In 2018, when we moved into our new home, things were a little crazy, to say the least.  We liked this house because, though it was dated, it had been kept clean and in good condition.  It wasn’t a project.

Or maybe it was, and we just didn’t realize it.  Let’s just say that for one who didn’t mind carpet in the kitchen, it wouldn’t have been a project.  We didn’t mind carpet in the kitchen because this was just supposed to be a temporary house while we waited for the opportunity to buy or build our dream home.

We figured we would paint some interior walls and call it good.  It sounded simple enough.  We definitely did not want a project!

If you had been watching us, without listening to what we were saying, you would have thought oh, these people wanted a project!  I kid you not, days after receiving the keys, the kitchen counter tiles were chiseled off, followed by the bathroom wall tiles getting torn down and linoleum pulled up, basement carpet ripped out, panels taken off the walls and more.

We tore out just about everything but the kitchen sink.  Wait, no, we did replace the kitchen sink too.  We laid a plastic cover over the coveted kitchen carpet, so as ….not to ruin it? (Not sure why that mattered, haha).

On that plastic sat a shop vac, air compressor, tool boxes with several power tools and hand tools, and who knows what else.  This is the kitchen that now had ugly slabs of cement for counters.  It was literally a construction zone.

And we lived there.

In the bathroom, you would find a beautiful new tile floor, and new tile going up in the shower.  Keywords going up.  The house only had one bathroom.  So since the one and only shower was still being worked on, we had no tub or shower.

And we lived there.

Our basement went from finished to what I called a hole.  No, literally, there was a two foot deep dirt hole drilled through the foundation so that we could put a sump pump in for a second bathroom.

If I’d have known at the time that I would be blogging about this later, I would have taken more pictures, but hopefully this gives you a good idea:

Everywhere around the house you would find boxes that had yet to be unpacked and put away.  And me?  I was working 2 days a week out of the home –something I had never done since having kids and was not accustomed to the juggle of being gone all day, then coming home to finish or start the next home project.

I’m not complaining (though I may have at the time), I’m just trying to paint a picture for you of what I mean when I say things were a little crazy.

I had this vision of what things would be like once we were all done with projects and settled in our house.  Life would pretty much be picture-perfect.

You see, I’d have a pristine clean home, every second of every day.  Three square meals planned and prepared from scratch –every day.  Respectful and responsible children who minded their manners –every day.

Just as soon as we got all settled, then life would be good, and then I’d have the time and energy to do family history work, go to the temple, and serve in my church and community.  I’d get up early to read my scriptures and study conference talks.  I was so excited to do all of those things that I love and bring me joy!  I just needed to wait until we were all settled, and life was not so crazy, because I just couldn’t function enough to think about them right then.

I also had big plans for weekly date nights with my husband, and great ideas to give both him and me regular one-on-one time with each of our children.   Plus, I was going to visit more with dear friends and family members.  But all that would fall into place later.  Once life… settled down.

Well, fast forward several years, and we have a stunning kitchen counter, with lovely refinished cupboards.  And that carpet in the kitchen?  Gone, and replaced with beautiful LVP.  Our bathroom is wonderfully updated and we enjoy showers in our own home.  Our basement is fully finished and furnished, with a second bathroom complete.  I haven’t worked outside the home in years, and I would say that things have definitely settled down from where they were.

But guess what?

My life is not picture-perfect.  I don’t have a pristine clean home, every second of every day.  (I don’t even have a “mostly clean” home each day.)  And as for three square meals consistently planned and prepared from scratch? Ha!!

Why not?  Because life keeps throwing curve balls.  Sometimes the interruptions disrupt life for a day, sometimes they throw you off balance for a year or more (like when your basement floods, and it takes forever to get back to “normal” –true story).

The reality is that neither my life, nor anyone’s life will ever be completely settled down or perfect.

There will always be something to use as an excuse for not reaching our goals. The question is, do we want an “excuse”?  Or do we want to do the things that bring us joy, even though there may be other things in our lives that make us want to crawl in a hole and never come out?

We have to make the choice, to live!

I think of Rapunzel from the movie Tangled.  She sings the cutest song about doing chores, reading, painting, playing guitar, knitting, cooking, doing puzzles, playing darts, papier-mache, ballet, chess, pottery, ventriloquism, and candle making.

She is doing so many wonderful things; developing countless talents, and yet she wonders “when will my life begin?”  (Sure, she’s locked in a tower and hasn’t met another person in her whole life aside from mother Gothel, but that’s beside the point).

What I’m saying is that if you keep holding out for tomorrow, your life is going to have a whole lot of empty yesterdays.

What’s that thing you’ve “been wanting” to do?  Dates with the hubby (and/or kids)?  Write a book?  Start a blog or YouTube channel?  Go on a vacation?  Get a dog?  Remodel the kitchen?  Take voice lessons?  Learn to play an instrument?  Take walks in the evening?  Whatever it is, do something today, or at least this week to get started.

Don’t have enough money for a vacation?  Something you can do today is, get a jar and label it with your destination of choice.  Now you have a place to start stuffing any spare dollar.  My sister has taken her family to Disneyland several times using this method –saving $5 here, and $20 there –it might not seem like much at the time, but if you are diligently adding to the jar, you will be surprised how fast it will all add up!

Sometimes when we are focused on the big picture of what we want, it’s hard to see how easy the first step is.

If you’re dreaming of weekly date nights, but don’t have a consistent evening to commit to, just pick one night (or lunch hour) this week that will work, and don’t worry about the big perfect picture.  Then do the same thing next week.

Ask around, and find someone who teaches the instrument you want to learn.

Just take the first step.

You can do whatever you want!  In another post, I tell you how I wished away many years of my life because I was looking forward to a life where “I could do whatever I wanted!”  When the truth is that I have always been able to do whatever I want.  I just didn’t realize it.

You have the time to do what you want.  The question to ponder is, how do you want to use your time?

If there’s a will, there’s a way!

If you don’t make it happen now, the time will pass regardless.  There will always be a reason to put it off for later.

During the very process of building this website, and getting all my blogs ready, I had a handful of reasons to “just wait a few months until things settle down”.  I remember forcing myself to be persistent, because I knew that NOW is the time!

I knew that if I waited until a more convenient time came around, it could be years before I saw this dream come true.  And if I waited for the “ideal” time, I believe that I would never do it, because there will always be something.  I also believe that we somewhat create and/or welcome the distractions that keep us from attaining our dreams because deep down, we know how great they are, and that scares us.  I have had my fair share of falling into this trap, and I know how sneaky it is!  (More on that later…)

I urge you to push through whatever is overwhelming or busy in your life right now, and do everything you can to make your dreams come true!

What are your dreams, and what has been keeping you from them?  Do you need help getting started?  I would love to hear from you, and I will help you in any way I can!

Love, and best wishes!!!

Kayleen

SDG