Finding Joy in a House That Isn't Perfect

Every house can be made a home. After all, home is where the heart is.

In this world where we see so many picture-perfect home pictures, it can be hard to be satisfied with our humble homes. My encouragement to you today is to joyfully make your house a home.

The Social Media Lie

If you spend any amount of time on social media, you will soon see lots of beautiful home pictures. So many other people’s homes seem to be color-coordinated, finished, and painted. Even some pictures I see with “messes” to supposedly show “real mom life” have “tidy messes.” I mean, they don’t look at all like the messes in our daily lives!

The problem is we used to just see our neighbor’s houses (and if I did that here on my street, I sure would find that I would prefer my house in most cases.) Now we get peeks into houses all over the world. The sneak peeks are not of the whole house either.

I am not saying everyone should post all their real-life messy house pictures, and not necessarily their perfect house pictures either. But we need to remember what reality is. Often, the mess is behind the camera.

I am certainly not saying that order is not attainable, or that we shouldn’t strive to improve our physical houses. But as a mom of four young children, and with a small house that is unfinished, I need to remind myself often of what is reality.

Love Your Home

Maybe your home is smaller (or bigger) than you wish. Maybe it is old (or new and unfinished). It can be home even so. It was hard to learn to love my new house when we moved a number of years ago.

Admittedly, it was a very stressful time as our house was much less finished than now (large pieces of black plastic for the inside walls, a rough cement floor, etc.), and our second daughter was born just a week after the move. But with time and a few improvements, I am learning that it really is a place I love to come home to.

While it’s not perfect, the signs of my family living here alive and well are all very clear. And a happy wife and mom truly helps make a house a home.

We are not entitled to having the home of our dreams. Just think a little bit about all the people around the world who live in mud huts or slums. We can be thankful for what we have and come to love this place.

Children Don’t Notice

I have heard enough first-hand accounts that remind me that at these young ages, my children don’t care about how the house is. If I think back to when I was young, we also lived in a tiny house. It didn’t bother me then, so why should I think it bothers my children now?

What they need most is a happy home atmosphere. Instead of seeing their mom in a constant Cinderella state, cleaning, they need quality time and attention.

Simple Ways to Make It “Home” on a Budget

I have heard it said that as homemakers, we are doing the kind of work God did in creation. We work hard at making order out of disorder and bringing beauty into the ugly. It requires so much from us to keep things from going into chaos.

We are not like God to get it done with a simple command, but we are doing a worthy job. Each time we wash the dirty dishes or tidy up the living room, we are doing the small things that make a house a home.

Sometimes we don’t have it in our budget to be able to make our homes the picture-perfect place we wish it could be. But there are simple ways to add touches of coziness to our homes.

Use Nature

The Creator also loves beauty, and He created it around us to use for free! If you wish you could add more to your home, try adding what God has already provided.

Sometimes a bouquet of flowers adds the perfect touch. Plants can be a great way of adding signs of life to your home.

Look Around for Ways to Improve Your Home

Occasionally I will look around and think of what I could improve without a lot of work. Can something that is sitting out go behind a closed door? Could I maybe switch out a picture frame or a wall hanging, or rearrange something?

Maybe you can’t do all you wish, but you can add touches of beauty to your home with what you already have. It’s real life after all. Your dream house might be a long way off, but your home is probably something someone else can only dream about.

Work on Improving Your Housekeeping.

A place that is neat and clean feels more like home to me. I am still getting better at this. It is something that can be done in any home. Even a mud hut with a dirt floor can be swept.

In small houses like mine, as soon as a couple of toys are pulled out, it all looks like a mess. But I have found a blessing in that too. As soon as we decide to tidy up (which we do a couple of times a day), it doesn’t take much time for things to be back in order.

A perfectly clean house is nice, but usually impossible to attain in daily life with little ones. But it’s the little things that add up to make a house a home.

Clearing the dining room table and having clean dishes, or tidying up to have an orderly home are some of the small things that make your home feel like a home that is welcoming to live in.

You can also teach your children to help with chores, and use my simple system to keep their personal clutter and toys in order.

Remember We are not Home Yet

I still sometimes tend to get frustrated at the unfinished house that is my home. I dream of more space. All of this is a reminder that it is a good thing my current house isn’t my true home. I have a heavenly home that will be finished, and I won’t need to work to keep it clean!

It’s a comfort as the song says, “When my journey is over, I am going home… … the place I have been dreaming of so long…” So the next time you struggle with your house and with wishing for your “dream home,” why don’t you dream about our New Home in Heaven with me a bit?

When we go on a trip, it always feels good to come home. We are strangers and pilgrims on earth as the Bible says. It does us good to not get too comfortable here on Earth. We are heading home where everything will be perfect!

Save it for later.

Accept Your Home

I have been learning this in the last few years. Be it ever so humble, there is no place like home. Accept and enjoy your home, find simple ways to improve it, and remember that this isn’t our forever home.

If you want more encouragement in homemaking, The Virtuous Home has a list of homemaking blogs that you might enjoy.

How do you find joy in your imperfect home, and ways to make if feel like home? Let us know in the comments so we can all learn together.