I make it a habit to read books that help me in my role as homemaker in August.  September is a sort of New Year with school starting back up, and August is my month to try to get the house deep-cleaned, or the month to tackle a time-consuming project.  So over the years I have read books about frugality, organization, cleaning, laundry, healthy eating, etc. in August.

My husband shakes his head back and forth and sighs.  You see, he is a doer.  He bounds out of bed in the morning (usually) and has “the list” in his head, written down at home and written down at work.  He excels at prioritization, is realistic about the time it takes to accomplish a task, and hasn’t an ounce of procrastination in his body.  To his logical train of thought: if the house is dirty, clean it!   Just do it!
 
Well, um, my philosophy is more along the lines of Read About It First, Think Deep Thoughts, Talk about Doing It, before actually doing it.  This works well with a major lifestyle change like deciding to homeschool, but is probably overkill for dusting under the bed.

Nevertheless, I find that well-written books rev up my engine and get me excited, even if it’s about a new improvement such as using a squeegee to wash my windows instead of an old diaper or the good old newpaper-and-vinegar method. It recalibrates my brain and gets me on the right path again. My batteries get charged and I’m motivated to start ticking away. 

This August, thanks to Dana, I’m reading Edith Schaeffer’s The Hidden Art of Homemaking, Creative Ideas for Enriching Everyday Life.  What a treasure chest of thoughts, ideas and inspirations!!  This book is so much more than cooking, cleaning and laundry. 

I’m encouraged to search for beauty in all aspects, every medium of my everyday life and find ways to bring that beauty to the surface. Reading through it reminds me of my SIL Kathie, who is always putting a vase of freshly cut flowers on her table or arranging food to be served in an aesthetically pleasing manner. 

I’m thinking about ways of implementing some of the ideas I’ve read about so far.  Do you get into a rut of “same-ol-same-ol” like I do?  Like any improvement there is a time of intense focus and concentration and then the dreadful “slippage” starts, and, before you know it, it’s August again!

How do you *cultivate* beauty in your life?