Freedom

It's probably been within the last year or so that I've given up on IT...that dreaded "P" word that most women hate...perfection.
I think it first started to be noticeable in my cleaning. When Sarah was an only child, I used to wake up and hop out of bed just to get started on my cleaning...I know, fun right?! Now, I clean when I can. I let Katie roam the house with crackers in hand which lends to crumbs on the floor. I just don't find it that important anymore.

Another area I've noticed since we've purchased our home is in my decorating. It doesn't have to be "perfect" for me to hang it on the wall, arrange it in that corner, or paint it that color. I have found freedom from reading so many blogs about crafting and creating your own kind of beauty (you may see a canvas with a similar quote in my bathroom in the coming months). Blogs like hers, which inspires me to decorate without having to have my house look like a Pottery Barn catalog. I love my new found sense of style and freedom.

And probably one of the biggest areas for me that I'm letting go of the perfection is in my hair. I cut my hair super short over a year ago, the shortest I've ever worn it, and I loved it. I loved that it didn't take long to style. I loved that it could be "messy" but look like that's how I wanted it. Well, I've been growing it out since about October. I know growing your hair out can be like dying a slow death. Yesterday it dawned on me that I don't want to grow my hair out, not because of how painful the process has been, but because my new style is forcing me to maintain perfection with each strand. I was thinking how down the road, in a few months, I'll be spending more time in front of the mirror making sure my part is correct, the hair is curled under just so, and the back is not looking like a hot mess. So, today I am calling "my girl" and asking her to chop it all off again. Again, I love the sense of freedom I have in my short hair. IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE PERFECT. Dave may not be too thrilled about the idea but I have to think of myself in this situation...could result in a lower dose of Zoloft :)

Here's a shot of my kitchen wall. Random? Yes! Perfect? To me, Yes! Each piece up there has had a personal touch added to it except the white clock that has the glare on it. Sarah made that watercolor picture in the frame when she was 3. I am still impressed with how beautiful it is. I made the "You are my sunshine" canvas while I was pregnant with Katie, thinking it would go in the girls room but I have become attached to it. The 5 was decorated in some bling to represent our soon-to-be family of 5. And the "M" is for Moser, the personal touch is the hot glue job I had to do after one of the legs broke off. 

Hope this will inspire some anti-perfection change in your life.

Cheers!

Home is where the heart is

Dave and I purchased our first home in 2004, it was a nice condo off of Lake Norman in Charlotte NC. After a year of living there we decided we "needed" something bigger. We found a house that was beautiful and move in ready. 2000 square feet and double our mortgage payment, we later found out it was NOT what we needed. We didn't have any kids at the time so looking back I'm not really sure why we thought we needed 2000 sq. ft.!!
I can honestly say we got caught up with "keeping up with the Jones'". We lived in that house for three years until we moved back to Ohio. During those three years we racked up debt. I wanted to stay home with Sarah and in order to do that we knew we could not stay in that house.
After moving back to Ohio, I had felt like my life was moving backwards. We went from owning homes to renting to living with family. We went from making a lot of money to making little money. But, over the past year or so, God has revealed to me what I thought was backwards was really moving forward. Our lives have changed drastically...for the better! I don't regret any of the "backward" steps, I'm thankful for the knowledge and faith I've gained.
Today we are waiting to hear from sellers of a house in Youngstown that we made an offer on last night. I'm so humbled by the opportunity we have been given to be able to buy a house. I feel like this house can be the Moser family home for many years. It's very charming, large enough for our growing family and close to the park for lots of play time.
Please pray with us that this process goes smoothly and quickly! We've already had one house fall through, but I believe there was a reason for that!

Here's some fun I caught on my phone

Yup, that's Katie's foot in her mouth while riding in the car!

Holy red potato, Dave planted eyes from a potato in the Spring and look what grew...I'm amazed! What else can we plant in the garden??

That's 7:50 am on a Saturday morning! I took the opportunity to do my grocery shopping alone...maybe just a little eager

Sarah got a new hula-hoop, Katie had to try it out

Made these gems over the weekend. Gram has a similar recipe for a cake so I tweaked it for cupcake size

I'm torn between trying to read two books. This one, "One Thousand Gifts", is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! Her beautiful writing inspires me

The best snack ever! My family always made this for the holidays while the big feast was being prepared, I made it today to satisfy this prego belly

In his footsteps

We moved in with Dave's grandma last fall. Dave's grandpa always had a vegetable garden in the backyard. Papa passed away in 2010 so this year Dave decided he wanted a garden of his own. I think Papa would be proud...