As I was reading through (who am I kidding, I was SKIMMING) a book that was supposed to help me learn contentment with my house, a thought came to me – other than the thought that OH MY GOSH, THIS BOOK DOESN’T APPLY TO RENTERS!   The thought was:  It’s an adventure.

Maybe trying to force myself to love the entire situation I’m in is totally the wrong way to go at this.  Maybe I should just try to be mostly happy DESPITE the things that happen to not be so great.  Maybe I should focus less on what I hate about being here…and just see it as an adventure, something that someday I can look back on and laugh about the loose carpeting and fridge shelves that the landlord “fixed” with some tape and tinfoil.

For now, a list to remind me the GOOD things about being here:

1.  I’m closer to my family.  Having lunch with mom or someone to swing by to watch the kids so I can run to the doctor is great.  So is being able to see my friends whenever.

2.  No baseboards mean I can automatically check off the “dust baseboards” item from Fly Lady checklist.

3.  The carpets were so stained and old before I got here, so when one of the girls spills purple juice, I don’t even flinch.  Is there really a stain if you can’t see it?  (I still clean it up, but no longer worry about the new color of the carpet).

4.  When all of the repairs by the landlord involve duct tape and super glue, it makes for a pretty inexpensive repair.

5.  We don’t have to bother ourselves with mowing because there is no yard.

6.  You never have to worry about sleeping in too late – either a car horn or a random flying ball will wake you up (when the ball hits the side of your house.)

7.  I’m fairly confident that there is nothing in this place that my kids could break that wouldn’t be covered under our deposit.

8.  If the kids ever trapped themselves in their room (any room), just a little nudge and we could break the door down so they won’t starve.

9.  The house is full of little entertainment stations…like the piece of “trim” in the doorway that spins.

10.  Most of the windows here need to be replaced, SO that means I could not clean them and nobody would even be able to tell.  They stay gross, even after a good scrubbing (between the glass).

11.  Our “house” is energy efficient, when you plug in more than 2 things in certain areas, it completely flips a breaker for that side of the house.  We’re reducing our carbon footprint!

12.  It has a porch swing.  I love my porch swing.

Welcome back!