#LoveYourHome: What Home Means To Me

When Porch.com asked us to participate in their beautiful #LoveYourHome series of course we had to say yes! If you have not visited porch.com I urge you to go right now! It is fantastic.

As I have been thinking about this topic, a few thoughts came to my mind. First, no concept is more important to me than home because to me that word encompasses love, family and comfort. All of which I think are essential to having a healthy, happy and fulfilled life. Second, I know it is sounds cliche but home to me is not just a place you sleep in at night but home is where those you love are. When I thought about being with those I love I immediately thought of all the great times my family has spent together celebrating major events and throwing dinner parties.

I wish I had some older photos that demonstrate this, but growing up our mom always made family dinners a soiree, not just a simple dinner. Whenever we had anyone else over like my older brother David my mom would bring out garlands, paper lanterns, and other little decor supplies. I remember in junior high and even probably high school thinking it was fun but not quite understanding why we went through the trouble. Sometimes I even thought that decorating was cheesy.

However, I now understand why it was important to my mom to make these times special. Getting family together for even a just a Sunday dinner is a big deal. There should be no other people you want to spend time with than your family why not take some extra effort to signal how special it is? I think that is what she was doing with the decorations. And now it is something I am so used to and even do myself. When I come home to Utah to visit there is always at least one night where we are decorating. And I love it. I think this is a huge reason why Machelle and I love celebrating birthdays (especially ours) and love throwing parties! Parties and special dinners with our family is our home. Home to me means celebrating with the most special people in my life.

I mean, setting up parties with Machelle is just a blast! That part is half the fun.

Sadly I missed this celebration the other week. But my mom had an idea to decorate the family dinner celebrating our dad’s 77th birthday and don’t these details just make the event that much more special?

Here are a few more photos of some parties thrown at my parent’s home, from little gatherings to baby showers! This is what home means to me.

And to end with an actual section of my home, I thought that I would share my favorite little spot – my coffee table and couch in our living room. This is where my husband and I spend most of our nights. But it also represents this blog and my hobbies. That coffee table has somehow become my go-to place to take photos of projects. So it either is a mess with supplies or it holds my favorite books and flowers. I have a theory that fresh flowers instantly makes a place feel more homey. And since I still live in a rental, it is the little things that make a huge difference. I never want to feel like I am living in a temporary location – I want every place I live in to be a home.

What makes you love your home? Share your story/home and use the #loveyourhome hashtag!