On hot houses.

At school this week my eldest got to design and build (out of cardboard) his dream house. He really went to town, and created something which included a waterslide down to a swimming pool and a 3D cinema room. I thought it showed influence of the “13 Storey Treehouse” series, but he didn’t fancy a snail-racing room or whatever. Sadly the cardboard creation did not travel home well so it is now in the blue bin.

Anyway, this led to a conversation with the younger two about their own ideas for their dream houses. The surprise answer they both gave?

“I just really like this house.”

“Do you mean this house but back where we used to live?” I asked.

“No, I like it here – it’s nice and peaceful. I mean this house and right where we are.”

Well, that’s just lovely, isn’t it? So pleased everyone is adjusting to the new location: https://sarahhadfi.wixsite.com/website/post/on-location-location-location

Today I lit a candle on the table, trying to make an effort for my husband after he’s had a really tricky week, and one nameless boy set a paper towel on fire and then shouted for me in fright. I grabbed it and instead of dropping it on the table to harmlessly go out, I tried to take it across to the downstairs loo, but the draught caused by my movement caused it to disintegrate into burning fragments which rained down onto the hallway carpet (yep, the cream one) and had to be bashed out with a handy magazine, creating a random design of ashy scorch marks. The poor boy was traumatised by the thought that he had set the carpet on fire. I’m pretty sure that part was my fault though.

There are a few little tweaks I’d make to this house (the stained and now scorched cream hall carpet being one of them; another upstairs carpet is streaked with blue thanks to a smashed pot of slime owing to frantic bunk-bed building the day we thought we were going to be fostering...). I could learn from the boys on contentment though. https://sarahhadfi.wixsite.com/website/post/on-comedies-and-contentment

We had a brief flirtation with a cleaner, which didn’t work out because her childcare arrangements were even worse than mine tend to be, meaning she very rarely showed up. When she did, she left VERY shiny plug holes though. It made everyone say, “Ooooh!” because we are used to plug holes filled with porridge. I spent significant time trying to recreate the shiny plug hole experience this week, and failed. She clearly had a magic touch.

More on cleaners here: https://sarahhadfi.wixsite.com/website/post/on-finding-validation-in-strange-places

My husband is working on plans to convert the garage into more living space. The theory of a blank design slate and a cute new room like those fake Ikea showrooms is massively more appealing than the actual process of trying to, for example, make a staircase fit into a space no staircase should probably go.

When we were looking for a new house and it wasn’t going very smoothly, a friend encouraged me with reminders that I was an “alien and wanderer” here and “looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”

This is a pretty epic house. But it is ultimately not my home.

I think God was wise to go with the gemstone streets – wipe clean unlike our cream carpets. Although my eldest did say he was worried about his bike tyres in heaven.

More on contentment here: https://sarahhadfi.wixsite.com/website/post/on-comedies-and-contentment

And Revelation heaven: https://sarahhadfi.wixsite.com/website/post/on-dead-cats-and-september-lilacs