Please don't get offended if you have a pretty blog, pretty house, pretty things, etc. I don't mean to sound rude, I really don't. And I am happy you have those things,....lol.
Don't get me wrong, I love pretty blogs. You know, the ones that only take pictures of the good and beautiful. Sometimes I just get tired. Tired of everything being so damn pretty. Tired of all the pretty toys, the pretty handmade or antique furniture, the pretty landscapes, the pretty handmade clothes, pretty food, pretty supplies, pretty houses, pretty pictures...I guess I get tired of it because I don't have it. But I don't need it. I'm happy with what I have. I'm beyond happy just to be able to stay at home...even if we don't have our dream house.
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| Wow! It would be nice to have windows, walls, and floors like these! |
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| We get to look at this gorgeous wallpaper and window covering everyday! |
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| And how about these lovely peacocks! |
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| And what is this on our carpet? |
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I think its great to support handmade and to buy used. However, I can hardly afford handmade (such as seen on etsy) and I buy used a lot, but never antiques. I just don't have the money for that sort of lifestyle. As long as my kids are happy, I am happy. I think it would be nice to surround my kids with beautiful things all of the time, but I can't. I bought them 50 My Little Ponies for 10$ from Goodwill for Christmas. Now talk about ugly, but they think they're the most beautiful things in the world and they play with them nonstop. Watching them play, I feel these glittery rainbow colored ponies spark just as much imagination as a plain wooden one...and they cost me a lot less. I know you're thinking well why in the hell do they need 50 ponies, wouldn't 4 be enough? Or yeah, but they're poor quality and won't last as long. I didn't buy them new! I don't plan on them being family heirlooms. Besides, with 50 they can create entire villages, even worlds...ok I'm not going to defend my pony purchase here. As long as the house isn't covered in toys, they have a few things they really love (the ponies are one - or 50), it's all good with me.
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| Would LOVE to have these |
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| But this is what we have |
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| Would LOVE this doll |
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| But we have this one |
I make my kids' clothes but it would be an everyday battle to get them to wear what I make. Sometimes I get lucky and they wear something I made, but usually they just want to wear the clothes they've gotten from Goodwill, birthday parties, or as hand me downs. And really I don't care. Wear what you want little ones, wear what you want.
Another thing I can't afford are the high quality art supplies. I understand the argument for buying things of high quality and , believe me, I would if I could. However, I still feel they are getting the same experience as kids who have such things.
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| Would love to have these |
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| But we have this |
My husband makes $37,000 a year before taxes (I hope he's not reading this, I don't think he does) and he was making $27,000 just a few months ago. We don't have credit card debt or car notes, but we do have a mortgage. After that and other bills, we don't have much. I choose to spend most of our money on food. We try to buy local and organic, but that's hard sometimes too. I don't know. In an ideal world we would produce our own food, make our own toys, live in a beautifully renovated farmhouse, etc. However, we also need to learn to love what we have. I know I am very very fortunate to have what I do and so I just do the best I can and make the best decisions for my family based on our abilities. Almost everyone wants more than want they have. Many people want what I have and yet I look at other blogs and think wow it would be nice to live there or have that. Well too fn bad Megan! And really, you don't need it. Maybe I support Goodwill more than the local artisans, but at least I'm not supporting Toys R Us or Wal Mart...right? Whatever. This is my life and I'm happy with it. Although I'd rather live in a shitty ass trailer on a huge piece of land (my husband would not). Okay. The End.
