6 Reasons you shouldn't wait to decorate until the kids grow up.

Years ago, as I sat cuddling my sleeping baby while my arms fell asleep and the pressure in my bladder tested the tenuous restraint of my pelvic floor, I had a brutal and sudden realization.  I hated my house.  Confined within the four walls of my living room as I had been for nearly every nap (hers and mine), feed or fuss over the last few months, the resentment for my space was only nearly outpaced by my need for the bathroom.

The neutral palette which was soothing after a day at work was now bland and boring.  The bookshelves and display cases were burdens of responsibility that flaunted dust bunnies only rivaled by the left-over toast crumbs on my tank top.  It was all too much, all that stuff, and yet not enough at all for this new phase in my life.  My life had changed and so had my needs and tastes for my home.

“We’ll do it when the kids are older” is a mantra I hear frequently when I encounter parents of any-aged children.  Often the concern is investing in a new sofa or area rug only to have it sacrificed to the yogurt and apple sauce gods the next time your little angels turn Lord of The Flies.  Sometimes I suspect, and fairly so, that overwhelmed, overtaxed and over-fill-in-the-blank parents just “can’t”. They can’t conjure the energy and attention needed whilst hearing “mommy” 2 567 times a day.  Maybe they can’t face the uncertainty of confronting their space when they are already swallowing down multiple fears and worries due to tiny terrors who seem to do their level best to not live past their childhoods.
 
But you must. Why? Why would I make you decorate your home when the above arguments seem so inarguable? So very complete and credible? 

1. BECAUSE this is one of the hardest times of your life.  Parenting is a time in the trenches and all soldiers need to preserve morale. Your environment shapes your thoughts, feelings and motivations.  Just like a pair of dry socks in your desert boots, you need to freshen your space. 
2. Raising children could amount to nearly a third of your life and that’s far too long to live in a space that doesn’t reward you and raise you up.  Burn the fancy candle, eat the cake, make your space one that is beautiful to you now.  
3. Children, especially young ones, can mean you’re home a lot more.  That is way too much time of your day to be spending in a space that may have leanings towards the Shining instead of Tara (or your version of house nirvana).
4. A well decorated house is also a functional one that makes for easier living and potentially fewer fights and less stress for everyone.  A pretty space commands more respect and more commitment from its inhabitants to preserve it and treat it well.
5. You are consuming items in your house RIGHT NOW, so why not choose for those items to be intentionally curated and contributing to your overall style?  The beige Costco rug that you bought because you felt it would reasonably go with your home and was a manageable price?  Could be a piece of the same cost that earns compliments from other play date parents, helps disguise food and playdoh mishaps while also helping you recover some of the cool you lose daily at your children’s whimsy.  Or, it could just make you plain happy to look at.
6. Kids too appreciate beautiful spaces.  Teach your children what feeling proud of your space looks like.  Imbue them with the self-respect and esteem that accompanies a space that you invest in, care for and love.  Help teach them the emotional and financial value of a well-appointed home. 

Look at your lovely angels.  Know that they will very likely mush guacamole into your area rug and get marker on your toss cushion and then decorate your home anyways.  Because your thoughts, feelings, motivations - YOU - deserve it.

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