1 Furber House - 4 Furbers = 1 Lonely Mom

Every summer for the last seven years, JP and the kids clear out of Alamo for a few weeks and go to the family beach house in Olympia Washington. That time has come, and they all leave early on Tuesday morning. The time on the beach is great for them, not so great for me, as my full time job keeps me home all summer.

So for ten days (until I meet up with everyone in Sun Valley to celebrate July 4th) I will roam my house alone, missing my family. The problem with a house like mine, is that 50 weeks of the year, it's a fabulous celebration of our happy life together. But two weeks of the year, everything in it makes me miss my family:

Pictures everywhere of the kids in various ages and stages
Kids art hanging on the walls
The map that's marked with all the Furber family travels
The big kitchen table with lots of chairs around it -- when my family's gone, I eat standing up in the kitchen. Too lonely to sit at that giant table without JP and the kids
The drawer full of plastic cups, plates and straws for Katie so she can get her own food when she wants to

Ugh. I'm dreading Tuesday morning, but dreading Tuesday night more when I come home from work to an empty house. I'm not usually a person who relishes the moments when I'm alone in my house (in fact I can't think of very many of those). I like the signs of life my family brings to my house: a little noise, a mess here and there, balls bouncing in the driveway, the occasional power struggle between Jack and Katie. The contrast of all that one day and a clean, quiet, empty house the next. Yuck.

Bon voyage, Furber family. Don't miss me as much as I'll miss you.

I Want to be India Hicks

I've always been inspired by India Hicks. She seems to me to be the ultimate working mother who always looks great, always has her house together, and has a balanced view of how work, family and interior design come together to make a happy life.


She lives in one of those plantations in the Bahamas that actually has a name (Hibiscus Hill)


and she's often photographed looking beautiful and surrounded by children


Some of my best ideas are inspired by India Hicks and the many articles and books that have been published about her. For example:
She's not afraid to show the quirky objects and collections that make up her life with her four children

She uses a chronicle of candid photography as a decorative element throughout her house



Her interiors are designed to be pretty, but also casual and comfortable for her family

I prefer to think she is like me and does it with a minimum of help from outside staff, but who knows and I'm not one to judge. Just substitute JP for David Flint Wood, and Andie, Jack and Katie for the Hicks children and I could slide right into Hibiscus Hill and live happily ever after.

Jasper, Put That Down!

JP and I have nearly mastered the art of decorating a house with kids in it. We follow a fairly consistent philosophy:

Only buy things that are easy to care for and look better with use
Pass on the fancy decorative objects for now and work it out with the family mementos
Be prepared: good organization is the thin thread that holds it all together
And most importantly, embrace the concept of Wabi Sabi, at least while the kids are still living with us.

However, the introduction of Jasper to the family (see post "Welcome to the Family Jasper, Please Keep Your Feet Off the Table") has inspired a whole new set of guidelines that were heretofore unnecessary when we were just decorating for three kids. For example:

Reconsider the concept of "easy to care for." Rustic furniture finishes are great for kids, but are no match for Jasper.
Look at every arrangement of furniture for it's climbing potential. We've walked into our office and found Jasper standing with all four legs on the 20" desktop three feet off the floor.
Put your $200 Zebra print pillows away. Kids can be trained not to chew on your $200 Zebra print pillows, Jasper cannot.
When you return from a trip, don't leave your suitcase open on the floor. Otherwise you'll find Jasper sleeping in it.
If you buy a cashmere scarf, put it away right away unless you want to see Jasper walking down the hall wearing it.

Because we love Jasper, we're accommodating him by making adjustments to our decor to keep him out of trouble. However, if I see him walking down the hall wearing my motorcycle boots...