I have had the itch to paint my living room and kitchen all one light blue gray color pretty much ever since we finished the master bedroom and bathroom and were done-ish with the house. Apparently I like change. So, a couple of weeks ago I was out with my 6 year old daughter and I said “We’re going to stop at the paint store on the way home.” When she asked what we were getting paint for, I told her “I want to paint the living room and kitchen a different color.” She didn’t like the idea, telling me how much she loves the yellow in the living room. What a happy color it is. What is wrong with the color there now? I tried to tell her that I wanted the living room and kitchen to be a nice soothing, relaxing color. She replied “If you want the living room to be relaxing, why don’t you just go home and relax in it?” Then argued “You’ll just be making more work for you and daddy.” She’s a wise one.
I couldn’t argue with her. It’s true. Sometimes I need the reminder that things are good enough. There can always be something else, another project, another improvement, another change. I needed the reminder to enjoy things as they are.
I love it. She’s awesome.
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“If you want the living room to be relaxing, why don’t you just go home and relax in it.”
touche!
what a wise girl, indeed!
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oh my goodness you have a wise one there…she just put me in check too. I keep spinning my wheels going for that relaxed/calm look.
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Kids say the darndest things. And most of the time they’re right.
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“I needed the reminder to enjoy things as they are.”
Love that.
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Out of the mouths of babes! That is amazing… Kids want things to stay the same, and really do know how to make life simple. We adults want to make it more complicated. Thanks for sharing this. A great reminder.
Denise
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She is a wise child. Never hurts to dream, though…the blue gray sounds very nice.
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Oh she IS wise! ‘just go home and relax in it’ !!! Brilliant.
I’m sorry to say that 98% of my remodels are ‘have-to or it’s not live-able’ so no relaxing for me for awhile
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Smart girl, indeed! That’s a reminder we all need now and then … to just relax and enjoy.
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So wise for her years!! Wow! But you know what – that is part of this whole crazy blog collective and what makes us tick – we always want to change something!!
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Kids are so intuitive! How I wish we could bottle that wisdom and hang onto it!
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I just painted my office Gray Cashmere by Benjamin Moore and it was a yellow nursery before. My kids were skeptical but now they love the color. Some say blue some say gray. I say change was good for me. Keeps my kids on there toes, poor things!
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Emily Reply:
February 17th, 2011 at 9:13 pm
change is so so good
sounds beautiful! my daughter is clearly a bit weary of the projects. she’d rather just play with mommy and daddy in our pretty nice home as is. i can’t argue.
xo
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I can so relate! I’m having a real itch to change things up. I’ve been thinking about painting our half bathroom. It hasn’t been painted since we moved and I want to paint. Just want some change, especially while our weather is still gloomy here (in Michigan).
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Our kids really want the little things-like our time with them. My children are much older than yours and I worked quite a bit while they were growing up (I am a nurse). When I decided to stay home more, I found it amazing, the things they were willing to give up so that they could just have me at home. Then I had to give myself PERMISSION to realize that it’s not the “things” or the “redos” that mattered-it was simply being together. Your daughter is very wise-give yourself PERMISSION to know that things are good as they are!
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I love how the wisdom of a small girl gives such a searing insight into what is really needed. I have often said that our 8yo is my ‘seer’, and marvel at how often she points the way to the heart of the matter. Sigh. The trick is letting go of being ‘The Adult’ and thinking I know better.
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Out of the mouths of babes…
What wonderful, wise words to live by. Thank you for sharing you “ah-ha” moment!
Deborah
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she is so right! not much more I can add to that:)
xo
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You’ve got a wise kiddo. Some people pay a lot of money to reach realizations like that
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Oh, she sounds like my youngest, so wise and so willing to share her wisdom. I must say that now that mine is an adult, she has kept those qualities, and I count her as a delightful friend!
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You have a daughter who is wise beyond her age.
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I really enjoy your blog. It’s very inspiring. Congrats on your recent run. I recently started blogging (only for the past three weeks), and would love it if you checked it out.
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Go home and relax in it….that is so cute.
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I love that!
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[...] Enjoy Things as They are [...]
Out of the mouths of babes. It still amazing me when I’m blessed with reminders that children are also teachers.
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[...] A Good Reminder to Enjoy Our Homes as They Are: Remodeling This Life. [...]
Such a wise little daughter!!!
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Oh, mama you are gonna get me on a roll, I just finished posting a similar rant over at “Hooked on Houses”! I am so tired of this obsession with home improvement, remodeling projects, “nesting” (and anything else you want to call it)and women never being satisfied with their homes. I especially feel very sorry for all the husbands who have to put up with the endlessness of their discontent. Now, I’m an interior designer (also have an antique shop) and even I cannot understand it. Is it too much money? Too much time on their hands? Filling a void in their life with THINGS???? A Psychiatrist I am not, but to me there’s something very “Stepford-Wifeish” about forever striving for some unattainable house nirvana. Is it today’s HGTV culture that is feeding the house-whore beast? For instance, my grandmother has had the same furnishings and everything for as long as I can remember! (And it looks great!) I have never known her to juggle project-after-project-after-project, spending all of my grandfathers money along the way in order to make her house picture perfect or to impress people. This form of overconsumption is an epidemic and an outward symptom of a troubled mind and soul. That much I do know. Thanks for letting me rant. Again.
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What a cute but poignant reminder.
I think it’s always important to ask ourselves *why* we want to change something about our homes. If it’s because we feel an ongoing discontent, then we should be asking ourselves the larger questions. If it’s because we genuinely enjoy the creative process and the satisfaction of completing creative tasks ourselves, then why not use our homes as a canvas? But SOOOO important to ask ourselves that question in the first place, and not just waste time, money and the Earth’s limited resources just to keep up with the Joneses!
Thanks for this great post!
xoxo,
tanja
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It is so hard to just relax sometimes. LOL I am in constant motion and if I’m not, my brain is.
Great post and wise words.
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[...] every now and then, can’t we just STOP the home improvement projects and simply just be happy with life as it is n…? Do we always need to be moving on to the next [...]
Out of the mouths of babes…
“If you want the living room to be more relaxing, why don’t you go home and relax in it?”
Wow. A truth there.
Dixie
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You are certainly blessed with a well grounded young daughter. I am going to remember her words next time I wake up in the middle of the night with that urge to paint this, move that, buy these………..
I am even having the perfectionist addiction with my current simplifying mania. Our house is large enough to comfortably contain everything in it. Everything has a home, but with the current fad of simplicity, I feel the need to rid our home of everything we aren’t currently loving……and there is a lot of it. I feel good when I look at the open spaces I’ve created so I will keep purging. Now I am thinking “did I purge enough?” – going back and getting rid of more stuff. Your daughter’s wise words will now remind me to stop the constant need to “do something”. I am going to take today to relax, read a book that is not about decorating or purging – a book that will take me into another world.
Please thank your sweet daughter for reminding me of what is truly important!!!
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Excellent advice! I need to read this at least once a week for the next few years.
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She sounds like my husband – and sometimes he is right too!
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I love change too, but I realized that my family did not share my view. In fact, the more I changed things, the more they wanted them to stay the same. I began to see that there was comfort and stability in familiarity. I started to make choices that I would not get tired of and could live with for a long time. Timeless design! I now stick with minor changes that have to do with seasonal things. Everyone seems to be happier, including me!
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Cyndy Reply:
March 3rd, 2011 at 10:59 am
By the way, my kitchen is painted a light grey blue!
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