Home is Unconditional Love
Posted on | July 27, 2010 | 9 Comments
My last guest post is from another lady that I absolutely adore…Jill from the blog, Baby Rabies.
Jill is so hilarious and actually lives in the same area as me! She is a mom to Kendall, 2 years old, and just found out yesterday that her life was going to be filled with a lot more pink come December when she & her husband welcome their first DAUGHTER.
Jill is also the brains behind Party Like a Kid... a fun blog devoted to kid’s parties. They feature everything from birthday parties on a budget, themes, DIY decorations and will also offer lots of free printables. {Ohh… and PEEEE ESSSS… Madison’s cast away party has already been featured}
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I have never lived in one place longer than 4 years, and it’s a tie between the house I spent my high school years in and the apartment my husband and I lived in just before having our first baby. A combination of spending a good portion of my childhood as a Navy Brat and a nomadic existence after that has left me with a bit of a heart of stone when it comes to the places I live. I don’t sentimentally tear up when we pack up the last box, I don’t walk through the rooms crying while thinking of the memories. I guess, for me, “home” has always been more about the people and the memories we took with us to live inside those ever changing walls than the actual brick and mortar structures that housed us.
Home, to me, is where I know I can open the door and be greeted by people (and pets) who love me unconditionally, where I can let down my guard, take off my bra, and find my favorite coffee cup in the cupboard. I’ve lived in several different types of houses (and many apartments), and no matter the size, the color of the appliances, the view or the type of tile in the entry way, each and every one felt like home because of the love that lived inside it (except my college dorm my freshman year, which was one of the loneliest places I’ve ever laid my head at night).
I mean, I understand there is a sadness that comes from closing a chapter in my life, moving on from a house that set the scene for so many happy memories, and it’s not that I never grasped that. When I drive through the town I spent my teens in, I certainly get nostalgic when I see the house where I got ready for my first prom and had friends over for classic sleepovers. My husband and I will always have a fondness for the tiny 2 bedroom apartment we brought our son home to as a newborn, and I imagine one day, when we move from the first house we purchased together, we will be sad to shut the door behind us.
But houses have always been just that to me- chapters, an ever-changing backdrop in the movie of my life. HOME is the who and the love you put in those houses, and that can go anywhere with you. It has no size requirements or limits, it doesn’t prefer one zip code over another. You carry it in your heart and it fills in the space where you set it free.
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9 Responses to “Home is Unconditional Love”
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So who is this lady?
That's me, Madison's momma! I like to wear her clippies in my hair. Sometimes I swear.
Ok, I swear a lot.
I hate wearing pants to bed, I drink wine out of a box and I love my little girl more than anything.
Madison had hip dysplasia & just recently finished up 12 weeks in a full body cast. Her hips look great and we are on the fast road to recovery.
These days we're focusing on catching up on all of her milestones & learning about life with a {soon-to-be} mobile baby! I hope you'll join us on the ride!
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July 27th, 2010 @ 10:24 am
Thanks so much for having me, Joanna! I truly wish you guys all the best and am excited for the new chapter in your life this new house will be a part of.
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July 27th, 2010 @ 10:40 am
I totally understand what you’re saying Jill, home is where you’re greeted by the ones you love, regardless of the walls that surround you. I’m happy and honored to have shared guest posting space with you.
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July 27th, 2010 @ 10:40 am
My H always worried about bringing the babe home to an apartment. That never mattered to me. I knew at the end of the day all she needed was love and a safe environment and didn’t care where we live. I love my home. It’s a rental but it’s OURS. It’s my daughter’s stuff all over the place (oy) and it’s where I can relax and get comfy and be myself. It’s my safe place and I love it–no matter where we make our home.
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July 27th, 2010 @ 10:42 am
Great post Jill, as a USAF brat, I feel the same way, I never get attached to the places we live. Home is where my family is, where my toddler screams and giggles through the house and my dog wiggles her sassy butt, and my husband kicks his feet up. Doesn’t matter where that physically is, that’s what defines it.
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July 27th, 2010 @ 11:10 am
Ah, I totally understand. Being raised as a military brat really influences how you feel about home for your whole life. For me, it’s continued (probably for 10 more years or so) by marrying into the military as well. I actually think it makes me pretty lucky to have so many loving people in different places to come home to.
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July 27th, 2010 @ 11:50 am
Joanna, I know that you will be bringing everything that matters with you. And that’s what makes your home filled with love. As always, nice post Jill.
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July 27th, 2010 @ 2:04 pm
Great post Jill! Love this line ~ “HOME is the who and the love you put in those houses, and that can go anywhere with you.”
I’m loving this home theme. Welcome to your new home Joanna!
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July 27th, 2010 @ 6:32 pm
In the 4 years my husband and I been together we have lived (counting, counting) 6 different places! And right now we actually have a very temporary place to call home and have no idea what the next 6 months to a year hold for us or where we will actually live.
But I always feel at home no matter where we are. Like Jill said. As long as I can take my bra off and let those big ol puppies air out I’m good.
Good luck with everything! And kudos to you for making a very adult decision. More people p probably should.
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July 28th, 2010 @ 8:51 pm
This is especially timely as we pack up our flooded house to downsize into an apartment farther from the city than I ever imagined we’d be.
Like you, I grew up a nomad, though our circumstances were very different. Mine was from poverty and homelessness, so my goal my entire life was to plant roots somewhere and never, never, ever, ever leave (and I mean, as in, die in that house and have my ashes sprinkled in the back yard.) Unfortunately, owning a home requires money that we just don’t have right now. I’m a student, my husband is a student, and neither of us are settled in our careers. When I think about the fact that we may not be able to buy a house until I’m 40, I seriously want to blow my brains out. It makes my whole body hurt. I HATE being unsettled.
We’ve lived in this house for 3 years. That’s twice as long as I have ever lived anywhere in my life. And it was the first house I ever lived in. No, it wasn’t mine – we rented – but it FELT like ours. The landlord hasn’t been here since we signed the lease 3 years ago. Leaving this place makes me sick. Leaving this place to move into an apartment complex makes me even sicker. And leaving this place to move to a real-live suburb has my Chicago-Born-And-Raised Husband absolutely crawling out of his skin.
But we’re doing it. I guess.
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