Coffee Break #19

Snuggle into a comfy spot and grab your favorite beverage, because it’s time for my Monthly Coffee Break! This month, I’m chatting about aaaallll the feels sending Henry back into school, some site updates coming your way, as well as answering a bunch of your decorating questions! Let’s catch up!

Catch up on past Coffee Break posts HERE!

So…It’s March…Again

That seems to be the theme around social media, late night TV, and news programming…doesn’t it? It didn’t really hit me until we got word that Henry will actually, finally go back to in-person learning this month. In fact, the date he’s due to go back is an exact year after our school district shut down. I remember thinking at the time that I’d be lucky to survive at-home learning until Easter…and here we are a full year later.

Truth be told, Henry has done amazingly well with online learning. I thought for sure he would flail and flounder every step of the way, but this situation has instead awoken an amazing sense of responsibility, worth ethic, and pride in him that I’ve never seen before. I don’t deserve a lick of the credit though. That entirely belongs to Henry and his awesome teacher who has expertly guided Henry and his classmates through quite unchartered waters indeed. I started the 2020 school year consumed with anxiety and worry about how and if we’d make it through. But I sit here today immensely grateful for how well the last few months have actually gone, all things considered.

That said, Henry is lonely and anxious and quite frequently bored out of his mind, which is why we will gladly and proudly put him on the bus in just a few short weeks to finally go off to 4th grade. I am pretty sure I will bawl my eyes out (and I’m not a crier!) Not just from pure relief for the space and independence we all so badly need…but also from the intense awe I feel watching our children navigate this crazy time with bravery and resiliency beyond their years.

It’s pretty safe to say both Henry and I have never been more excited for the “First Day of School” than we are right now!

Programming Notes

I want to quickly update you on some “outside the norm” things that will be going on here over the next few weeks or so.

First…as you might have seen yesterday, Cricut launched their newest product, the Cricut Mug Press! I am super thrilled and honored to be part of the launch team, so I will be posting a few extra Cricut projects this month. The remaining three Fridays in March will be dedicated to Cricut Mug Press tutorials, but all Tuesday posts will remain DIY and organization content!

Second, a few months back, I conducted a reader survey in preparation for a massive site re-design (thank you to all of you who provided invaluable insight, by the way!) Although we aren’t quite ready to launch just yet, there is a considerable amount of “back end” work I need to do to in order to get some things cleaned up. This involves fixing blog posts, re-organization, and a bunch of other technical stuff. I tell you this for three reasons:

1. Don’t be surprised if there is a random Thursday post every now and then. This is just me re-posting some content you’ve already seen but in a more search-friendly way (I will essentially be breaking up a few really large posts).
2. I’ve got all my fingers and toes crossed that this whole transition goes smoothly. But if you visit the site and it’s down or I haven’t posted at my usual time, it’s most likely because we’re working hard on those back-end adjustments. I’ll be using my weekly newsletter to keep you posted of any changes as we get closer to launch day!
3. Almost all my spare time will be going into these updates, so I might be even slower than usual to respond to comments and emails…thanks for your patience!

Decorating With Frequent Moving

Recently, I’ve gotten a few questions related to how I deal with decorating our homes move after move after move after move, so I thought I’d tackle a few together:

Question: How do you find the motivation to rearrange/redecorate/reorganize? We’re also military, and where things land after they’re out of the box is pretty much where they stay, lol! I just can’t seem to muster up the energy to do much to a place we’ll only be in for 2-3 years…

Answer: First and foremost, decorating, organizing and crafting is simply a passion of mine. I LOVE it. I seriously get so excited about a room makeover or update, to the point that I can’t sleep because I’m dreaming up ideas. Seeing gorgeous labels when I open our pantry or a fun pattern on the floor when I walk past the bathroom just brings me a lot of personal joy and satisfaction.

But constantly decorating in the face of frequent moves definitely goes beyond just a hobby. From the beginning (way before I had this blog), I was painting our base housing walls, slip-covering government-issued furniture, and sewing my own curtains because it gave me some sense of control in a lifestyle that is fairly uncontrollable. When the Marine Corps ultimately decides where we live and for how long, decorating our home exactly as I want it helps me feel more at home, more comfortable, more at peace, and more ready to weather whatever life delivers next. Setting up a home each time we move is a big part of how I thrive in this way of life.

There’s also one more hugely motivating factor that warrants mentioning: decorating my house is my job! There are absolutely times when I don’t feel like updating a certain space. But knowing that I can try something, take pictures, and share it with you guys here definitely motivates me into action. I think many bloggers would fully admit that one of the main reasons things actually get done around the house is because of their blog!

Question: Any plans for a forever home? Not sure how military transfers/careers work.

Answer: I actually have a huge post on this exact subject that will hit the blog later this month. I chat all about why we’ve chosen to rent for almost 16 years and if/when we’d ever considering buying, so be sure to keep an eye out for that in a few weeks!

Question: How and when should you consider a room/home refresh when you aren’t moving. Quarantine life has me wanting to do even more home projects!

Answer: I’m not sure I’m a credible source on this one. I almost never get to that “tired” point in a room or house. It’s usually just as I’m finishing up the final space that the moving truck is pulling into the driveway (not kidding here!) That said, if you’re antsy to do something…anything…and don’t know where to start, my decorating advice is the same as my organizing advice: start in the spot that bothers you the most. 

Sure, maybe your dining room is dated. But if you never go in there, then it might not be the best place to put your time and budget. On the other hand, if every time you go into your yellow main floor bathroom and think “I’ve got to change this color,” then that’s a great place to start!

Single, large-impact projects like changing a wall color, hanging new curtains, swapping out a rug, or installing a statement wallpaper can seem scary…but they can also dramatically change the look and feel of a space in a pretty efficient and cost-effective manner. And if you make that change in a place you spend a lot of time, you’ll be even more gratified by the results, which can then spur you on to further, more challenging updates (like that outdated dining room!)

Ask Megan!

Curious about something…anything? Ask away in the form below, and I’ll answer in a future Coffee Break!

 

That’s it for this monthly coffee break. Thanks for catching up with me, and here’s to a great March!