Even though it feels as if 2018 just began a couple short months ago, we are already quickly approaching the holiday season! If you’re anything like me, you love this time of year, but can easily find yourself becoming stressed out, overly busy, hurried, and overwhelmed when actually finding yourself smack dab in the middle of the holidays.
With that common problem in mind, I wanted to write to you today, before we ever officially arrive neck-deep in the thick of the holidays, and encourage you with a few thoughts as far as your home goes this Thanksgiving and Christmas season.
- Your home doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s.
During the holidays, sometimes more so than at other times, it can be so easy to believe that our homes must be incredibly festive, creatively decorated, and, basically, Pinterest-perfect. I want to encourage you with the reality that this is simply not true.
Your home does not have to look like the home of someone on Pinterest, your sister, your mom, your best friend, or the neighbor down the street who is well known for their elaborate holiday decor. You have the freedom to decorate (or not decorate!) as you see fit, as you are led by the Spirit (yes, the Lord is even in the minute details of Thanksgiving and Christmas decorations – He cares about your heart and whether or not you are placing unrealistic expectations on yourself!), and in a way that would bless your own unique family. As fun and cozy as holiday decorations can be, if your dedication to decking out your home to be the greatest, biggest, and best in the area of holiday decor is overwhelming you and turning you into an angry, frustrated wife and mom, your family members will not want your home to be the most amazing on the block. They will simply want you to be happy.
2. It doesn’t have to be perfect.
Breathe a deep sigh of relief as I tell you this: your home doesn’t have to be perfect! It doesn’t have to be spotless, pristine, or organized to the max. Whether it’s Christmas decorations taking up more room in your home than your typical through-the-year decor or wrapping paper and ribbon making a mess of your living room on Christmas morning, it’s okay! It really is. Take another deep breath, enjoy the moment, and make sweet memories with your family.
3. It’s a place to make memories and build relationships – it’s all about the relationships.
Sometimes we make the mistake of believing the rooms of our homes are to be like museum pieces, rather than looking as if they are lived in and enjoyed by a full-of-life family. As you enter into the holidays ahead, remember that your home does not exist for the purpose of impressing others, gracing the cover of a magazine, or making its way onto Pinterest. It exists in order to provide you, your family, your friends, and other guests with a warm, inviting, cozy, welcoming place in which to live life and make memories. That’s what it’s about – not how perfectly decorated or amazingly clean your home itself is.
4. It can be inexpensive to decorate.
As you think about how you want to decorate your home for the holidays this year, remember that it doesn’t have to cost a pretty penny to bring a lovely touch of festivity to your home. I have been surprised by the plates, cups, wreaths, and other fall and Christmas decor items that can be found even at a store like Dollar Tree. You have so many options at your fingertips!
5. It can be a family affair to decorate and make your home personally special to your own unique family – no one else’s!
Make memories this holiday season and lessen your load in the process by bringing your family members along for the ride of brainstorming – and then implementing! – a plan for how you are going to decorate your home for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Take into account your family’s unique flare, culture, personality, and dynamics to come up with what will be the best, most festive lookfor you, remembering that it really does not have to look like anyone else’s home.
Those were just a few thoughts I had for you as you approach the holiday season and begin now to consider how you are going to decorate your home for the holidays in a way that will make it the most enjoyable for you and your family as you seek to make sweet memories in the months ahead.
Have a lovely holiday season!
REBEKAH HARGRAVES IS A WIFE, MAMA OF TWO LITTLES, HOME BUSINESS OWNER, PODCASTER, AND BLOGGER RESIDING IN TN. HER PASSION IS TO BLESS FELLOW CHRISTIAN WOMEN THROUGH HER WRITINGS ON HER WEBSITE, HARGRAVES HOME AND HEARTH, WHICH EXISTS TO EDIFY, EQUIP, AND ENCOURAGE WOMEN IN THEIR JOURNEY OF BIBLICAL WOMANHOOD.
Website – Hargraves Home and Hearth
Facebook – Hargraves Home and Hearth
Instagram – @rebekahhargraves
Twitter – @hhomeandhearth
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