Choosing Home

On June 1st, Molly and Jenna celebrate their new site, Choosing Home. Below is my contribution to their site-warming party!

Readers often ask me how to select a good house. Since our work renovating homes has enabled me to stay at home, I thought a housewarming gift along these lines would be appropriate.

What follows is my reminder for those days when real estate seems like a better career than my current state: wiping the kitchen table with a recycled diaper and my son’s sneeze with my t-shirt.

Pick up a broken crayon, grab some butcher paper, and help me remember why choosing to be home is more important than choosing the perfect home:

• No matter where you live, Mom can make the surroundings cozy and clean.
• A smaller house means fewer miles walked between bedrooms at night.
• Your kids can nap on their own beds instead of a daycare’s mats.
• During the day, the public park is your private playground.
• “Making copies” refers to the number of identical sandwiches wrapped for your picnic lunch.
• A trip to the neighborhood grocery can be a field trip, not a frantic trip.
• You get to visit your garden while the sun is still shining.
• The infirmary consists of a favorite book and Mom’s lap.
• Eating “the bread of idleness” means sneaking a taste of the home made cookie dough.
• The laundry room becomes a weekday stop, not a weekend prison.
• Your children know that setting the dinner table requires more than passing out paper take-out bags.
• You get to throw a homecoming party for Dad five nights a week.
• Visitors (and angels unaware) are always welcome.

I hope this encourages any mom who's struggling to stay at home!