is the mail pile that sometimes grows up to twelve inches high before we go through everything. Plus Hello Kitty temporary tattoos.
This is our junk drawer area that has migrated to the counter top. We have a lot of pairs of scissors.
This girl likes to make art projects every 15 minutes. She leaves blobs of paint/glitter/glue wherever she goes. (But I'm cool with that.)
She also likes to eat snacks in every room in the house and always leaves a trail of crumbs in her wake.
There are always three million baby toys within arms' reach. Under the couches. All over the living room. But this is okay, too. Baby needs to play! Just watch your step.
I usually have two or three knitting project bags sitting around. And right now, our house is full of Girl Scout cookie boxes.
Magnets. Lists. Box tops for education.
There are always various toy/clothing explosions in each of the kids' rooms.
There's usually a decent-sized stack of knitting magazines and notebooks on the nightstand.
And this is Lo's art supply shelf.
Bowie is my little book re-arranger.
And my sweet potato spitter.
And Cheerio thrower.
So, of course I wish I lived in a Dwell magazine photo spread, too. Don't inspect my baseboards or check under furniture for dust bunnies. My 'around the house' pics from yesterday? Sometimes I clean my house and it stays that way for a little while. The rest of the time? Well, you know. Our house is lived-in. Some rooms are clean and some look like they've been vandalized. With piles of laundry and toys and crumbs on the floor. It's normal. And that's cool with me.