happy tuesday, everyone!

welcome, to another tour of an Old Towne Orange home.

i’m excited to share with you all, a home that just makes me feel happy.

when we first moved into our neighborhood, i was taking my son for a walk and walked by this house. to my surprise, someone called my name and when i turned around, standing there was one of my old students (from my first year of teaching).

i was so excited to see that they were our new neighbors!

now, when i was trying to think of what to title this post, a few names came to mind. the happy house. the colorful house. and then i decided that the fun house, was most appropriate. that’s not to say that i think it’s like a circus (although my friend, J, might feel like she lives in a circus at times because it is filled with bubbly, laughing little kids, puppies, a cat, and a guinea pig).

nope, instead this house is just plain fun. (i think you might agree)

it is colorful, vibrant, and just happy. it breathes energy into me, every time i walk through the door.

when i first toured the home a couple of years ago, the thing i noticed first and just LOVED was their brightly painted furniture.

(they were the very first people to buy one of my oversized ruler growth charts. i have them to thank for starting that lil business. thank you!)

the space just oozes personality, which makes sense because the people that live in the home also ooze personality.

they are cheerful, smart, warm, down-to-earth, and fun people.

they are also very real.

when i first arrived at the house to take pictures for this post, my friend was a little nervous. (i’m calling you out J!) 😉

she was worried her home wasn’t clean enough, decorated enough, perfect enough to be shown on the blog.

now let me just say, that i didn’t start out doing this weekly tour of houses, so that i could see perfect homes.

i’m not interested in perfect homes. sure, i love design and i love to see how people have decorated their homes.

but what i’m interested in are real homes.

homes that are lived in. that show history.

homes that tell me a story about the people that live and thrive inside.

see, i think a home is more than just a place where we eat, sleep, and drink our coffee (the last being the most important, of course).

it’s a chance to express who we are.

and how we see the world. or how we want our world to be. (in some cases, it’s a bright orange kitchen with ikat curtains! how fun!)

it’s an opportunity for us to show what we believe in.

and what matters most to us.

our homes show the details of our lives.

it’s how we put our spaces together that show what kind of people we are.

maybe your home is neutral because you like it to be quiet (figuratively speaking). maybe it has striped curtains or ruffled pillows. or dishes in the sink or laundry on the table (or maybe that’s just my house?). or your grandmother’s old hand-me-down furniture. maybe it’s all blue because blue makes you feel peaceful.

or maybe it has every color from the rainbow because bright colors just makes you feel happy. or maybe it’s not decorated at all and that’s okay.

(btw, they found, yes, found this awesome yellow cabinet just like this in their back alley. what a find!)

whatever your home is, it is your very own. to let perfection go. to be real.

whether you are renting or owning, it is the place where you get to tell the people that visit, this is ME!

so, whether your home is quiet, simple, elaborate, colorful, neutral or just plain fun.

be proud of your space. and remember that people usually want to come back not because you have shiny, clean floors, but because of how you made them feel.

or because you have cute little puppies running around that lick your toes.

so, thank you, B family for inviting me into your home. for being you. for being real. and, of course, for being fun!

ps. my son wants to come back to your fun house, again, soon! 😉