Notes From This Episode:

Background

• I want to convince you that having beauty in the home is actually possible and critical.
  • It is critical to your own sense of self, it is critical in the tone of the home, and how you perceive your home and the respect it creates for the people in the home.

The Feminine Genius

• As women, we are the ones who create the atmosphere in the home.
• God made women to be thoughtful about beauty in the home, to see how we can enhance it.

The Importance of Beauty in the Home

• When you come into your place of dwelling, don’t you want to feel warmth and nurtured and just feeling like this is a special place?
• This is why we take care of the environment – for us, our children, and husband, so that they too feel the sense of warmth and nurture.

Clean First!

• It is awfully hard to add a little bit of beauty when your house is a mess.
• First and foremost, what does your bedroom look like?
  • Your bedroom has to be your first priority; it is the place where you and your husband engage in the most sacred activity you could possibly engage in.
  • Don’t make your bedroom the laundry dump room – make sure it is decluttered and clean.
  • We sometimes wonder why we are not in the mood.  Well, maybe it is the room that we go into.  It is a mess, and that creates stress in our minds.
• If you have not been keeping up on picking up in your home, do the main living areas first, and then when you have all that routine down, add a bedroom one at a time.
  • Depending on the age of your children, they should be picking up their own rooms.
• When you are ready to go to bed, commit to resetting the room each night.

Some Small Ideas to Help Add Beauty

• We want the good, the true, and the beautiful in our homes.
• Having fresh flowers around the home encourages you to continue to make things a little nicer in your home.
• Look around your walls.  Do you have thoughtful artwork or pictures hanging?
• Try adding scented candles – it can really add a nice boost.

Some Big Ways to Help Add Beauty

• Paint choices are so important – you want to feel relaxed and rested.
• Maybe you can add some nice throw pillows or an area rug that will just pull everything together and make you happy when you look at it.

Final Thoughts

• When we add beauty to the home, it is not just for us to feel good about where we work, where we live, where we love, and where we nurture.  It also teaches our children how to care for a home to love, nurture, and connect in.