It is starting to feel a bit more like fall around here and I cannot wait for the leaves and weather to turn. It truly is a beautiful time of year and I love making our home feel cozy for the season.
This year feels a little different as my energy level is so low due to pregnancy. We also decided to forego our usual October vacation due to illness and season of life. So as we hunker down at home this year, small touches around the house remind me that fall always keeps it promise in coming around each year.
I have learned in my short time as a parent that while I still desire to make my house feel a certain way, I want less stuff around. The past few years have been small steps to more minimalism but as my duties at home have increased with a child, this desire has grown even more. Yet there is a part of me that goes into stores and wants all the things! So it is a delicate balance I play with myself each year to figure out what feels like just enough - without completely going overboard but also not donating everything because I didn't use it THIS year.
Our two year old is starting to notice that things are "scary". And so pretty much every Halloween thing we see in stores scares him. So this year there will not be any paper bats or tennis ball ghosts hanging.
But I still plan to hold on to them for when things can be a bit more spooky. Because these things bring me joy. So while I don't love having storage bins full of decorations I am not using, I also want to hold on to the special pieces that I know will continue to put a smile on my face when we are past this sweet but different baby/toddler stage of parenting.
And while I love to sometimes change things up, I also want to know a good thing when I see it. This year's porch is pretty much exactly the same as last years because I love it's natural simplicity.
I was happy to find that some of my favorite large retailers (Target and T.J. Maxx!) have a large selection of white and neutral pumpkins this year. I picked up a few little ones and they are killing me with cuteness.
This lone mustard pumpkin I got from a craft fair back home continues to add whimsy in such a simple way.
While the house was tidy for photos, I thought I would share our television side of the living room. After two years of living here, I finally found a configuration that I liked. And my husband had gotten around to hiding all of our television chords.
Our Blue-ray player died not too long ago so we got a Playstation Slim to replace it. My husband made a small ledge behind the television to hold it. Now it is hidden but still accessible from the side.
And I had to chuckle to myself over the irony that we literally had a new piece of furniture en route to our house to go under our TV. So even if I enjoyed this little set up for just a week - I still got to enjoy it. It is just a reminder that sometimes getting things right decorating wise takes time.
When our new piece arrives, I will still use this setup as inspiration when I move the table somewhere else.
It looks so good from this angle. A truly proud moment. ;)
We have a pretty good sized collection of fake white pumpkins from our wedding from nine years ago! They are still going strong but are showing some signs of outdoor wear.
I would say that I would not necessarily buy them again now, yet they continue to find a place in our home year after year. And not in a - just make it work because I have it way. But in a - I really like this here way. Our cultural obsession with wanting stuff and then not wanting stuff continues to boggle my mind! Either way, these pumpkins are here to stay.
I just love these pumpkins perched on our son's Ikea play kitchen. It is like all my parenting dreams have come true.
Again, that small little pumpkin on that chair is stealing the show. Wouldn't buy it again yet I love it SO MUCH. I need seasonal decorating therapy.
We also finally took down those hooks hanging from the ceiling that held our pot rack for about a month. The hooks have been there for about a year with no pot rack! #reallife
And back to our front porch, here is my clothes-less child playing with the hose in questionably not hot weather. Whatever keeps him happy people.
These pumpkins almost went back into it's storage box until I decided to put them on our bench. These ones are flipped around - wedding monograms can be found on the other side. Even though no one else will see them, seeing these sweet wedding pumpkins warm my heart.
And a garden selfie with the baby bump was in order.
Here is what remained in my storage bin that didn't get put out. This is probably the third year that I thought about donating those red plush pumpkins. While they are beautiful, they just don't fit in with my current decor colors. But just as I am ready to let go - I remember that these pumpkins got used last year for an outdoor fall dinner we hosted for my husband's work and I also used them as table decorations when I ran the moms group back home.
If it can serve me in other ways, it may be worth keeping around for awhile. To me, it is better than buying new stuff when the old stuff works perfectly well. And I want to buy things when I see them and love them - versus buying what I may need in the moment but may not love.
Again, it is our current circumstances- country life and early years of parenting. But it is helping me sift through the chatter I hear - to completely minimize or to buy more. It is a constant battle when you are a lover of beautiful things! But I am learning to find a balance that works for me in this season of life.
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