It's 8:30 on Monday morning. I'm sitting in my bright, roomy living room sipping my cup of coffee. The load of the day is washing away (it's Monday so that means I wash everyone's sheets) in the washing machine which sits in the bathroom just off the living room. Its familiar hum is comforting to me and its simple task feels luxurious. I bought laundry pods when we were traveling between our moves and then when we first moved in here we were taking our laundry to the laundromat and it simplified things. I've been using up my bag of them as well as putting fabric softener (another luxury I usually don't buy) in my loads. These simple pleasures and luxuries bring a smile to my face as I load the washer every day. What a luxury to have these extras and to be able to wash and dry clothes in my own home!
I rose at 6;45 this morning, showered and got ready for the day. Packed my husband's lunch and got him off to work at 7:30 and then the children and I started our morning work. Beds stripped instead of made, all the floors in the house swept and vacuumed, a load put in the washer, the children dressed, fed, and ready for the day. The children take care of the pets, we empty trash cans from each bathroom (3 in this house), unload the dishwasher, and dump the individual laundry baskets from each bedroom into the main one by the washing machine. It is amazing what all we can get done in an hour in the morning with all of us working together. Once the house is put to right order, I can sit down with a cup of coffee and enjoy a few moments while the children scatter to have a few minutes of play time. What a luxury to have a home to care for!
We start school at 9:30. This is the first house I've had an actual school room and what an incredible blessing it is! We have always done school around the kitchen table, which I love, but it has been so nice to have a place strictly for learning without the distractions of the rest of the home around us. It's right next to the boy's room upstairs which makes it easy to keep an eye on them while working on school. It is the least "done" room in the house with boxes still on the floor, a spare mattress leaning against the wall, and schoolbooks stacked on our folding table instead of on shelving. We have a map hung on the wall and two chairs and a folding table which is the current state of our school room. I have many dreams for how I want to bring it to life and I'm very excited to get to slowly decorate and create a cozy learning space for the children. What a luxury to have a space dedicated totally to learning!
School ends around 12-1pm for us and we make a simple lunch of leftovers or sandwiches. I have been keeping some food items in the house that I haven't bought on a regular basis in, well, maybe ever! Some lunch meat and cheese, chips, trail mix, almond milk (it is one of my son's favorite), orange juice, bacon or breakfast sausage, frozen pizzas, and coffee creamer are some of the things that we have kept in the house since moving that feel simply luxurious to me and make life so much easier in the food department. Since we live so rural, it is not an option to run out to the store and get something last minute for dinner or order take out for a busy or stressful day. Not that we did that very often, it's just not even an option here. Having things on hand like a frozen pizza or some simple foods has made it so nice on those days that extra work and poor planning wreak havoc on. Every morning as I make my coffee and pour in some creamer, I am reminded just how wonderful that simple luxury is. When I make up my husband's lunch with extra goodies and sandwiches with meat and cheese on them, I smile because I know these are "extras" and not necessities and it feels so amazing to have them on hand. What a luxury to not only have enough food to eat (most of the world doesn't) but to have foods simply because they are easy or enjoyable!
In the afternoons, the youngest naps while the older two do something quietly. Sometimes they look at books, paint or draw, or take their legos down into the basement to build where it won't disturb their brother's nap. I take this time to straighten the house after lunch, start any baking I need to do, do supper prep, wipe down bathrooms or mop depending on what needs done that day. If I have a slow day and everything is done, I might use that time to call a friend or do things online or read a book. Sometimes the children help me with extra projects around the house during this time or play outside. Soon enough it's time to start dinner and enjoy our evening routine. My husband gets home around 5:10-15 in the evening. We have been so enjoying his work schedule here. It will get busier during harvest season but it has been such a huge blessing to us. I can see his work from our home and it takes maybe 3-4 minutes to drive there. What a luxury to a good job, a good wage, good hours, and a short commute!
Our evening routines have been really simple so far. Cooking and eating dinner together and then cleaning and closing the kitchen for the night. After supper the rest of the dishes are put in the dishwasher that has been slowly filled after each meal. Anything that can't go in the dishwasher gets hand washed and then I set the delay and start it. What an amazing luxury to have! I have hardly ever lived in a home with a working dishwasher, and when I have had one, they haven't cleaned very well. This one cleans really well. I'm so thankful and feel utterly pampered! I also bought another luxury for our dishes since we have really hard water here. I didn't like all the water spots so I bought a rinse aid and it does amazing! It leaves everything shiny and spotless. Every night as I load my dishwasher and run it, I'm so thankful for these simple things that make my life so much easier. They are luxuries, not necessities, but oh, how grateful I am for them!
After dinner, the boys bathe in the upstairs bath while my daughter showers in the bathroom on the main floor. We have always shared shampoo and soap as we typically shared bathrooms but this house has 3 and we use all of them. One in the basement close to my husband and my bedroom, one on the main floor, and one upstairs where the children's rooms are. What an incredible luxury! I bought the boys a 3-in-1 soap to use in their bath upstairs and then a girly body wash and shampoo and conditioner for my daughter to keep in the shower she uses. She was so excited to have her own products to use! How luxurious to have 3 bathrooms to clean and 3 different types of soap and shampoo!
After baths and pajamas, teeth brushed and flossed, towels hung on the towel racks and bedrooms tidied before bed, the children pick out some books to read and pile into the boy's bedroom. I snuggle in bed with the youngest while my daughter sits on the rug and my older son gets in his bed. We read several books (we haven't started any bigger chapter books since our move) and then my daughter goes to bed in her room while I snuggle the youngest to sleep. I kiss and pray over each one and turn out their lights. What a luxury to be able to stay home with my children, day after day and year after year! To be able to have all these moments with them throughout the days, to visit with them and educate them, to train them and teach them how to run a house, to play with them and enjoy them. To watch them grow and develop. To help them and pray with them. I count myself among the richest people on earth to have this luxury!
What are some every day things you do or use that are luxuries? I'd love to hear all the little things that feel simply luxurious to you that others might take for granted!