Do you know that Carole King song, "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?" It's going through my head as I write this post.
I decided to show you my family room -- the room that I lovingly refer to as "lived-in."
This is the room with all the books and newspapers and magazines strewn about, with homework on the desk and cat hair on the sofa.
This is the room that I cringe to think of the girlfriend seeing.
Anyway, here it is in all it's tattered glory. I've tidied it up a little (OK, a LOT) for these pictures.
But it still has that "lived-in" look. But hey, I guess everybody has one of those rooms, right? So I'm not going to stress over it.
Ummm...
Oh hell, I may have to stress just a little.
Posts
That is NOT a messy room! That's a picked up room in my book! I love those lovely bookcases. A woman can never have too many bookcases!!
ReplyDeleteGood Morning Mary!
ReplyDeleteOk, I'm going to just go ahead and say this right out loud. I always feel so much better and more relaxed when I see that someones house isn't perfect all the time. It is such a relief to know that other people own books, cats, piles and such! Your home is beautiful anyways and, quite frankly, if we can't live in our homes and be comfortable what's it all about!? I know you have been going through a "red alert", me too! With this graduation open house coming up, I'm scrubbing everything, painting, fluffing. It's all family & friends so what's the worry and why do we do it? Anyways, yup, love you even more because you're just like me. No worries Mary!
Hey Mary, no one in the real world has a perfect home with nothing out of place. If they do then it is not a 'home' but a house or display piece. We all have to live and you can't do that without having some of your stuff scattered around. It would be much more inviting to enter your 'home' than some 'showpiece'
ReplyDeleteI am so happy to see you live in the real world like me.
Alison
If that is messy, then I need to get to work in my own little nest!
ReplyDeletedon't stress, it's beautiful! i love it and thank you for sharing
ReplyDeleteJeannie
Mary,
ReplyDeleteI think that room looks fab! I love the couch and the leather chair and the colors you have chosen. I also really love those shelves filled to the brim with books and mags. That says a lot about a family who have bookshelves like that! The girlfriend is going to love you and your beautiful home.
annie
Mary
ReplyDeleteLooks like a warm, tender loving family lives here--as you all are! What could be a better first impression?
:0)
Tara
It may look lived in, but it also looks charming. I love all of the family pictures. It seems to be a room filled with family and love.
ReplyDeleteWe all avoid the cleaned up rooms in our house and congregate in the messiest room with the worn furniture! Why? Because we can put up our feet and relax! No worries about dust, cat and dog hair, spills and clutter. When I look at my room I am shocked at the mess but I rarely clean it up. We all need a place to unwind. I just shut the door!
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I don't see anything wrong with that room at all. It does look lived-in, but shouldn't it? You can't live your whole life on red-alert, so it's better that the girlfriend see you and your house as you really are now, right? I think it looks comfy!
ReplyDeleteWell well well -- the truth comes out at last -- there is a hidden room in The Little Red House! LOL! Just teasing -- the whole space looks comfy, cozy and well-used -- all signs of great decor style! There are bookcases in our one-and-only living room and I can't imagine a home without books and bookcases -- even in the electronic age!
ReplyDeleteJan at Rosemary Cottage
I love your lived-in look....it just proves my theory that ALL houses in blogland are not perfect....I was beginning to get a little paranoid, wondering if other people had piles of books, a cap thrown here, a light jacket thrown across the chair....whew...you made me feel LOTS better !
ReplyDeletehugs,bj
Mary,
ReplyDeleteIt looks like I room I would like to just drown myself in.... WOW, look at ALL the books!!!!! Can I come over to your house right now?
Let me just say that a house with that "lived-in" look feels like a HOME. Absolutely love those bookshelves. I'd love to come and snoop through them to see what books you've got.
ReplyDeleteHi Mary,
ReplyDeleteYour family room looks a lot like our library. Ours is filled with books and magazines and photos and comfy furniture and even more clutter than you have. I'll bet that's where girlfriend will feel most comfortable.
Hugs, Laura
Your family room is gorgeous, real, and wonderful. No one wants to live in or walk into a model home on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteWOW...the books!!!!! I love you Mary. I love your books. What a fantastic library.
You always set the bar pretty high.
- Suzanne, the Farmer's Wife
Mary, that is a beautiful room! Stop cringing right now. The girlfriend is going to be might impressed, I'm thinking.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget to breathe...
A room that looks lived in is full of life and love.
ReplyDeleteThe girlfriend will love it.
Connie
Mary, this room is lovely. I really hate visiting those homes that look like model home rooms. I myself am not a minimalist...give me some good old collections, a bit of clutter and lots and lots of books and I feel cozy. Karen
ReplyDeleteThat's cleaner than my clean rooms! I think you have to have some "lived in" rooms or it doesn't feel homey. It feels like a model home that no one lives in and you wouldn't want to make that impression either. I think you have the perfect combination of lived in and clean to have the homey feel. I'm very jealous of your book cases. I don't have nearly enough in my house. (I have a slight, okay large, book obsession.)
ReplyDeleteOK, I visit your blog regularly and don't beleive that I have commented.....until now. You are so funny. Please stop stressing.....why, you ask....? Visit my blog here:
ReplyDeletehttp://andreaw123.typepad.com/my_weblog/2008/01/index.html
scroll to Jan 16, 2008....Now that is something to stress about!
I cannot understand why you are so worried.
ReplyDeleteAnd know what's really weird? I mean really, really weird?
I had been humming that song in my head on Sunday. That very song!
I have no idea why I would have been doing that. I rarely think of that song. Or Carole King!!!
haha!--love it!! i have a room like this too! except mine has baby toys AND cat hair. what can we do though? we have to have a room we actually LIVE in, not just display our favorite things in.
ReplyDeletei honestly think your room looks great though, all those wonderful books on those great shelves--it looks so cozy. don't fret!
Love ~*love*~"love"~LOVE your wonderful room!
ReplyDeleteI completely understand the hesitation, but why?
We who live with books (I have my own wall) *and families* have different priorities than the magazine spreads. And besides, it makes for far more interesting conversations with those within those warm walls.....and those are truly the ones who count the most.
I am sure *she* will feel the love you share with all who enter there.
Mary,
ReplyDeleteYour room looks comfy, warm, and full of love. I would love to have bookcases, and a room like that. You are such a wonderful, down to earth person. I'm sure the girlfriend will love you and your home. Stop fretting.
I love the family room, especially the bookcases! Anyone who reads is ok by me. Nice pictures. Take care, Stephanie
ReplyDeleteIt's part of a Mothers nature to stress! And I like the room just as it is!
ReplyDeleteOh you doodlehead! lol lol I love this room...it just says home..it makes me feel like I can really come in and relax and not be afraid to touch anything...like I could even look thru the books and put my feet up ....like I could go to the fridge and get a Pepsi...ohhhh sorry...was that making myself too much at home!? lol lol Your sweet caring self is what the girlfriend will care about..not the room...Have a great night friend!
ReplyDeleteMary sweetie, I don't honestly think there could be a room in your home that isn't delightful! I love all the touches in your home, but what I love most about this post is that it's REAL. It's wonderful to look at beautiful pictures of gorgeous homes ( and yours is!), but it's also nice to see that everyone is human just like me. Makes me feel not so inadequate as I usually do! Hugs for you dear one.
ReplyDeleteAmanda (aka Cottage Contessa)
Mary, I'm so glad you showed your family room, the only thing that would have made it even sweeter for me would be seeing a big honkin TV set right out in the open! Am I the only one trying to figure how to get rid of the TVs in most of my rooms!?
ReplyDeleteA not-so-picture-perfect room by my favorite bloggers makes me think they are human afterall!
don't stress at all, it's a wonderful room. lived in = love = warmth = the best room in the house. thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteYou have a lovely home!! Hey, we all have rooms that are lived in. I have a very similar leather wing back chair, too!
ReplyDeleteOh, before I forget, I saw your other couch in Romantic Homes and I said, "I KNOW HER!!" Nice to see a familiar friend in a magazine!
I won't show you my mess. I moved my sewing downstairs (hot up) and it is in my office/computer/shouldbediningroom.hehehe!
xo
Becky
Oh Mary...this is home. This is what should be in Webster's next to the word *Home*. Warm, cozy and oh so inviting. I do not call this messy at all. It is charming.
ReplyDeleteI have spent months feeling so inadequate where homes are involved. Mine is small and not glamorous but I love it. A house is not a home without photos, books, well worn chairs and pillows and the stuff of life.
No one could ever look at your hoke and feel any differently. I would feel instantly *at home* there. And oh so *at home* with you. You are lovely, funny, smart and warm. You my dear, are a wonder!
Love,
Sue
Hi Mary :)
ReplyDeleteI think it's a beautiful room and it looks really comfortable. My kinda place :)
hugs,
rue
It's very refreshing to see a lovely room that people actually live in! It doesn't look messy at all to me. It looks just about exactly right. It looks very comfy and warm.
ReplyDeleteHey - my whole house has the 'lived in' look! That is because we live in the whole house! Anytime I take a picture I have to move lots of stuff out of the way! (if I remember - sometimes I get the warts and all!)
ReplyDeleteYour room looks great!
Wow you have such a lovely house. What a cute pillow you have.. I bet you if your cat could read he would think I am so lucky to have such loving owners.
ReplyDelete