This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things

You know the saying ‘this is why we can’t have nice things.’ It usually refers to kids, pets, or a spouse and something they’ve to ‘ruin’ something in some way. A chip, a break, a scratch, spilled paint, whatever happened. I used to say that all the time. The kids and I are the pretty clumsy and have a tendency to spill, break, or drop things. It happens. I once dreamed of a day where I’d have furniture in perfect condition and my house was picture perfect. Not so much anymore.

Although I’d love a perfect home full of perfect furniture, everything tells a story. The paint specs on the kitchen table are from all the crafts the kids have made over the years. The chipped edging of our hardwood flooring is from the kids riding scooters, skateboards, and hoverboards through the house on rainy days. The pen on the wall is the pretty picture my niece wanted so bad to draw me. The patch of carpet that’s slightly shorter than the rest is from the nail polish my daughter spilt. The chips in the front of the entertainment center are from the kids learning to load and unload the dishwasher. The picture on the wall missing it’s glass is from the kids playing baseball in the living room. The nail polish on the coffee table is from my daughter learning to paint her nails. The list goes on.

Every piece of furniture and every mark, scratch, nick, chip, or paint spec tells a story. It holds a memory of our kids growing, playing, learning. Don’t get me wrong we still have nice things, but the wear and tear is real. So many memories were and are still being made in our house. A part of me still dreams of the perfect house with the perfect furniture, but I have my whole life for that. Right now we’ll continue to make memories. Continue to learn, grow, and slowly destroy our furniture. After all it’s not built to last forever and our kids are only little once.