Wow, I haven't been on here in quite some time! I've had lots of ideas about writing but just never gotten the chance, the motivation, the energy, or whatever my excuse is going to be. In that time, I'v ready so many blogs about cleaning or not cleaning your house, pins about easy tips for keeping your house clean, ecards about kids making memories, blah, blah, blah. Every time I would think, "That's not what real homes look like!" or "Wow, I need a maid."
It also got me thinking of what it would be like to really see a family's home for what it looks like. Have you ever noticed that when friends come over there's a mad dash to put away all the junk that has accumulated on the kitchen surfaces? So, while I was washing dishes (a job I rarely do because my husband usually does them after dinner) I looked around at all this "junk" that was crowding my kitchen and realized that this "junk" tells the daily story of my family. The pictures that follow might be shocking. They are actual pictures of my actual kitchen with no pre-cleaning done. I know! Scary! Anyway, this might become a regular thing. I'll tell the stories of the pictures too.
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| Yes those are boxes of every flavor of Girl Scout cookie we sell in Atlanta. Well, except the Savannah Smiles because we've eaten all of those! And those white specks on the stove, I think that's flour from whenever that last time we used flour to cook was. I don't even know. |
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| Ah, the most important appliance in our home - the coffee pot! Also, peanut butter left out from my breakfast this morning, red potatoes that have sprouted and that I keep thinking, "Maybe I'll plant those.", and stains from spoons used to make dinner. |
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| Ahh, the infamous clean dishes that are too much of a pain to put away. This counter is almost always full of bowls that go in that bottom cabinet with the child lock (it takes too much energy to open it), plasticware (does anyone enjoy putting that crap away), random containers that I delude myself into thinking will get used for other things, and dishes that have just been washed (can't put those away until they're dry). And of course a dog butt. |
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| This counter never seems to be clean! That stack of papers are all things that we need to do something about - papers that need to be signed, bills to be paid, and kids art work we need to put away. The little pile of "junk" that looks like it has a red ribbon? Those are SWAPS our 7 year old collected at World Thinking Day (a Girl Scout event used to raise awareness of other cultures). The painting beside it? A picture painted by that same daughter the next day at a birthday party. Let's just say it was a busy weekend! |
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| Yes, we brush our daughter's hair in the kitchen! Those books were read by my daughter last night in an attempt to hit 320 minutes of independent reading this month. I think we're at 260 as of this morning. The Reese's cups were part of my lunch. |
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| Another sign of our daughter's reading efforts. This time, a cookbook! Also, her GS tunic which hasn't been worn since Sunday at our cookie booth. That's my shadow Miller, who is currently laying at my feet while I type this. Granted, as soon as my son gets home I'll be abandoned. Also notice, not a single chair is pushed up to the table, a sure sign that everyone rushed out the door this morning in an attempt to be on time. |
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| Yep, that's Christmas wrapping supplies. This bag has been in a corner in our den since just before Christmas, along with several rolls of wrapping paper. My son loved pulling everything out of this bag and dragging around the rolls of wrapping paper. I got tired of picking them up, so I guess it's time to put them into a closet until next year. |
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| The family calendar! We've been using a smiley system to encourage some better behavior in our daughter. All that writing on the weekends - stuff we have to do! We have somehow become that family with plans every weekend. Hopefully, that will change come the end of GS cookie season. |
So, that's my real house. The kitchen is actually pretty clean right now. My husband will probably cringe if he looks at these pictures. I wonder what stories your kitchen would tell? I wonder what mine might say in a few days.
