We’ve lived in our new condo for over a month now. Until last week there were still boxes sitting around, I guess once the main things were unpacked I didn’t really know what to do with some of the boxes of “stuff.” Then I start thinking that if I don’t know what to do with it and there is really no place for it, why keep it?! Not everything is in its right place and there are still some pictures to be hung, but all in all our house feels like home now.

Since we’ve been married I’ve always tried to make sure that our home was comfortable, clean and not chaotic. During the last few years I also worked full-time outside of our home so I would “keep house” usually at night after work or on the weekends. For the last seven months I’ve haven’t been working outside the home, and I can fully devote my time and energies to making our home a better place.

Life seems so much better these days because I have something that seemed divided before–my time. I’ve noticed that I can consistently accomplish things at home when that is where I work! It is no longer a difficult task to keep the house organized, plan meals, shop frugally and have the laundry done. For the first time in my married life, doing things like eating breakfast, cleaning, organizing, and cooking don’t seem rushed and I am so thankful that it is possible for me to stay home to do these things instead of trying to squeeze them into my schedule. I didn’t know that I could have such joy in keeping our home. But I am really enjoying managing our home full-time now and knowing that this frees Bobby up to immerse himself in what God has called him to do is very rewarding. This vintage-style sign is hanging above my stove, but even though I don’t really have a bell for people to ring, I want my role as “homemaker” to be more than obligation or going through the motions–I want it to be service that is genuinely from my heart.

Being a homemaker is not usually a highly esteemed position. People can act as though it is much more commendable to be a success in the workforce even if that means paying for child and home care to free them up to do so. I’ll admit that some people do not portray well the idea of working inside the home. Some women seem very frazzled and overwhelmed by this task. I’m definitely not saying that I don’t have difficult days. I had one of “those days” last week where I was in my pj’s till noon and couldn’t seem to get anything done. But that for sure shouldn’t be the norm and I’m glad because I was terribly unproductive and had a full couple of days after that trying to make up for the things I didn’t do. I don’t want to be superwoman or anything, but I do want to be a woman who pleases God.

Proverbs 31:10-31 says that an excellent wife is very valuable and hard to find. Her energy is toward her husband and her household. She is trustworthy and diligent as she watches over and cares for her home. She is resourceful, hardworking and even has time to reach out to those in need. She smiles at the future because she is well prepared and fears the Lord. Her husband and children call her blessed. This is what God values in a wife and mother and I hope that what characterizes this woman will be increasingly more true of me.

Something I’m working on these days is being resourceful, I’m trying to shop the sales, clip coupons and have even have a “side business” selling books online. When we moved here I posted some of our old books we didn’t want on Amazon.com and have sold almost all of them. I have even gone to some thrift stores and book sales and found some deals that I turned and sold for a profit. It’s not a lot of money but it is nice to have some extra to buy something fun or go out to dinner now and then. In July I made much more than I had in previous months so today Bobby and I bought a Papasan chair that we’ve liked for awhile. It is so enjoyable for me to work at making our home a sweet place to be.